Bill would tweak voter-approved Missouri redistricting plan

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- A Missouri senator is seeking to tweak a voter-approved redistricting measure by allowing the public to submit suggestions to a state demographer responsible for drawing new districts.

The "Clean Missouri" constitutional amendment approved in November creates a new position of nonpartisan demographer to draft state House and Senate maps after the 2020 Census with a goal of achieving "partisan fairness" and "competitiveness."

A Senate committee heard testimony Tuesday on a bill by Sen. Dan Hegeman requiring the demographer to create an online portal for people to submit suggestions, data and potential maps. The public submissions would have to be accompanied by a disclosure of who funded them.

Hegeman said he wants to make the process publicly transparent.