State lawmakers are prepping to redraw legislative district boundaries. The redistricting commission will meet monthly until census data comes from the federal government.
Officials anticipate that data will arrive on September 30th. Once the data arrives they will start working on drawing the state’s 35 legislative district lines.
Representative Mike Derby sat on the redistricting commission in 2001. He foresees two challenges heading into this year’s redistricting commission.
“The late data from the census and then also the rapid growth we’ve had in the major urban areas,” Derby says. “That’s going to be our major challenges, I see.”
Some lawmakers anticipate the greater Sioux Falls area down into Lincoln County will get another legislative seat.
The commission will hold field hearings in mid-October across the state, including Rapid City, Mission, Mobridge, Aberdeen, Watertown and Sioux Falls.
