Proposed maps released Monday realigning Arkansas House and Senate districts show a significant change in North Central Arkansas.
The maps were released by the Board of Apportionment. The board consists of the governor, secretary of state and attorney general.
The three-member board created in 1936 by Amendment 23 to the Arkansas Constitution is charged with redrawing the 100 House and 35 Senate districts every 10 years so that each meets various legal criteria, including being about the same size in population.
Baxter County now divided between two senate districts would all be included in one under the proposal. What is now Senate District 17 also covers portions of Marion and Boone counties.
Under the proposal, it would also cover all of Marion, as well as portions of Boone, Izard, Fulton, Searcy and Stone counties.
In Baxter County, what is now House District 100 represents all of Mountain Home. Under the proposal, it would be split following a line along South College Street, south of First Street.
The area west of South College Street would become part of what is now District 99. District 99 now includes all of Marion County and portions of Baxter County, including Gassville and Cotter, and northern Searcy County.
What is now District 100 falls completely within Baxter County and lies north of the Sheid-Hopper Bypass. Under the new plan, the district would spread south to Norfork and east into Fulton County, splitting between Viola and Salem.
A small portion of Baxter County would move to House District 27, which would also include all of Newton and Searcy counties and a piece of Stone County.
Interactive formats of the proposed house and senate districts are available through the Board of Apportionment website at arkansasredistricting.org/maps-2/.
These interactive maps allow members of the public to input their home address to see street level detail of the proposals in their community.
The maps also display the demographic composition of the proposal districts.
Members of the public may provide comments on specific areas of the maps. Once a comment is made, it will become part of the public record.
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