This bill, titled the "Redistricting Reform Act of 2025," seeks to fundamentally change how congressional districts are drawn by requiring states to use independent redistricting commissions . It asserts Congress's constitutional authority under Article I, Section 4 and the Fourteenth Amendment to regulate the time, place, and manner of federal elections and enforce equal protection, particularly against partisan gerrymandering. The core provision mandates that all congressional redistricting be conducted according to a plan developed and enacted by an independent state commission. States with existing commissions that meet specific criteria, such as public application processes, disqualifications for political insiders, multi-partisan composition, and public input, are exempt. Iowa is also granted a special exemption due to its current redistricting process. The bill establishes a detailed process for forming these commissions, which will consist of 15 members appointed in stages by a nonpartisan state agency . This agency first randomly selects six members from a pool of applicants, ensuring representation from majority, minority, and independent political affiliations. These initial members then appoint the remaining nine, with requirements for diverse demographic and geographic representation, and broad support across political categories. Commissions must operate with transparency and public input , maintaining a public website with draft plans, data, and all communications. They are required to hold multiple public hearings before and after developing preliminary plans, accepting comments and proposed maps from the public. A final redistricting plan requires approval by a majority of the commission, including at least one member from each political affiliation category. Crucially, the bill sets ranked criteria for redistricting , prioritizing constitutional requirements like population equality, compliance with the Voting Rights Act, and ensuring the practical ability of protected groups to elect representatives of choice. Subsequently, districts must represent communities of interest, defined as areas with broadly shared identities or socioeconomic conditions, explicitly excluding political party affiliations. A central tenet is the prohibition of partisan gerrymandering , stating that no plan may be drawn with the intent or effect of materially favoring or disfavoring any political party. The bill outlines a process for determining partisan effect, including computer modeling and comparison with alternative plans, and establishes a rebuttable presumption of violation if a plan exceeds certain partisan advantage thresholds based on past election results. The legislation also bans mid-decade redistricting , preventing states from redrawing maps until after the next decennial census, unless a court mandates it to comply with federal law or the Constitution. Furthermore, it prohibits commissions from considering factors like the residence of incumbents or the political affiliation/voting history of a district's population, except as necessary to meet other criteria. If a state fails to enact a redistricting plan by the specified deadline, a 3-judge federal court will assume exclusive authority to develop and publish the plan, adhering to the same criteria and public participation requirements. The bill provides for civil enforcement actions by the Attorney General or private citizens, with exclusive federal court jurisdiction and expedited review by the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals. To assist states, the Election Assistance Commission is authorized to make payments of $150,000 per Representative to states for carrying out redistricting, contingent on the state's compliance with the commission establishment process. The act is set to apply to redistricting carried out pursuant to the 2030 decennial census or any succeeding census, with some exceptions for the mid-decade redistricting ban.