Senate Majority Leader, Andrea Stewart-Cousins, D-Yonkers, and Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie, D-Bronx, walk past the Senate Chamber while heading to a meeting with New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo last month at the state Capitol in Albany. Photo: Hans Pennink/AP Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins, D-Yonkers, and Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie, D-Bronx. Photo: Hans Pennink/AP

New York legislative leaders say a joint hearing scheduled for Wednesday will evaluate the state's new redistricting process.

That process is set to involve a 10-person commission to draft congressional districts and state legislative districts. The commission would then give their maps to state lawmakers for approval.

Experts and good-government advocates are among the invited participants, according to a press release announcing the hearing. It is scheduled to be streamed live.

Jennifer Wilson, deputy director at the League of Women Voters of New York State, praised the hearing and issued a statement saying it will allow communities to offer recommendations on best practices.

"Although the delivery of final census counts may be delayed, we believe that citizen participation in New York State's first ever redistricting commission should begin sooner than later to ensure equitable representation," she said in a statement. 

Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins issued a statement described the hearing as a first step to creating a process that's focused on fairness.

"How district lines are drawn is crucial to ensure our democracy functions properly and serves all people," the Democrat said in a statement. "For too long, redistricting has been a partisan game that has polarized our country." 

Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie said in a statement that decisions will dictate the course of the representation for the next decade.

"New Yorkers deserve a redistricting process that is transparent and non-partisan," he said. "This hearing, and the testimony gathered from experts by my Assembly and Senate colleagues, will ensure that this process begins on the right foot."

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