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Senate reactivates redistricting committee

Senators say they may need to look at judicial districts this year.

Posted 2013-02-21T18:01:49+00:00 - Updated 2013-02-21T19:43:31+00:00

Mark Binker

The state Senate has revived its Redistricting Committee, saying that lawmakers may need to look at some local issues this session.

"We're going to take a hard look at judicial districts," said Sen. Tom Apodaca, R-Henderson.

Sen. Bob Rucho, R-Mecklenburg, will chair the committee.

Senators had planned to eliminate some special Superior Court judges earlier this year. Those are appointed judges used to help courts deal with particularly heavy workloads, but they are sometimes viewed as sinecure seats governors can give to political allies.

"If we have a district that is under-served now, we might put an additional judge in it," Apodaca said.

During the 2011-12 session, the Redistricting Committee dealt with redrawing congressional districts, as well as state House and Senate districts. Apodaca said he didn't anticipate any of those coming back for re-evaluation.

"There are some local issues coming down the pike, we hear," he said, specifically referencing county commissioner districts.