AGO 1989-025.

• Case Date: February 24, 1989
• Court: Kansas

Kansas Attorney General Opinions 1989. AGO 1989-025. February 24, 1989ATTORNEY GENERAL OPINION NO. 89-25Leonard J. Dix Rooks County Attorney Courthouse Stockton, Kansas 67669 Re: Counties and County Officers--Election Commissioners--Duty to Establish Precinct Boundaries Counties and County Officers--County Commissioners--Rearrangement of Commissioner Districts Synopsis: The doctrine of "one person-one vote" applies to local units of government through the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment of the United States Constitution. Kansas law provides that it is the duty of boards of county commissioners to redistrict their members districts according to population. The boundaries of county commission districts must follow the boundaries of election precincts. It is the duty of the county election officer to establish precinct boundaries. The great inequities of population in the election precincts in Rooks county prevent the county commissioners from redrawing their districts to meet the constitutional requirements of equal representation. K.S.A. 1988 Supp. 25-26a03 prohibits county election officers from changing or creating new election precinct boundaries until December 1, 1990. To the extent that K.S.A. 1988 Supp. 25-26a03 prevents the Rooks county commissioners from establishing commission districts that meet federal constitutional requirements, this statute is unconstitutional. Cited herein: K.S.A. 19-204; 19-3424; 19-3426; K.S.A. 1988 Supp. 25-26a03; K.S.A. 25-2702; 25-2702a; U.S. Const., Amendment XIV. * * * Dear Mr. Dix: As Rooks County Attorney, you have asked our opinion regarding rearranging the districts of the Rooks County Board of County Commissioners. Specifically, you inquire whether commission districts can be drawn to comply with the constitutional requirements of equal representation. The United States Supreme Court has held that the doctrine of "one person, one vote" applies to local units of government through the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment of the United States Constitution. Avery v. Midland County, Texas, 390 U.S. 474, 88 S.Ct. 1114, 20 L.Ed.2d 45 (1968); Reynolds v. Sims, 377 U.S. 533, 84 S.Ct. 1362, 12 L.Ed.2d 506 (1964). K.S.A. 19-204(a) provides as follows:

"The board of county commissioners shall, on the day of the organization of the board or as soon

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