Getting 4th member in House

When it comes to getting Utah an extra representative in Congress, there are worse deals than the one contained in a bill introduced this week by Thomas M. Davis III, R-Va. He offers a trade-off. Two new members would be added to the House. One would go to Utah, the other to the District of Columbia.

It's not a perfect solution. By rights, Utah should have a fourth member in the 435-member House, which would be slightly more powerful than having a fourth member in a 437-member House. The state missed out on that seat by a scant 857 people because the 2000 Census did not count missionaries from Utah currently serving abroad, even though many of them vote absentee in local elections. Instead, Utah's new seat went to North Carolina, a move eventually upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court.

But Utah would prefer a fourth seat now, not after the next Census in 2010, and a lot of people think the District of Columbia should have a representative of its own, as well. Davis' bill, which he has tried before with no success, accomplishes both.

A Republican Congress has opposed granting the District of Columbia a representative because that person almost certainly would be a Democrat. But adding a new district in Utah would be about as close to a sure thing for Republicans as the party could find. That would satisfy both parties and cause little disruption.

It's hard to argue that the people of the District of Columbia should not have a representative. They pay federal taxes, but they have no representation in the body that levies those taxes. They can vote for president, thanks to the 23rd Amendment. It would be ridiculous to turn the district into a state, as some have proposed. It doesn't have enough people, and statehood would violate the founders' wish to keep the nation's capital city separate from all states. But a seat in Congress seems only right.

Other proposals to grant Utah a fourth representative make less sense. One, for instance, would amend the Constitution to require the Census to count only legal residents. That would be a huge disruption. By some estimates, California would lose six House seats.

Utah is growing quickly. A fourth, or even fifth, representative will come soon on its own. But for those wanting a palatable way to get it now, Davis' bill is the answer.