For the first time in Idaho history, information technology tools were utilized for redistricting. Officials at the Legislative Services Office used geographic information systems technology to give citizens the opportunity to participate in the 2001 redistricting process - a process that was once carried out using rudimentary tools such as paper and crayons.

Redistricting in Idaho must be done every 10 years after each Census. When it came time to do the job this year, a State of Idaho Redistricting 2001 Web site was developed and personal computers complete with Census data and redistricting software were placed in 10 libraries across the state. Interested citizens were invited to go to one of these public access sites last summer and use these resources to draw legislative and/or congressional redistricting plans. These plans were then submitted to a six-person Redistricting Commission charged with establishing the final redistricting plan.

According to Ross Borden, principle budget and policy analyst at the Legislative Services Office, the libraries were eager to participate in the $397,200 program because they received GIS training and were allowed to retain the computers after the process was complete.

"We developed a contract with a GIS consulting firm, Spatial Dynamics to train librarians and their systems people how to use GIS," said Borden. "We helped install the software AutoBound for Redistricting from Digital Engineering Corp. and programmed it. Then the librarians either took their computers with them or we shipped them at a later date."

Once the Redistricting Commission was ready to start the task of their own redistricting efforts on June 6, 2001, the libraries were set to go. For security purposes, citizens brought in Zip disks and saved their redistricting proposals on the disk. This act prevented information from being stored or retrieved from that computer's hard drive.

Borden believes that although they didn't get the results they predicted, the program was an overall success. "Seventy people availed themselves of this resource and participated," he said. "We thought more people from citizen activist groups, chambers of commerce, councils of government, and lobbyists would participate, but our predictions were off; however, we do believe the project accomplished our goal of allowing public input into the process.

"The point is people got to contribute in a way no other citizen has been able to contribute in the past. Citizens got the same tools as the commissioners and were on equal ground. We're very excited about that."