July 2024: Charter change on Admin Citations is a slippery slope to escalate penalty fees

Today, I urge Saint Paul City Councilmembers and Saint Paul residents to take a closer look at this effort. Under our current charter, the cost of fines and fees must be tied to the city’s cost of enforcement.

Administrative citation fees, on the other hand, can be set at any dollar amount, and can increase substantially over time.

For a commercial real estate property owner who closes skyways thereby limiting pedestrian access, a substantial and increasing fee makes sense. But for violations like tall grass and weeds, peeling paint or a dog that escapes a fenced yard – administrative citations for these violations could become harsh and predatory.

Any proposed charter change should be carefully drafted and vetted to preclude this outcome. The last two times the city tried to pass this – it was not narrowly focused. In fact, the second time it came forward, it was expanded to apply to more ordinances, not fewer.

Charter changes should be hard to pass – because once passed – we can’t control future councils who might use these fees to target certain individuals and groups, and to fatten city revenues.