The ACSA Board of Directors has adopted a Support position for Proposition 11 on the upcoming November ballot.

Prop. 11 is the redistricting proposal and is supported by Gov. Schwarzenegger. The proposition in essence removes the power of shaping legislative districts every 10 years from the state Legislature and gives it to a 14-member redistricting commission. The commission would include five Republicans, five Democrats and four members not affiliated with either party.

“As the Legislature has become more politically polarized education has suffered; that’s a direct result of the current reapportionment process,” said ACSA Executive Director Bob Wells. “ACSA members and California education would benefit greatly if the Legislature contained more balanced, moderate voices, and we believe that Prop. 11 would help in this regard.”

Every decade, after the U.S. Census, the boundaries for legislative and Congressional districts are readjusted. The purpose is to have districts that are “reasonably equal” in population.

Prop. 11 supporters posit that if districts were more competitive it would lead to candidates who are more moderate in their positions since they would have to presumably appeal to a wider range of voters.

Another change Prop. 11 would bring is to make the redistricting process much more public and transparent. 

Currently, the process takes place in negotiations behind closed doors. The Prop. 11 commission would be required to hold hearings and accept public comment. Each redistricting map would be put on a referendum for voter approval. A new commission would be named for each future redistricting.