The Tompkins County Legislature is inviting members of the community to apply for the volunteer role of redistricting commissioner. A group of nine volunteer commissioners will be selected to use newly released Census data to assess and propose changes to geographic areas represented by Tompkins County Legislators. Applications are being accepted through Wednesday September 15, 2021.
A diverse group of non-partisan, independent community members with interest in data analysis, geography, and/or equitable representation are being sought for the nine commissioner seats. Applicants should not be elected officeholders or work in positions impacted by the redistricting process to avoid conflicts of interest, though applicants may be personally registered with a political party.
The commission will be tasked with examining the newly released Census data for Tompkins County, drafting new geographic areas for representation by the Legislature, and engaging with community members throughout the process. A final report including recommendations will be presented to the Tompkins County Legislature for adoption. Commissioners will be assisted by Tompkins County staff.
Tompkins County will hold a virtual information session and Q&A for interested community members on Thursday, August 19, at 12:00pm. Please pre-register for the virtual session online before the event (https://bit.ly/37uEYTt). A recording of the session will be made available on the following day.
To apply, please use the Tompkins County Advisory Board application form, and enter “Redistricting Commission” as the name of the advisory group and “member” as the name of seat in the form’s top right hand corner. For more information on advisory boards, please refer to the Legislature’s website here. Commissioners will be selected by the end of December 2021 for work to begin in early 2022.