Registration
Registration fees are:
Legislators and legislative staff: $450
Foundation members: $500
Others: $580
Spouse/guest: $100
Ways to register:
Online Registration
Requires a credit card for everyone except legislators and legislative staff. Confirmations will be sent by email.
On-Site Registration
If you can’t make the registration cutoff, on-site registration will be available at the venue beginning July 14, 2021.
Spouse/Guest Registration: The $100 guest fee includes all scheduled meal functions and evening social events.
Cancellations received in the NCSL Denver office by July 12, 2021, will be refunded minus a $50 processing fee. Cancellations must be made in writing and faxed to 303-364-7811 or emailed Registration. Fees cannot be refunded for registrations cancelled after the conference begins.
Hotel Information
Attendees are responsible for making their hotel arrangements. The conference hotel is sold out however we have an overflow hotel at the Holiday Inn Express Salt Lake City Downtown (206 South West Temple, Salt Lake City, UT 84101) which a 4 minute walk (0.2 mile) from the conference hotel (Salt Lake Marriott Downtown at City Creek; 75 South West Temple, Salt Lake City UT 84101). The contracted room rate is $129/night (plus tax) and the cutoff date is July 7, 2021. Rooms in NCSL’s room block are available on a first-come, first-served basis until sold out.
To secure your room, simply click on the link below:
BOOK HERE
Travel Information
Attendees are responsible for making their own travel arrangements.
Salt Lake City is served by the Salt Lake City International Airport (SLC) and has more than 370 flights departing daily to 99 nonstop destinations. The airport is located 5 miles northwest of downtown Salt Lake City and arriving travelers can take a 20-minute ride on TRAX light rail to City Center. Taxis, Uber and Lyft are all available as well.
Special Needs
To ensure full participation and accessibility for all meeting attendees, please call 303-856-1508 with any special accommodations you may require.
City Information
Visit Salt Lake Visitors Center for ideas on what to do and see in the capital of the Beehive State and beyond. Explore and enjoy the rich selection of museums and cultural attractions or just enjoy the spectacular outdoor spaces.
Wednesday, July 14
2-3:30 p.m.: Optional: Redistricting Basics
If this is your first redistricting cycle, join us for this session. Experienced legislative staff will provide a foundation on redistricting based on NCSL’s Redistricting Starter Kit.
Resources:
3:45-5 p.m.: Option A: Race and Redistricting: Civil Rights Groups Speak
French fries and ketchup. Sunscreen and the beach. Redistricting and lawsuits. Three classic pairings. Hear from groups that represent minority communities in the U.S. on what they’re focused on this decade when it comes to redistricting. Who knows—maybe what we learn will forestall a lawsuit or two.
Resources:
3:45-5 p.m.: Option B: Census Redistricting Data Program Evaluation | Primary Topic: "Geography"
In this session, census redistricting program liaisons and other users of census redistricting geographic data are invited to come talk through the strengths and weaknesses of the already completed geographic definition and delivery of geographic materials from the 2020 census. Feedback on the 2020 redistricting data program's geographic operations will be used in the formulation of the 2030 census redistricting data program. Feedback is also welcome on other aspects of the program.
Resources:
5-7 p.m.: Welcome Reception
Thursday, July 15
6:45 a.m.: Optional Morning Run
Studies show exercise improves brain functionality. This run, though, is all about going slow and being social.
7 a.m.-3 p.m.: Registration
7:30-8:45 a.m.: Breakfast and Welcome
Eat first, then at 8:15 a.m. we’ll welcome everyone and review what's ahead
9-10:15 a.m.: The Census
Option A: Census and Data for Beginners
Are you a non-data expert working on redistricting? This session is for you. Learn what data the census will be released, a bit about how it can be used and an introduction to other types of data used in redistricting so you and your data colleagues can communicate effectively with each other.
Resources:
Option B: Census and Data for Experts
In this advanced session, we’ll cover differential privacy (and if it makes a difference), working with race and ethnicity data, how election turnout impacts the accuracy of political data, and the use of party registration as a data layer. Warning: nerding out likely.
Resources:
10:30-11:45 a.m.: Take Your Pick
Option A: Meet with Your Redistricting Software Experts
Your state has probably chosen its redistricting software by now. Here’s your chance to meet your software vendor, discuss its features and pick up tips. These sessions will be run by the vendors themselves, not by NCSL.
Option B: Short Takes on Three Key Issues
Gain insight into three issues that are easy to overlook: local redistricting (yes, it’s required by law); the “hand off” of redistricting data to election officials so they can prepare for next year’s primaries; and why some states are adopting inmate data reallocation laws.
Resources:
Noon-12:45 p.m.: Lunch
1-2:15 p.m.: Choose Your Own Adventure
Option A: Balancing Conflicting Criteria
Criteria (or principles) are the rules of the road in redistricting, and they vary by state. Sometimes, though, they pull in opposite directions and it’s hard to comply with them all. Hear veterans of the redistricting process explain how to strike a balance between potentially irreconcilable mandates.
Resources:
Option B: Data Details
What can redistricters learn from data sources beyond the census? For instance, in redistricting, what does voter registration provide and how does it differ state to state? Does it matter whether votes were cast by mail, in-person on Election Day or during an early in-person voting period? How does party enrollment data inform decision-making? Is there a way to know just how independent the non-D and non-R voters are? What’s turnout got to do with it? Dig deep with data experts.
Resource:
2:30-3:45 p.m.: Redistricting Litigation in the 2020s
Redistricting litigation for the 2010 cycle didn’t end until 2019. Will the coming cycle be just as intense? Hear nationally recognized litigators discuss the current state of the law, new trends to watch in the 2020s, and possibly make predictions for the future.
Resources:
4-5:15 p.m.: Threading the Needle: The Voting Rights Act and Racial Gerrymandering
Two federal requirements governing redistricting involve race. The Voting Rights Act directs states to ensure that certain minority groups have the opportunity to elect candidates of their choice, whereas the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment prohibits race from predominating during redistricting decision-making. Confusing, right? Listen as two expert litigators parse the nuances created by the U.S. Supreme Court and how states can walk the legal compliance line.
Resources:
5:30-6:30 p.m.: Connecting With Your Peers
Option A: Republicans
This is an ancillary session run by Republicans, for Republicans. For more information, contact Kylie Bongaart.
Note: This is not an NCSL-sponsored session.
Option B: Democrats
This is an ancillary session run by Democrats, for Democrats. For more information, contact Jeff Wice.
Note: This is not an NCSL-sponsored session.
Option C: Nonpartisan Staff Reception
If you’re a legislative staffer and don’t belong at the partisan sessions, get to know your colleagues from around the nation.
Evening on your own
Friday, July 16
7 a.m.: Optional: Walking Tour
See the sites with Brian Bean, a staffer with the Utah Senate. Meet in the lobby.
7:30-8:45 a.m.: Breakfast
Eat first—then at 8 a.m., choose which break out session at attend.
8-9:15 a.m.: Getting Along
Option A: Lowering the Temperature When Legislatures Redistrict
If you read the press, redistricting boils down to just one thing: power. Is that really true? Bring your breakfast to hear from legislators who have threaded their way through the trials and tribulations of legislative infighting.
Resource:
Option B: Working With Your Commission
In states where commissions have primary responsibility for redistricting, what’s the legislature’s role? Bring your breakfast and hear from former commissioners and legislators who worked with commissions to find out how colleagues in prior decades stayed engaged while respecting the legal division between line-drawers and policymakers.
Resources:
9:30-10:45 a.m.: Unseen Pitfalls and How to Avoid Them
You don’t know what you don’t know. Fortunately, there are people who have done redistricting who DO know what you don’t know. Attend this session to learn from attorneys the pitfalls that can trip up the best-planned redistricting process—so you can avoid their mistakes.
Resources:
11 a.m.-Noon: Legislative Privilege and Transparency
Legislative privilege is a critical part of the lawmaking process. Without it, policymakers wouldn’t be free to ask candid questions and talk openly with their staff. And yet, in this cycle “transparency” is being heralded. Learn the nuances of this area of the law so you can better understand what will happen when you end up in court over redistricting.
Resources:
12:15-1:30 p.m.: What Court Will Look Like (and Box Lunch)
Odds are, you’ll be sued over redistricting. What will that lawsuit look like? This panel of litigants, litigators and a judge will walk you through the life of a redistricting lawsuit so you have an idea of what may happen if your maps end up in court. Bring in your box lunch.
Resource:
1:30-2 p.m.: Ask Us Anything
Faculty will answer anything anyone cares to ask so we leave the Beehive State with exactly the information you need for the redistricting work about to begin.
3-4 p.m.: Optional: Tour of Utah State Capitol