VI.1. First Reading Ordinance No. 2024-1212 Amendment of the Hopkins Charter by Ordinance; Domeier
CITY OF HOPKINS
City Council Report 2024-121
To: Honorable Mayor and Council Members
Mike Mornson, City Manager
From: Amy Domeier, City Clerk
Date: October 1, 2024
Subject: Ordinance No. 2024-1212 Amendment of the Hopkins Charter by
Ordinance
_____________________________________________________________________
RECOMMENDED ACTION
MOTION TO Approve for First Reading Ordinance 2024-1212 Amendment of the
Hopkins Charter by Ordinance.
OVERVIEW
Staff have received inquiries from residents along with previous and former council
members about the length of the mayor’s term. To be consistent with the council
members’ terms, staff is proposing amending the Charter to also have the mayor
serve a four-year term. The change to the term-start date would bring the charter into
line with statutory language on elected official terms.
The Charter Commission reviewed the proposed ordinance language change at their
May 29 and July 31 meetings. The Charter Commission voted 8-3 to amend Chapter 2
of the Charter. The majority of the Charter Commission supported the amendment to
provide consistency in leadership and the opportunity to build relationships with the City
Council and other government agencies; bring stability with a longer term; less energy
would be used on campaigning; and the mayor could be focused on the work of the City
Council. The dissenting votes did not support changing the mayor’s term to allow for the
option to flip the City Council membership every two years.
The Ordinance Amendment requires a 5-0 City Council vote to move forward for a
second reading on October 8. If the Ordinance Amendment does not have a unanimous
vote it will be sent back to the Charter Commission.
SUPPORTING INFORMATION
• Ordinance 2024-1212
• Election Data and Deadlines
Administration
ELECTION DATA
The LMC has shared the data on Mayor’s terms. The statistics provided are based on
855 self-reported cities.
o 434 MN cities have two-year terms for Mayor
o 30 out of 107 MN home rule cities have two-year terms for Mayor
o Anoka o Lino Lakes
o Barnesville o Madison
o Benson o Minnetonka Beach
o Biwabik o Montevideo
o Breckenridge o Mounds View
o Browerville o New Prague
o Chatfield o Pipestone
o Columbia Heights o Rushford
o Ely o Saint Charles
o Eveleth o St. Francis
o Excelsior o St. James
o Gilbert o Staples
o Hopkins o Waseca
o Hutchinson o West St. Paul
o Lake Crystal o Winthrop
The city has averaged 2 mayoral candidates per election since 2013.
Candidates Per Election
2013 3
2015 3
2017 2
2019 1
2021 3
2023 1
ELECTION DEADLINES
Changing the term of the Mayor’s office term from 2-year to 4-year requires two
statutory processes: 1) following the process in Minn. Stat. 205.07; and ii) amending the
City Charter under 410.12.
Process under Minn. Stat. 205.07 – The timeline under Minn. Stat. 205.07 requires
that the city pass an ordinance at least 180 calendar days before the first day to file
candidacy in the next municipal election. The 2025 municipal election in Hopkins is on
November 4. The first day to file under Minn. Stat. 205.13 is 98 days before Election
Day, which is July 29, 2025. 180 days before July 29, 2025, is January 30, 2025.
Meaning the City would be required to enact such an ordinance by January 30, 2025.
The ordinance passed under Minn. Stat. 205.07 must also include a number of different
provisions dictating how the change will impact the current Mayor’s term and other
implementation elements.
Charter Amendment under Minn. Stat. 410.12 – Timelines for amending the City
Charter will vary depending on if amendment is made by Charter Commission proposal,
City Council proposal, or Charter Commission recommendation that the charter be
amended by ordinance.
Both general statutory process and the charter amendment process include an option
for citizens to submit a petition that would require the question to be put to the voters at
a special or general election. If such a petition were submitted, the timelines would be
delayed.
CITY OF HOPKINS
HENNEPIN COUNTY, MINNESOTA
ORDINANCE NO. 2024-1212
AMENDMENT OF THE HOPKINS CHARTER BY ORDINANCE
The City Council of the City of Hopkins, upon recommendation of and from the Hopkins City
Charter Commission does hereby ordain and thus amend and adopt the following changes,
deletions, and amendments of or from the following chapters and sections of the Hopkins
City Charter:
SECTION 1. Section 2.03 – Elected Officials is hereby amended by deleting stricken
material as follows:
Section 2.03. Elected Officials. The elected officials shall be a mayor and four council
members who shall all be qualified voters. They shall all be elected at-large. The
mayor and the four council members will shall serve for a term of two years, and
the four council members shall serve for terms of four years each. The terms of all
elected officials shall commence on January 1 and all shall serve until their
successors are elected and qualify. After the city general election, the city council
shall, at their next regularly scheduled meeting, meet as the canvassing board and
declare the results of the election. The candidate receiving the highest number of
votes for a particular office is elected. If the election results in a tie, then the winner
should be determined by lot in the presence of the council acting as the canvassing
board.
SECTION 2. The effective date of this ordinance shall be effective 90 days after publication.
First Reading:
Second Reading:
Date of Publication:
October 1, 2024
October 8, 2024
October 17, 2024
Date Ordinance Takes Effect: January 15, 2025
By_____________________
Patrick Hanlon, Mayor
ATTEST:
_______________________
Amy Domeier, City Clerk