Establishment of District Boundaries; Determinations of Population.
Houston City Charter, art. V, § 3
in effectSec. 3. - Establishment of District Boundaries; Determinations of Population.
It shall be the duty of the City Council to establish the boundaries of districts covering the entire City for the purpose of electing District Council Members. Such boundaries shall be established by ordinance, which shall be final for purposes of this Charter. The first such establishment shall be made as soon as practicable prior to the first City General Election following adoption of this section. Any subsequent establishment shall be made when required by this Charter.
Promptly following the addition of territory to the City by a boundary change, the City Council shall, by ordinance, add such territory to an adjacent district or districts.
In each year during which a City General Election is to be held, the City Council shall conduct an investigation and determine the population of the City and the population of each of the districts from which District Council Members are to be elected. Each such determination shall be based upon the best available data, including, but not limited to, the most recent federal census. Each such determination shall be expressed in a ordinance, which shall be a final determination for purposes of this Charter.
After any such determination, if the distribution of population among the various districts is determined by the City Council to be materially unbalanced, or if the number of Council Members increases from fourteen to sixteen, then the City Council shall establish new boundaries for the election of District Council Members. (Added by amendment August 11, 1979)
Source: City of Houston, Code of Ordinances and City Charter (Municode Library, library.municode.com)URL: https://library.municode.com/tx/houston/codes/code_of_ordinances?nodeId=CH_ARTVOFEL_S3ESDIBODEPOFetched: 10/26/2026