The Metro Charter gives the following bodies responsibility for adopting new Council and School Board districts:
The Metro Planning Commission: Determine whether new districts are necessary to prevent substantial underrepresentation of parts of the County based on population changes. If new districts are necessary, the Planning Commission makes a recommendation to the Metro Council as to new district boundaries.
The Metro Council can adopt the Planning Commission’s recommendation for new district boundaries by passing an ordinance. If the Council does not support the Planning Commission’s recommendation, it cannot modify it. Instead, the Charter lays out the following process:
Within three months of receiving the Planning Commission’s recommendation, the Council may schedule a referendum on the proposed districts.
Alongside the Planning Commission’s recommendation, the Council may also propose its own new districts at the same referendum.