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Proceedings and Debates of the 1967 Constitutional Convention
Volume 104, Volume 1, Debates 3081   View pdf image (33K)
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[Jan. 2] DEBATES 3081

is left in the discretion of the General As-
sembly.

THE PRESIDENT: Delegate Sosnowski.

DELEGATE SOSNOWSKI: Delegate
Gallagher, what you are actually trying to
tell us is that the figures will be estimated
unless given —

THE PRESIDENT: Delegate Sosnowski,
the Chair suggests you are discussing a
question that arises under the schedule of
transitional provisions which is not before
us now and most of the delegates do not
have in front of them. That is not the ques-
tion involved on the Amendment No. 15
which is now before us.

DELEGATE SOSNOWSKI: What I am
trying to do is get an explanation of what
the transitional factor is going to be in
order to vote intelligently on Amendment
J.

THE PRESIDENT: You are entitled to
any information you desire. I merely sug-
gest to you the answers to that will not
tell you what the Committee of the Whole
and ultimately this Convention may do as
to the schedule of transitional provisions.

Delegate Sosnowski.

DELEGATE SOSNOWSKI: Was it not
Delegate Gallagher who stated that the
transitional provisions will clear up the
understanding.

THE PRESIDENT: I think he was stat-
ing the reason why the year 1970 was lim-
ited in this amendment.

Delegate Gallagher.

DELEGATE GALLAGHER: You are
correct, Mr. Chairman. In other words, the
question of when we shall have redistrict-
ing between now and 1082 we attempt to
take care of in the transitory provisions.
However, that is subject to approval by
this body and if the body wants another
time or another avenue of determining
those figures it has that right.

THE PRESIDENT: Delegate Malkus.

DELEGATE MALKUS: Mr. President,
will the Chairman yield to a question?

THE PRESIDENT: Delegate Gallagher.
DELEGATE GALLAGHER: Yes, sir.
THE PRESIDENT: Delegate Malkus.

DELEGATE MALKUS: Mr. Chairman,
in setting the date for the redistricting of
the House of Representatives, the year
1972 was used. Yet in reapportioning the

General Assembly of Maryland you have
used the year 1970. In order that we may
prepare proper amendments for the tradi-
tional article, what is the philosophy in
the change in difference between the two
dates ?

THE PRESIDENT: Delegate Gallagher.

DELEGATE GALLAGHER: I presume
you want to know why we do not require,
at least at this stage of the game, redis-
tricting in 1972 for the state bodies, House
of Delegates and Senate, as we do for the
Congress of the United States, why we go
to 1970 for the General Assembly but wait
until 1972 for the Congress.

The reason primarily is this. Even
though the General Assembly of Maryland
was reapportioned a few short years ago,
the existing deviation from mean popula-
tion for each of the house districts and
senate districts of the State is a 5 per cent
deviation altogether.

This means, therefore, that even with
redistricting and reapportionment, the
present General Assembly using 1960 Fed-
eral Census figures, is grossly out of the
area of a fifteen per cent deviation which
we have already suggested is the ideal be-
yond which we would not want to trespass
in the future. Take the federal congres-
sional districts, take each of those districts
of this State which were redistricted by
the court decision two years ago — they
have a deviation of less than two per cent.
What I am suggesting is that the General
Assembly of Maryland is in far greater
need of redistricting because of the viola-
tion of the equal population formula than
is the Congress of the United States.

So we would provide, therefore, that the
General Assembly shall be reapportioned
and redistricted as promptly as possible
two years prior to congressional districts.

THE PRESIDENT: Delegate Malkus.

DELEGATE MALKUS: Will the Chair-
man again yield ?

DELEGATE GALLAGHER: Yes, sir.

DELEGATE MALKUS: Is it not true
that the same figures were used to establish
the new congTessional districts as were
used for the creation of reapportionment ?

THE PRESIDENT: Delegate Gallagher.

DELEGATE GALLAGHER: You are
correct, Senator Malkus, but the deviations
allowed for house and senate districts go
sixty-five per cent from the average dis-
trict, but the deviations for congressional



 

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Proceedings and Debates of the 1967 Constitutional Convention
Volume 104, Volume 1, Debates 3081   View pdf image (33K)
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