Former local senator keeping busy helping with legislative redistricting – Cache Valley Daily

Former senator Lyle Hillyard talks to Jason Williams on KVNU’s For the People

LOGAN — It’s a lengthy process and it only happens every ten years and it is now underway in Utah.  A committee has been formed to tackle redistricting. On KVNU’s For the People program on Thursday, former senator Lyle Hillyard, who is a member of the committee talked about how he got involved.

“President Adams of the senate called me and he said ‘I know you’re enjoying life without pressure, but we need help on this position’.  And he actually nominated me.  The way the commission is set up, the senate president nominates one, the speaker nominates one, the minority leader in the senate, and the minority leader in the house each recommend one. Then…the governor does one or two I think, and then the group picks another one,” he explained.

So, Hillyard said four of them are really there by political appointment – 2 Republicans/ 2 Democrats, and the others are appointed outside of that. He said the work is important and has a definite timeline.

“Normally the figures are out by the end of April, so you have April through about October, November. You can even go over. But now we’re not even going to get the figures until the middle of August…hopefully. And then we have to be done by the first of November because the idea is they want to have the redistricting done and the bill passed before January 1^st. Because on January 1^st, people running for office need to know their districts so they can start gathering signatures.”

The former senator said he feels good about every one working on the committee. He thinks they all have a legitimate idea that they want to do what’s right for the state of Utah.