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June 28, 2022

California Voting Rights Act

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Transitioning to Trustee Areas

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School District Trustee Election Systems

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At Large

At-Large Election System is where voters of the entire jurisdiction elect all members to the governing board. There are no Trustee Areas

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From Trustee Area

From Trustee Area Election System is where each district is divided into trustee areas and the governing board members (one from each trustee area) are elected by voters from the entire jurisdiction district

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By-Trustee Area

By-Trustee Area Election System is where a district is divided into trustee areas and one governing board member is elected by only the registered voters in that trustee area

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California Voting Rights Act (CVRA)

California Voting Rights Act (CVRA)

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  • Protected Class
    • A protected class is a group of people sharing a common trait who are legally protected from being discriminated against based on that trait. Examples of protected traits include race, gender, age, disability, and veteran status

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  • A violation [of the CVRA] is established if it is shown that racially polarized voting occurs in elections for members of the governing body

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  • Proof of an intent on the part of the voters or elected officials to discriminate against a protected class is not required �
  • The only effective way to comply is to have By-Trustee Elections
    • A district technically can have a different election system, but legal consensus is any other system would leave a district vulnerable to lawsuits

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Trustee Transition Process

Primary Considerations

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    • Comply with CVRA
      • Achieve population equality as nearly as is practicable
        • Total population
        • Not Citizens nor Voters

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      • Total Population/Trustee Areas = Average
        • 148,520/5 = 29,704

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      • Each Trustee Area must be less than 10% between smallest to largest (Evenwel v. Abbott(2016))

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Trustee Transition Process

Secondary Considerations

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  • Comply with the Federal Voting Rights Act
    • “Cracking” Prohibited
      • Splitting like minded voters into several areas to reduce voting power
    • “Packing” Prohibited
      • Packing like minded voters into one area to reduce voting powers in other areas

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  • Voting districts shall be geographically contiguous and compact
    • Attempt to make compact and follow existing administrative lines if possible

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  • Maintain local communities of interests
    • Communities covered by voting rights act “Protected Class”
      • Race (While race is a community of interest, it cannot be the predominant factor in drawing districts)
      • Language
      • Rural or agricultural

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  • Location of incumbents may not be sole factor

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Trustee Transition Process

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  • Hold two (2) public hearings to gather community input on the composition of the trustee area maps before draft maps are drawn
    • Inform community of process
    • Get input from community about composition of maps

 

  • Publish at least one (1) proposed trustee area map for consideration by the community
    • “Elections Code section 10010 requires that maps must be public at least 7 days prior to consideration at a public hearing. “

 

  • Publish the potential sequence of elections to show how the staggered terms will impact individual trustee areas.

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  • Hold at least two (2) additional public hearings to gather input on proposed map(s) and election sequencing
    • If revisions are made, publish for at least 7 days prior to meetings

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Trustee Transition Process

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  • After holding the required public hearings, the Board will select a trustee area map and adopt a resolution requesting approval from the Los Angeles County Office of Education Committee on School District Reorganization (“County Committee”) of the trustee area map and the District’s transition to by-trustee area elections.

 

  • The County Committee will hold at least one public hearing within the District’s jurisdictional boundaries to seek community input before deciding whether to approve the District’s selected trustee area map and transition to by-trustee area elections.
    • If approved by the County Committee, by-trustee area elections for the District’s Board will begin with the 2024 election.

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The District’s transition to a by-trustee area elections system will not change school attendance boundaries.

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Centinela Valley UHSD Demographics

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Source: Census Bureau PL-94; Statewide Database, University of California Berkley Law, Center for Research

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Centinela Valley UHSD Demographics

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Source: Census Bureau CVAP; Statewide Database, University of California Berkley Law, Center for Research

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Data Utilized for Trustee Area Creation

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  • Census Block Data
    • 2020 census data
    • Used to determine Total Population of each Trustee Area
    • Adjusted by the State of California to place incarcerated population back to home area
      • Source: Census Bureau PL-94; Statewide Database, University of California Berkley Law, Center for Research

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  • American Community Survey – Citizens Voting Age Population (CVAP)
    • 5-year estimates released annually
      • Latest 2015-2019 (released in February 2021)
    • Based on voting age population
    • Used to as a reference source
      • Source: Census Bureau CVAP; Statewide Database, University of California Berkley Law, Center for Research

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Data Utilized for Trustee Area Creation

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  • Census Blocks
    • Smallest level of geography
    • Based upon:
      • Visible features:
        • Roads, rivers, railroad tracks
      • Non-Visible features:
        • Property lines, cities, townships
    • Adjusted every 10 years

Some Census Blocks are Irregularly Shaped

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Scope of Work

Davis Demographics Services

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  • Create 2-3 scenarios for Board and public Review
    • Create PDF Maps for distribution

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  • Available to virtually attend/present at public outreach meetings

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  • Potentially create 1-2 additional Scenarios
    • PDF maps
    • If directed by Board
    • Based upon Board and public feedback

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  • Provide GIS data to District to submit to Los Angeles County

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Proposed Schedule

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First Step Tonight

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  • Input from the Board
    • Direction, ideas, requests
    • Information about Areas of Interest

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  • Input from the public
    • Provided during the public comment portion of the meeting

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Questions

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