Requirements for congressional districts

(a) Requirements The congressional districts of a State shall meet each of the following requirements: (1) Each congressional district in the State shall consist of contiguous territory (except to the extent necessary to include any area which is surrounded by a body of water). (2) Each congressional district in the State shall be as compact in form as practicable. (3) No congressional district in the State shall be drawn to discourage competition, or for the purpose of favoring or disfavoring an incumbent, a particular candidate, or a particular political party. In establishing congressional districts, the State shall consider the maintenance of cores of existing districts, of pre-existing political subdivisions, including counties, cities, and towns, and of communities of interest. (4) To the extent practicable, the population of each congressional district in the State shall not vary from the population of any other congressional district in the State (as determined on the basis of the total count of citizens of the United States and aliens with lawful status under the immigration laws (as such term is defined in section 101 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101)) of the most recent decennial census conducted by the Bureau of the Census). (b) Effective date Subsection (a) shall apply with respect to congressional districts established on or after the date of the enactment of this Act.