119-hr4125

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4125 Introduced in House

    (IH) ]

<DOC>

119th CONGRESS
 1st Session
 H. R. 4125

 To establish the total number of Representatives at a number that 
 provides that the average number of constituents represented by a 
 Member from any State is equal to 500,000 and to apportion 
 Representatives among the States accordingly, and for other purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

 June 25, 2025

 Mr. Casten introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committees on House 
Administration, and Transportation and Infrastructure, for a period to 
 be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for 
consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the 
 committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

 A BILL

 To establish the total number of Representatives at a number that 
 provides that the average number of constituents represented by a 
 Member from any State is equal to 500,000 and to apportion 
 Representatives among the States accordingly, and for other purposes.

 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; FINDINGS.

    (a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Equal Voices 
Act''.

    (b) 

=== Findings ===
-Congress finds the following:

    (1) Our Nation's founders intended the House of 
 Representatives to be the chamber closest to the American 
 people: ``the People's House''.

    (2) The number of Representatives in Congress has been 435 
 since 1911 when the U.S. population was 92,228,531 (1910 U.S. 
 Census). The U.S. population has grown to more than three times 
 that size to 331,449,281 in 2020 (2020 U.S. Census) while the 
 size of the House has remained the same.

    (3) Our electorate has changed significantly since the size 
 of the House last grew in 1911. Prior to the passage of the 
 19th Amendment in 1920, the Civil Rights Act in 1957, and the 
 Voting Rights Act in 1965, women and people of color faced 
 barriers and in some cases, legal prohibitions, to voting.

    (4) When the cap on the size of the House was statutorily 
 set in 1929, the average Member of the House represented 
 approximately 280,000 people, compared to approximately 762,000 
 people in 2020.

    (5) Based on the 2020 Census, individuals in the State with 
 the smallest population, Wyoming, had 1.3x more relative 
 representation compared to the national average district size.

    (6) Each Member of the House represents far more people on 
 average than legislators in nearly all developed and developing 
 democracies, and is an outlier among other member countries of 
 the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development

    (OECD) , with nearly 3 times the citizen to representative ratio 
 as Japan, the country with next largest district size.

    (7) Representatives who serve fewer people are more likely 
 to have contact with their constituents, receive higher marks 
 for their constituent service, and better reflect the views of 
 their districts.

SEC. 2. ESTABLISHMENT OF NUMBER OF MEMBERS OF THE HOUSE OF 
 REPRESENTATIVES.

    (a) Method for Determination of Number.--

Section 22

    (a) of the Act 
entitled ``An Act to provide for the fifteenth and subsequent decennial 
census and to provide for apportionment of Representatives in 
Congress'', approved June 18, 1929 (2 U.S.C. 2a

    (a) ), is amended--

    (1) by striking ``

    (a) On the first day'' and inserting 
 ``

    (a)

    (1) On the first day'';

    (2) by striking ``the then existing number of 
 Representatives'' and inserting ``the number of Representatives 
 determined under paragraph

    (2) ''; and

    (3) by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
 ``

    (2) The number of Representatives determined under this paragraph 
is, with respect to a regular decennial census of the population of the 
United States, a number equal to--
 ``
        (A) the whole number of persons in all States (as shown 
 in the statement under paragraph

    (1) ); divided by
 ``
        (B) 500,000,
rounded to the nearest whole odd number.''.

    (b) Conforming Amendment.--The first section and 

section 2 of the 
Act entitled ``An Act For the apportionment of Representatives in 
Congress among the several States under the Thirteenth Census'', 
approved August 8, 1911 (2 U.S.C. 2 note), are repealed.
            (c) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section shall 
apply with respect to the first regular decennial census conducted 
after the date of the enactment of this Act and each subsequent 
decennial census.

SEC. 3. OPTIONAL USE OF MULTI-MEMBER DISTRICTS.

    (a) Optional Use of Multi-Member Districts.--

    (1) In general.--At its option, a State may establish a 
 number of districts for the election of Representatives in 
 Congress in the State that is less than the number of 
 Representatives to which the State is entitled, and may 
 establish that Representatives shall be elected only from 
 districts so established.

    (2) Equal population per representative.--In establishing 
 the number of districts under paragraph

    (1) , the State shall 
 ensure that districts shall each have equal population per 
 Representative as nearly as practicable, in accordance with the 
 Constitution of the United States.

    (3) Conforming amendment.--The Act entitled ``An Act for 
 the relief of Doctor Ricardo Vallejo Samala and to provide for 
 congressional redistricting'', approved December 14, 1967 (2 
 U.S.C. 2c), is amended by striking ``In each State'' and 
 inserting ``Except as provided in 

section 2

    (b) of the Equal 
 Voices Act, in each State''.

    (b) Effective Date.--This section and the amendments made by this 
section shall apply with respect to the first regular decennial census 
conducted after the date of the enactment of this Act and each 
subsequent decennial census.

SEC. 4. OPTIONAL USE OF RANKED CHOICE VOTING BY STATES OPTING TO USE 
 MULTI-MEMBER DISTRICTS.

    (a) Optional Use of Ranked Choice Voting.--At its option, a State 
which establishes multi-Member districts for the election of 
Representatives in Congress in the State under 

section 3 may carry out 
such elections in the State under ranked choice voting as described in 
subsection
            (c) .

    (b) Ballot Design.--

    (1) In general.--Each State shall ensure that the ballot 
 used in an ranked choice voting election under this section 
 meets each of the following requirements:
        (A) The ballot shall allow voters to rank 
 candidates in order of choice.
        (B) The number of candidates whom a voter may rank 
 in the election, as determined under paragraph

    (2) , 
 shall be uniform for all voters in the election within 
 the State.
            (C) The ballot shall include all qualified 
 candidates for the election and (to the extent 
 permitted under State law) options for voters to select 
 write-in candidates.
            (D) The ballot shall include such instructions as 
 the State considers necessary to enable the voter to 
 rank candidates and successfully cast the ballot under 
 the system.

    (2) Determination of number of candidates voter may rank.--
 The number of candidates a voter may rank in a ranked choice 
 voting election shall be determined as follows:
        (A) If feasible, the ballot shall permit voters to 
 rank a number of candidates in the election which is 
 not fewer than the number of seats in the election plus 
 4.
        (B) If the number of candidates in the election is 
 less than the number of ranking provided under 
 subparagraph
        (A) , the ballot shall permit voters to 
 rank a number of candidates which is not fewer than the 
 number of candidates in the election, including write-
 in candidates.
            (C) If it is not feasible for the ballot to permit 
 voters to rank as many candidates as required under 
 subparagraph
        (A) or
        (B) , the State may limit the number 
 of candidates who may be ranked for each election on 
 the ballot to a maximum feasible number established by 
 the State, except that such number may not be less than 
 5 for any election on the ballot.
            (c) Tabulation.--

    (1) Process for tabulation.--In a ranked choice voting 
 election under this section, each ballot cast in the election 
 shall count at its current transfer value for the highest-
 ranked active candidate on the ballot. Tabulation shall proceed 
 as described in paragraphs

    (2) ,

    (3) , and

    (4) .

    (2) Election of candidates during tabulation; surplus-
 transfer round.--If any active candidate has a number of votes 
 greater than or equal to the election threshold, that candidate 
 shall be designated as elected, and the surplus votes shall be 
 transferred to other candidates as follows:
        (A) Unless paragraph

    (4) applies, each ballot 
 counting for an elected candidate shall be assigned a 
 new transfer value by multiplying the ballot's current 
 transfer value by the surplus fraction for the elected 
 candidate, truncated after 4 decimal places.
        (B) Each candidate elected under this paragraph 
 shall be deemed to have a number of votes equal to the 
 election threshold for the contest in all future 
 rounds, each ballot counting towards the elected 
 candidate shall be transferred at its new transfer 
 value to its next-ranked active candidate, and a new 
 round shall begin.
            (C) If two or more candidates have a number of 
 votes greater than the election threshold, the 
 surpluses shall be distributed simultaneously in the 
 same round.

    (3) Elimination of candidates during tabulation; 
 elimination round.--Unless paragraph

    (2) or paragraph

    (4) applies, the active candidate with the fewest votes is 
 eliminated, each vote cast on a ballot for the eliminated 
 candidate shall be counted for the next-ranked active candidate 
 on the ballot, and a new round shall begin.

    (4) Completion of tabulation.--Tabulation in the election 
 is complete if--
        (A) the number of elected candidates is equal to 
 the number of seats to be filled and any remaining 
 votes in excess of the election threshold have been 
 counted for each ballot's next-ranked active candidate; 
 or
        (B) the sum of the number of elected candidates and 
 the number of active candidates is less than or equal 
 to the number of seats to be filled at any time.
            (d) Treatment of Certain Ballots.--

    (1) Treatment of undervotes.--A ballot which is an 
 undervote shall not be counted in any round of tabulation of 
 ballots in an election under this section. For purposes of this 
 paragraph, an ``undervote'' is a ballot for which the voter 
 does not rank any of the candidates in the election.

    (2) Treatment of inactive ballots.--
        (A) In general.--A ballot which becomes an inactive 
 ballot shall no longer count for any candidate for the 
 remainder of the tabulation of ballots in an election 
 under this section after the ballot becomes inactive.
        (B) Inactive ballot defined.--For purposes of this 
 paragraph, an ``inactive ballot'' is a ballot on 
 which--
            (i) all of the ranked candidates on the 
 ballot have become inactive; or
            (ii) the voter ranks more than one 
 candidate at the same ranking and all 
 candidates at a higher ranking have become 
 inactive.

    (3) Treatment of skipped or repeated rankings.--
        (A) In general.--A ballot which includes any 
 skipped or repeated ranking shall remain active and 
 continue to be counted for the highest-ranked active 
 candidate in an election under this section.
        (B) Skipped and repeated rankings defined.--For 
 purposes of this paragraph--
            (i) a ``skipped ranking'' is a ranking a 
 voter does not assign to any candidate while 
 assigning a subsequent ranking to a candidate; 
 and
            (ii) a ``repeated ranking'' is a ranking 
 for which the voter has assigned the same 
 candidate that the voter assigned to another 
 ranking.

    (e) Treatment of Ties Between Candidates.--

    (1) Resolution by lot.--If a tie occurs between candidates 
 with the greatest number of votes or the fewest number of votes 
 at any point in the tabulation of ballots under this part and 
 the tabulation cannot proceed until the tie is resolved, the 
 tie shall be resolved by lot or by such other method as may be 
 provided under State law.

    (2) Resolution prior to tabulation.--Prior to tabulation, 
 the chief election official of the State may resolve 
 prospective ties between candidates by lot or according to the 
 method provided under State law, as described in subsection

    (a) .

    (3) Use during recount.--The result of the resolution of 
 any tie shall be recorded and reused for purposes of any 
 recount under State law.

    (f) 

=== Definitions. ===
-In this section, the following definitions apply:

    (1) The term ``active candidate'' means, with respect to 
 any round of tabulation under this part, a candidate who has 
 not been elected or eliminated, and who is not a withdrawn 
 candidate.

    (2) The term ``election threshold'' means the number of 
 votes sufficient for a candidate to be elected in a multi-seat 
 election. Such number is equal to the total votes counted for 
 active candidates in the first round of tabulation, divided by 
 the sum of one plus the number of seats to be filled, then 
 increased by one, disregarding any fractions.

    (3) The term ``highest-ranked active candidate'' means the 
 active candidate assigned to a higher ranking than any other 
 active candidate.

    (4) The term ``multi-seat election'' means any primary 
 election in which more than one candidate in the primary 
 election will advance to the general election, any special 
 election for more than one seat, and any general election in 
 which more than one Representative is elected at large or in a 
 multi-member district.

    (5) The term ``ranking'' means the number available to be 
 assigned by a voter to a candidate to express the voter's 
 choice for that candidate, with ``1'' as the highest ranking 
 and each succeeding positive number as the next highest 
 ranking.

    (6) The term ``surplus fraction'' means, with respect to an 
 elected candidate as described in subsection
            (c) , the number 
 obtained by subtracting the election threshold from the 
 candidate's vote total, then dividing that number by the 
 candidate's vote total, truncated after four decimal places.

    (7) The term ``transfer value'' means the proportion of a 
 vote that a ballot will contribute to its highest-ranked active 
 candidate. Each ballot begins with a transfer value of 1. If a 
 ballot contributes to the election of a candidate under 
 subsection
            (c) , the transfer value shall be the new transfer 
 value assigned under such subsection.

    (8) The term ``vote total'' means, with respect to a 
 candidate in a round of counting, the total transfer value of 
 all ballots counting for the candidate in the round.

    (9) The term ``withdrawn candidate'' means a candidate who, 
 prior to the date of the election, files or has an authorized 
 designee file a signed letter of withdrawal from the election, 
 in accordance with such rules as the chief election official of 
 the State may establish.

SEC. 5. COMMISSION TO RECOMMEND NUMBER OF MEMBERS OF THE HOUSE OF 
 REPRESENTATIVES IN EVENT OF SIGNIFICANT POPULATION 
 CHANGE.

    (a) Establishment.--If, with respect to a regular decennial census 
of the population of the United States, the number of Representatives 
determined under 

section 22

    (a) of the Act entitled ``An Act to provide 
for the fifteenth and subsequent decennial census and to provide for 
apportionment of Representatives in Congress'', approved June 18, 1929 
(2 U.S.C. 2a

    (a) ), as amended by 

section 2

    (a) , is 15 percent greater or 
lesser than the number of Representatives determined under such section 
with respect to the previous regular decennial census, there shall be 
established in Congress a commission to carry out the duties described 
in subsection
            (d) with respect to the apportionment of Representatives 
resulting from that census.

    (b) Membership.--

    (1) Appointment.--A commission established under this 
 section shall consist of 15 members appointed as follows:
        (A) 5 members appointed by the Speaker of the House 
 of Representatives.
        (B) 5 members appointed by the minority leader of 
 the House of Representatives.
            (C) 2 members appointed by the majority leader of 
 the Senate.
            (D) 2 members appointed by the minority leader of 
 the Senate.
        (E) One member who shall serve as the Chair of the 
 Commission, who shall be appointed by the vote of a 
 majority of the other members, of whom--
            (i) at least 2 shall be members appointed 
 by the Speaker of the House of Representatives;
            (ii) at least 2 shall be members appointed 
 by the minority leader of the House of 
 Representatives;
            (iii) at least one shall be one of the 
 members appointed by the majority leader of the 
 Senate; and
            (iv) at least one shall be one of the 
 members appointed by the minority leader of the 
 Senate.

    (2) Deadline for appointment.--The appointing authorities 
 under paragraph

    (1) shall appoint the members of the commission 
 not later than 30 days after the President transmits to 
 Congress the statement showing the number of Representatives to 
 which each State is entitled under 

section 22

    (a) of the Act 
 entitled ``An Act to provide for the fifteenth and subsequent 
 decennial census and to provide for apportionment of 
 Representatives in Congress'', approved June 18, 1929 (2 U.S.C. 
 2a

    (a) ), as amended by 

section 2

    (a) .

    (3) Qualifications.--In appointing members of the 
 commission, the appointing authorities under paragraph

    (1) shall prioritize the appointment of individuals who are 
 qualified to assess the appropriate number of Members of the 
 House of Representatives because of their expertise or study of 
 politics, government, and related fields, and their 
 demonstrated ability to work in a nonpartisan manner.

    (4) Vacancy.--A vacancy in the commission shall be filled 
 in the same manner as the original appointment was made.

    (5) Compensation.--Members of the commission--
        (A) shall be paid the daily equivalent of the 
 annual rate of basic pay payable for level V of the 
 Executive Schedule for each day (including travel time) 
 during which the member is engaged in the actual 
 performance of duties vested in the commission; and
        (B) shall receive travel expenses, including per 
 diem in lieu of subsistence, in accordance with 
 applicable provisions under subchapter I of chapter 57 
 of title 5, United States Code.
            (c) Staff.--

    (1) Authority to appoint staff.--The chair of the 
 commission may appoint, prescribe the duties and 
 responsibilities of, and fix the pay of such staff as the chair 
 considers appropriate to assist the commission in carrying out 
 its duties, without regard to the provisions of title 5, United 
 States Code, governing appointments in the competitive service, 
 and without regard to the provisions of chapter 51 and 
 subchapter III of chapter 53 of such title relating to 
 classification and General Schedule pay rates, except that no 
 rate of pay fixed under this paragraph may exceed the rate of 
 pay for a member of the commission.

    (2) Experts and consultants.--

Section 202
            (i) of the 
 Legislative Reorganization Act of 1946 (2 U.S.C. 4301
            (i) ) shall 
 apply with respect to the commission in the same manner as such 
 section applies with respect to a standing committee of the 
 Senate.
            (d) Duties.--With respect to a regular decennial census, the 
commission shall carry out the following duties:

    (1) Analyzing the shifts in population among the States.

    (2) Analyzing how the application of 

section 22

    (a)

    (2) of 
 the Act entitled ``An Act to provide for the fifteenth and 
 subsequent decennial census and to provide for apportionment of 
 Representatives in Congress'', approved June 18, 1929 (2 U.S.C. 
 2a

    (a)

    (2) ), as added by 

section 2

    (a) , will affect the ability of 
 the House of Representatives to carry out its responsibilities 
 in an effective manner.

    (3) Recommending the optimal number of Members of the House 
 and the optimal apportionment of Members among the States, 
 taking into account--
        (A) shifts in population among the States;
        (B) the need to reduce disparities in the size of 
 congressional districts; and
            (C) the need to ensure that historically under 
 represented populations are not disenfranchised.

    (e) Powers.--

    (1) Hearings and other activities.--For the purpose of 
 carrying out its duties, the commission may hold such hearings 
 and undertake such other activities as the commission 
 determines to be necessary to carry out its duties.

    (2) Authority to use subpoenas.--The commission may require 
 by subpoena the attendance of such witnesses and the production 
 of such books, papers, and documents, as it considers 
 appropriate.

    (3) Access to legislative branch services.--The commission 
 shall have access to the services of the Architect of the 
 Capitol, the Government Accountability Office, the 
 Congressional Budget Office, and the Congressional Research 
 Service in the same manner and under the same terms and 
 conditions as any standing committee of the House of 
 Representatives or Senate.

    (f) Report.--The commission shall submit a report to Congress 
containing its recommendations under subsection
            (d) (3) not later than 6 
months after the publication of the regular decennial census of the 
population of the United States.

    (g) Termination.--A commission established under this section shall 
terminate 30 days after submitting the report under subsection

    (f) .

    (h) Effective Date.--This section shall apply with respect to the 
second regular decennial census conducted after the date of the 
enactment of this Act and each subsequent decennial census.

SEC. 6. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS FOR PROVISION OF ADDITIONAL 
 SPACE, FACILITIES, PERSONNEL, AND RESOURCES.

 There are authorized to be appropriated to the House of 
Representatives and the Architect of the Capitol for the fiscal year in 
which this Act is enacted and each succeeding fiscal year such sums as 
may be necessary to provide for any additional space, facilities, 
personnel, and other resources for the House which may be required as 
the result of the enactment of this Act.
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