Illinois Code § 5

§ 5.

Findings. In enacting this redistricting plan, the General Assembly finds and declares all of the following: (a) Under Section 5-5 of the Property Tax Code, in the year following each federal decennial census year, the General Assembly is required to redistrict the 3 districts for the board of review in each county with 3,000,000 or more inhabitants. (b) The United States Census Bureau failed to deliver the 2020 Census Public Law 94-171 population data to the States, including Illinois, by March 31, 2021 as required by the federal Census Act and has announced it will release the 2020 Census Public Law 94-171 population data by September 30, 2021. (c) The United States Census Bureau's 2015-2019 American Community Survey data is the most accurate, recent low-level population data available to the Illinois public in the spring of 2021 and was relied upon by the General Assembly in establishing the boundaries for the districts described in this Act. The total resident population of Illinois according to the 2015-2019 American Community Survey data was 12,770,577, which is approximately 0.3% less than the total resident population from the 2020 Census. (d) In establishing boundaries for Cook County Board of Review districts ("Districts"), the following redistricting principles were taken into account: (1) each of the Districts was drawn to be substantially equal in population; (2) each of the Districts was drawn to be consistent with the United States Constitution; (3) each of the Districts was drawn to be consistent with the federal Voting Rights Act, where applicable; (4) each of the Districts was drawn to be compact and contiguous; and (5) each of the Districts was drawn taking into account the partisan composition of the District and of the Plan itself. (e) In addition to the redistricting principles set forth in subsection (d), each of the Districts contained was drawn to reflect a balance of the following redistricting principles: the preservation of the core or boundaries of the existing Districts; the preservation of communities of interest; respect for county, township, municipal, ward, and other political subdivision boundaries; the maintenance of incumbent-constituent relationships and tracking of population migration; proposals or other input submitted by members of the public and stakeholder groups; public hearing testimony; other incumbent requests; respect for geographic features and natural or logical boundaries; and other redistricting principles recognized by State and federal court decisions. (Source: P.A. 102-12, eff. 6-4-21.)