CA AB2494

Establishes a Citizens Redistricting Commission in Kern County consisting of 14 members to adjust supervisorial district boundaries following each decennial federal census, with at least one member from each of the five existing supervisorial districts.

Commission members must meet qualifications including continuous voter registration for 5+ years, voting in at least one of the last three statewide elections, and having no political experience or family members with political experience within the past 10 years.

Selection process involves county elections official screening applicants, random drawing by the Auditor-Controller to select 8 commissioners (one from each supervisorial district plus three at-large), and the 8 commissioners appointing 6 additional members.

Requires commission to adopt redistricting plans following specified criteria in priority order: constitutional compliance and population equality, federal Voting Rights Act compliance, geographic contiguity, respect for communities of interest, and geographic compactness.

Mandates at least 7 public hearings before draft map creation and 2 additional public hearings after draft map release, with provisions for translation services, virtual participation, and public access to redistricting data and software.