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--> --> House OKs redistricting plan; future dim SALEM (AP) - The Legislature completed action Tuesday on a Republican-backed plan for redrawing congressional districting boundaries that's doomed because it lacks Democratic support. The House approved the Senate-passed measure 32-28 on party lines, with independent Rep. Jan Lee of Clackamas aligned with all the Democrats against the plan. Democratic Gov. John Kitzhaber has said he won't sign any redistricting plans that don't have bipartisan backing, so the issue will most likely head into federal court. Boundaries of the state's five congressional districts as well as state legislative districts have to be adjusted to reflect population shifts shown in last year's federal Census. If lawmakers and the governor don't agree on a plan by June 30, that job falls to Secretary of State Bill Bradbury. The approved plan shifts the part of Portland and Multnomah County west of the Willamette River out of northwestern Oregon's 1st District, represented by Democratic Rep. David Wu. That territory would move to the 3rd District, which takes in the rest of Democrat-heavy Portland. The district is represented by Rep. Earl Blumenauer. The change would add some Republican-dominated areas of northwest Clackamas County to the 1st District. The shift also would put Wu's residence out of the 1st District, a political drawback but not a legal one because members of Congress don't have to live in their districts. Rep. Cherryl Walker, R-Murphy, termed the Republican measure "the best plan possible" and that it has virtually no population deviation between districts. Arguing for the Democratic bill, Rep. Richard Devlin of Tualatin said it would shift fewer people into different districts. Other Portland-area legislators said Multnomah County, the state's most populous county with 660,000 people, benefits from being represented by two members of Congress. Email your... Technical questions & comments to: WebMaster Daily Tidings editorial comments & questions to: Editor Visit our other Oregon Newspapers... | Albany Democrat-Herald | Ashland Daily Tidings | Corvallis Gazette-Times | | Lebanon Express | Newport News-Times | Springfield News | Cottage Grove Sentinel | Ashland Daily Tidings 1661 Siskiyou Blvd. Ashland, OR 97520 Telephone 541-482-3456 © Copyright 2001 Lee Northwest Publishing