Smith County Encouraging Redistricting Input
Posted/updated on: June 21, 2011 at 5:22 pm
TYLER — Smith County holds two public hearings today in the Courthouse Annex as it continues to seek redistricting input from the public. One hearing was this morning at 9:30; the other is this afternoon at 5:30. You can also submit input through the County’s redistricting web page. Go to http://www.smith-county.com to view that page.
According to the Census Bureau the Smith County population grew to 209,714 in 2010, making the ideal population for the four commissioner precincts 52,429. According to the initial data presented to the court, only County precincts 1 and 4 will be affected by the proposed new boundaries. Initial information showed Precinct 1 experienced significant growth and is more than 10 percent above its ideal population, while Precinct 4 needs about 9.5% more population. Each commissioner precinct must be within 10% deviation from the ideal population. The new population numbers create a 19.5% imbalance. The proposed plan will address the imbalance and bring Precinct 4 under the 10% threshold.
