Redistricting plan upheld
HARRISBURG - The state Supreme Court upheld a reapportionment plan in a unanimous decision Wednesday that will shift a state House district in Lackawanna County to neighboring Monroe County and split Hazle and Hanover townships between Luzerne County House districts.
The court decision clears the way for candidates to run in redrawn boundaries for the 203 House districts and 50 Senate districts starting with the 2014 election. The new boundaries take effect after the November 2014 election.
The court upheld a revised reapportionment plan approved last June by the Legislative Reapportionment Commission that also moves the 40th Senate District based in Allegheny County to Monroe County to reflect population shifts.
The decision creates a potential scenario where freshmen Democratic Reps. Kevin Haggerty, D-112, Dunmore; and Frank Farina, D-115, Jessup, could wind up competing against each other to represent the same district if both seek re-election.
Faster-growing Monroe County gains the 115th District. The Midvalley, where Mr. Farina resides, shifts to the 112th.
Voters in 2014 will see these additional changes in Northeast Pennsylvania districts:
- The city of Scranton will continue to be split between the 112th District currently represented by Mr. Haggerty and the 113th District currently represented by Democratic Rep. Marty Flynn.
- The 117th District currently represented by Republican Rep. Karen Boback, Harveys Lake, will pick up Benton, La Plume and West Abington townships and Dalton borough in Lackawanna County and include all of Wyoming County.
- The 118th District currently represented by Democratic Rep. Mike Carroll, Avoca, will include the Pittston area and pick up the North Pocono School District municipalities in Lackawanna County.
- The 114th District currently represented by Democratic Rep. Sid Michaels Kavulich, Taylor, will include Carbondale, Clarks Summit, Dickson City and the northeast corner of Lackawanna County.
- Although the 2014 plan reduces the number of split municipalities, it still creates some municipal splits such as Hazle Twp., split between the 116th and 119th House districts in Luzerne County; Hanover Twp., split between the 119th and 121st House districts in Luzerne County; and the city of Pottsville, split between the 123rd and 125th House districts in Schuylkill County.
- The 116th District currently represented by Republican Rep. Tarah Toohil, Butler Twp., will include Hazleton and District 1 in Hazle Twp., as well as other Luzerne County municipalities.
- The 119th District currently represented by Democratic Rep. Gerald Mullery, Newport Twp., will include Nanticoke, Districts 2, 3, 4 and 5 in Hazle Twp., Ward 6 in Hanover Twp. and other Luzerne County municipalities.
- The 121st District represented by Democratic Rep. Eddie Day Pashinski, Wilkes-Barre, will include Wilkes-Barre, Wards 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 7 in Hanover Twp. and other Luzerne County municipalities.
- The 120th District represented by Democratic Rep. Phyllis Mundy, Kingston, will include Kingston, Forty Fort and other Luzerne County municipalities.
- The 22nd Senate District represented by Democratic Sen. John Blake, Archbald, will include all of Lackawanna County, the boroughs of Avoca, Dupont and Duryea and Pittston Twp. in Luzerne County and Barrett, Coolbaugh and Price townships in Monroe County. Paradise Twp., where Mount Airy Casino Resort is located, shifts to the 40th Senate District.
- The 20th Senate District represented by Republican Sen. Lisa Baker, Lehman Twp., will include the central swath of Luzerne County, all of Pike, Wayne and Wyoming counties and part of Susquehanna County.
- The 14th Senate District represented by Democratic Sen. John Yudichak, Nanticoke, will include the cities of Wilkes-Barre, Hazleton and Pittston and their surrounding municipalities and all of Carbon County.
An original reapportionment plan was thrown out by the Supreme Court in February 2012 on grounds it violated the state constitution by splitting two many municipalities. That led the reapportionment commission to come up with the revised plan reducing the number of splits while legislative candidates ran in the 2012 election on district boundaries in effect since 2002.
"We can now look forward to the 2014 cycle to be conducted on more accurate lines based on the more recent (2010) census," said Senate Majority Leader Dominic Pileggi, R-9, Chester.
Contact the writer: rswift@timesshamrock.com