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MONTGOMERY, Alabama — The legislative reapportionment committee today approved a schedule for holding five public hearings over three days to get public input on how new district lines should be drawn for Alabama’s seven congressional districts and eight state Board of Education districts.

The public hearings are scheduled for:

> May 10 at noon, in Huntsville.

> May 10 at 6:30 p.m. in Birmingham.

> May 11 at 6:30 p.m. in Mobile.

> May 12 at noon in Selma.

> May 12 at 6:30 p.m. in Montgomery.

Attorneys hired by the committee, Larry Menefee and Dorman Walker, will conduct the meetings and determine exactly where in each city each hearing will be held, said Rep. Jim McClendon, R-Springville. The locations weren’t available by early this afternoon.

State lawmakers must redraw Alabama’s congressional and state Board of Education districts to reflect population changes since 2000 that were shown by the 2010 census.

Sen. Vivian Davis Figures, D-Mobile, protested that five hearings held on three days wouldn’t allow sufficient time or access for many people to voice opinions on how districts should be redrawn.

But McClendon, co-chairman of the 22-member reapportionment committee, disagreed. He said he didn’t think interest in new districts for Congress and the state Board of Education would be near as great as interest in redrawing Alabama’s 140 legislative seats, which legislative leaders plan to try to do next year.

After the five statewide hearings, the committee plans to meet at 10 a.m. May 18 at the State House to gives its preliminary approval to redistricting maps for Congress and the board of education, McClendon said.

The committee plans to hold a public hearing on those plans at 2 p.m. May 18 in the Capitol auditorium, he said.

The committee then plans to meet at 10 a.m. May 19 at the State House to give its final approval to its two plans, which McClendon said would be submitted to the Legislative Fiscal Office, which would draft them into the form of proposed laws.

He said the committee-approved bills for new congressional and board of education districts would be filed for the Legislature to review starting May 24.

Lawmakers plan to meet May 24-26 and then May 31-June 2 to debate and possibly pass into law those plans.

The final meeting day of this year’s regular legislative session is scheduled June 9, and could be used if need be to finish work on a redistricting bill.

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