SB 753: Ask your Senator to Urge Leadership to Bring Bill to a Vote to End Prison Gerrymandering

SB 753: Ask your Senator to Urge Leadership to Bring Bill to a Vote to End Prison Gerrymandering

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Time Range For Action Alert: 
Apr 01 2021 to Apr 21 2021

April 1, 2021

 

Senate Bill 753: An Act Concerning the Counting of Incarcerated Persons for Purposes of Determining Legislative Districts was voted out of committee this week.

If passed by the CT legislature, the bill would end the unfair practice of prison gerrymandering. LWVCT is working alongside the NAACP-CT, the ACLU of Connecticut, the Yale Rule of Law Clinic, and others to abolish this practice. See below to learn more.

Official Bill Page  Text of Bill

The Goal:

If passed by the CT legislature, SB 753 would end prison gerrymandering. LWVCT is working alongside the NAACP-CT, the ACLU of Connecticut, the Yale Rule of Law Clinic, and others to abolish this undemocratic and unfair practice. See below the action item for more info.

Action:

Before April 21, please contact your state senator and ask them to 1) urge Senate Leadership to bring this bill to a vote and 2) vote “YES” on SB 753 when it is raisedCC Senate Leaders on your email to your Connecticut Senators.

Not sure who your State Senator is? FIND YOUR STATE SENATOR

 

Connecticut Senate Leadership

SENATE PRESIDENT PRO TEMPORE: Martin M. Looney (D)New Haven
(860) 240-0375 Looney [at] senatedems.ct.gov
SENATE MAJORITY LEADER: Bob Duff (D) Norwalk
(860) 240-0414 Bob.Duff [at] cga.ct.gov
SENATE REPUBLICAN LEADER: Kevin C. Kelly (R) Stratford
(860) 240-8826 Kevin.Kelly [at] cga.ct.gov 
SENATE REPUBLICAN LEADER PRO TEMPORE: Paul Formica (R) Niantic
(860) 240-8800 Paul.Formica [at] cga.ct.gov
 
 

Sample language to adapt for an email, letter (or phone call):

SUBJECT: Please urge senate leaders to bring SB 753 for a vote and vote YES.
Dear Senator [Name]:
I am [ Your Name] from [ Your Town or Zip Code] and I write to ask you to urge senate leaders to bring SB 753 for a vote and vote "YES" on the bill.
Counting the inhabitants of prisons as living at the prisons’ address, rather than their home addresses, is prison gerrymandering. It is time for Connecticut to end this unfair and undemocratic practice by passing SB 753.
By counting incarcerated people in prison towns where they have no connections, prison gerrymandering effectively denies incarcerated people meaningful representation, and undermines their reentry into their home communities where they should be counted.  It unfairly inflates the population and political power of districts in which prisons are located at the expense of urban areas, in violation of the U.S. Constitution’s “one person, one vote” standard. 
Sincerely,
[Your Name]
[Your Town or Zip Code]

 

Background: Why LWVCT is committed to abolishing Prison Gerrymandering

  • Prison gerrymandering unfairly inflates the population and political power of districts in which prisons are located at the expense of urban areas, in violation of the U.S. Constitution’s “one person, one vote” standard. 
  • By counting incarcerated people in prison towns where they have no connections, prison gerrymandering effectively denies incarcerated people meaningful representation, and undermines their reentry into their home communities where they should be counted. 
  • Prison gerrymandering has a pronounced racial effect, harming people and communities of color. 
  • Legislation to end prison gerrymandering is funding-neutral. The current bill being considered this session to end prison gerrymandering, S.B. 753, applies only to redistricting, and not to funding. 

LEARN MORE

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Issues referenced by this action alert: