The commission mapping new districts for state legislators and members of Congress made some progress Friday but has a lot more work to meet a Jan. 1 deadline to locate a new congressional district in Washington.

The state Redistricting Commission put out two new legislative maps - one for northern parts of Western Washington and one for southwest Washington and the Olympic Peninsula, The Olympian reported (http://bit.ly/umhwiB).

Among other things, the changes would displace incumbent Republican Rep. Gary Alexander of Thurston County and Republican Jim McCune of Graham.

The maps need more tinkering before they are final. The big question to be answered before the end of the year is where the new 10th Congressional District will be located. Washington is gaining a seat in Congress due to population growth.

The commission hopes to complete new maps for 49 legislative districts and 10 congressional districts by New Year's Day.

The commission has agreed to meet next week on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. The goal is to give county auditors and the public time to review and comment on the proposal over the Christmas holiday.

The commission was created by voters in 1983 to handle the politically sensitive task. Two Republicans and two Democrats were selected by the party caucuses in the state Legislature, and the commission has a non-voting fifth member. The recommendations have to be supported by at least three of the four voting members.

The commission includes former Sen. Slade Gorton on the Republican side and former Seattle Deputy Mayor Tim Ceis on the Democratic side.

Final maps will be submitted to the Legislature. State lawmakers then have the option of rejecting the maps and redrawing the districts themselves, a process that requires two-thirds approval from both chambers. If the Legislature doesn't act on the final map from the commission, it automatically becomes law.

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Online:

http://redistricting.wa.gov/forums.asp

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Information from: The Olympian, http://www.theolympian.com