{"data":{"id":"us-ny/n.y.-const.-art.-iii-4","jurisdiction":"us-ny","citation":"N.Y. Const. art. III, § 4","heading":"Readjustments and reapportionments; when federal census to control","body":"§ 4. (a) Except as herein otherwise provided, the federal census taken\nin the year nineteen hundred thirty and each federal census taken\ndecennially thereafter shall be controlling as to the number of\ninhabitants in the state or any part thereof for the purposes of the\napportionment of members of assembly and readjustment or alteration of\nsenate and assembly districts next occurring, in so far as such census\nand the tabulation thereof purport to give the information necessary\ntherefor. The legislature, by law, shall provide for the making and\ntabulation by state authorities of an enumeration of the inhabitants of\nthe entire state to be used for such purposes, instead of a federal\ncensus, if the taking of a federal census in any tenth year from the\nyear nineteen hundred thirty be omitted or if the federal census fails\nto show the number of aliens or Indians not taxed. If a federal census,\nthough giving the requisite information as to the state at large, fails\nto give the information as to any civil or territorial divisions which\nis required to be known for such purposes, the legislature, by law,\nshall provide for such an enumeration of the inhabitants of such parts\nof the state only as may be necessary, which shall supersede in part the\nfederal census and be used in connection therewith for such purposes.\nThe legislature, by law, may provide in its discretion for an\nenumeration by state authorities of the inhabitants of the state, to be\nused for such purposes, in place of a federal census, when the return of\na decennial federal census is delayed so that it is not available at the\nbeginning of the regular session of the legislature in the second year\nafter the year nineteen hundred thirty or after any tenth year\ntherefrom, or if an apportionment of members of assembly and\nreadjustment or alteration of senate districts is not made at or before\nsuch a session. At the regular session in the year nineteen hundred\nthirty-two, and at the first regular session after the year nineteen\nhundred forty and after each tenth year therefrom the senate districts\nshall be readjusted or altered, but if, in any decade, counting from and\nincluding that which begins with the year nineteen hundred thirty-one,\nsuch a readjustment or alteration is not made at the time above\nprescribed, it shall be made at a subsequent session occurring not later\nthan the sixth year of such decade, meaning not later than nineteen\nhundred thirty-six, nineteen hundred forty-six, nineteen hundred\nfifty-six, and so on; provided, however, that if such districts shall\nhave been readjusted or altered by law in either of the years nineteen\nhundred thirty or nineteen hundred thirty-one, they shall remain\nunaltered until the first regular session after the year nineteen\nhundred forty.  No town, except a town having more than a full ratio of\napportionment, and no block in a city inclosed by streets or public\nways, shall be divided in the formation of senate districts. In the\nreapportionment of senate districts, no district shall contain a greater\nexcess in population over an adjoining district in the same county, than\nthe population of a town or block therein adjoining such district.\nCounties, towns or blocks which, from their location, may be included in\neither of two districts, shall be so placed as to make said districts\nmost nearly equal in number of inhabitants, excluding aliens.\n  No county shall have four or more senators unless it shall have a full\nratio for each senator. No county shall have more than one-third of all\nthe senators; and no two counties or the territory thereof as now\norganized, which are adjoining counties, or which are separated only by\npublic waters, shall have more than one-half of all the senators.\n  (b) The independent redistricting commission established pursuant to\nsection five-b of this article shall prepare a redistricting plan to\nestablish senate, assembly, and congressional districts every ten years\ncommencing in two thousand twenty-one, and shall submit to the\nlegislature such plan and the implementing legislation therefor on or\nbefore January first or as soon as practicable thereafter but no later\nthan January fifteenth in the year ending in two beginning in two\nthousand twenty-two.  The redistricting plans for the assembly and the\nsenate shall be contained in and voted upon by the legislature in a\nsingle bill, and the congressional district plan may be included in the\nsame bill if the legislature chooses to do so.  The implementing\nlegislation shall be voted upon, without amendment, by the senate or the\nassembly and if approved by the first house voting upon it, such\nlegislation shall be delivered to the other house immediately to be\nvoted upon without amendment.  If approved by both houses, such\nlegislation shall be presented to the governor for action.\n  If either house shall fail to approve the legislation implementing the\nfirst redistricting plan, or the governor shall veto such legislation\nand the legislature shall fail to override such veto, each house or the\ngovernor if he or she vetoes it, shall notify the commission that such\nlegislation has been disapproved.  Within fifteen days of such\nnotification and in no case later than February twenty-eighth, the\nredistricting commission shall prepare and submit to the legislature a\nsecond redistricting plan and the necessary implementing legislation for\nsuch plan.  Such legislation shall be voted upon, without amendment, by\nthe senate or the assembly and, if approved by the first house voting\nupon it, such legislation shall be delivered to the other house\nimmediately to be voted upon without amendment.  If approved by both\nhouses, such legislation shall be presented to the governor for action.\n  If either house shall fail to approve the legislation implementing the\nsecond redistricting plan, or the governor shall veto such legislation\nand the legislature shall fail to override such veto, each house shall\nintroduce such implementing legislation with any amendments each house\nof the legislature deems necessary.  All such amendments shall comply\nwith the provisions of this article.  If approved by both houses, such\nlegislation shall be presented to the governor for action.\n  All votes by the senate or assembly on any redistricting plan\nlegislation pursuant to this article shall be conducted in accordance\nwith the following rules:\n  (1) In the event that the speaker of the assembly and the temporary\npresident of the senate are members of two different political parties,\napproval of legislation submitted by the independent redistricting\ncommission pursuant to subdivision (f) of section five-b of this article\nshall require the vote in support of its passage by at least a majority\nof the members elected to each house.\n  (2) In the event that the speaker of the assembly and the temporary\npresident of the senate are members of two different political parties,\napproval of legislation submitted by the independent redistricting\ncommission pursuant to subdivision (g) of section five-b of this article\nshall require the vote in support of its passage by at least sixty\npercent of the members elected to each house.\n  (3) In the event that the speaker of the assembly and the temporary\npresident of the senate are members of the same political party,\napproval of legislation submitted by the independent redistricting\ncommission pursuant to subdivision (f) or (g) of section five-b of this\narticle shall require the vote in support of its passage by at least\ntwo-thirds of the members elected to each house.\n  (c) Subject to the requirements of the federal constitution and\nstatutes and in compliance with state constitutional requirements, the\nfollowing principles shall be used in the creation of state senate and\nstate assembly districts and congressional districts:\n  (1) When drawing district lines, the commission shall consider whether\nsuch lines would result in the denial or abridgement of racial or\nlanguage minority voting rights, and districts shall not be drawn to\nhave the purpose of, nor shall they result in, the denial or abridgement\nof such rights. Districts shall be drawn so that, based on the totality\nof the circumstances, racial or minority language groups do not have\nless opportunity to participate in the political process than other\nmembers of the electorate and to elect representatives of their choice.\n  (2) To the extent practicable, districts shall contain as nearly as\nmay be an equal number of inhabitants.  For each district that deviates\nfrom this requirement, the commission shall provide a specific public\nexplanation as to why such deviation exists.\n  (3) Each district shall consist of contiguous territory.\n  (4) Each district shall be as compact in form as practicable.\n  (5) Districts shall not be drawn to discourage competition or for the\npurpose of favoring or disfavoring incumbents or other particular\ncandidates or political parties. The commission shall consider the\nmaintenance of cores of existing districts, of pre-existing political\nsubdivisions, including counties, cities, and towns, and of communities\nof interest.\n  (6) In drawing senate districts, towns or blocks which, from their\nlocation may be included in either of two districts, shall be so placed\nas to make said districts most nearly equal in number of inhabitants.\nThe requirements that senate districts not divide counties or towns, as\nwell as the 'block-on-border' and 'town-on-border' rules, shall remain\nin effect.\n  During the preparation of the redistricting plan, the independent\nredistricting commission shall conduct not less than one public hearing\non proposals for the redistricting of congressional and state\nlegislative districts in each of the following (i) cities: Albany,\nBuffalo, Syracuse, Rochester, and White Plains; and (ii) counties:\nBronx, Kings, New York, Queens, Richmond, Nassau, and Suffolk. Notice of\nall such hearings shall be widely published using the best available\nmeans and media a reasonable time before every hearing. At least thirty\ndays prior to the first public hearing and in any event no later than\nSeptember fifteenth of the year ending in one or as soon as practicable\nthereafter, the independent redistricting commission shall make widely\navailable to the public, in print form and using the best available\ntechnology, its draft redistricting plans, relevant data, and related\ninformation. Such plans, data, and information shall be in a form that\nallows and facilitates their use by the public to review, analyze, and\ncomment upon such plans and to develop alternative redistricting plans\nfor presentation to the commission at the public hearings. The\nindependent redistricting commission shall report the findings of all\nsuch hearings to the legislature upon submission of a redistricting\nplan.\n  (d) The ratio for apportioning senators shall always be obtained by\ndividing the number of inhabitants, excluding aliens, by fifty, and the\nsenate shall always be composed of fifty members, except that if any\ncounty having three or more senators at the time of any apportionment\nshall be entitled on such ratio to an additional senator or senators,\nsuch additional senator or senators shall be given to such county in\naddition to the fifty senators, and the whole number of senators shall\nbe increased to that extent.\n  The senate districts, including the present ones, as existing\nimmediately before the enactment of a law readjusting or altering the\nsenate districts, shall continue to be the senate districts of the state\nuntil the expirations of the terms of the senators then in office,\nexcept for the purpose of an election of senators for full terms\nbeginning at such expirations, and for the formation of assembly\ndistricts.\n  (e) The process for redistricting congressional and state legislative\ndistricts established by this section and sections five and five-b of\nthis article shall govern redistricting in this state except to the\nextent that a court is required to order the adoption of, or changes to,\na redistricting plan as a remedy for a violation of law.\n  A reapportionment plan and the districts contained in such plan shall\nbe in force until the effective date of a plan based upon the subsequent\nfederal decennial census taken in a year ending in zero unless modified\npursuant to court order.","path":["Constitution","Article III. Legislature"],"source_url":"https://legislation.nysenate.gov/api/3/laws/CNS/A3S4","current_through":"2026-09-11","vintage":"","retrieved_at":"2026-09-14T19:32:44Z","sha256":"833bf9adcba7be0b2db2d15f68155c1269d60a32bbcf78b8e78569e6843d3edc","source_id":"us-ny","stale":false,"prev":"us-ny/n.y.-const.-art.-iii-3","next":"us-ny/n.y.-const.-art.-iii-5"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}