Agenda - Parks and Recreation Commission - 07/21/1983

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I I ! i I i I I Cities are either charter to statutory. Charter city means that city has adopted a charter and statutory city means the city has not adopted a charter and is totally governed by Minnesota State laws called Minnesota Statutes. Various Statutory City Plans: Plan A: Mayor/Council Plan B: Council/Manager A charter is a mini-constitution. It is a general, broad document that sets forth some general principles. A charter does not say what a city can do but how it can do it. Cities provide police and fire protection, transportation, zoning controls, public utilities, parks, and expenditure of tax dollars and a charter states how all these services will be implemented. A statutory city is no different; there is a State statute that addresses cities that do not have a charter and how their services will be implemented. A charter cannot deviate-~uch from State law or Constitution. In both statutor~ and-charter ci~ies there ~s a mayor and council. In statutory cities'there is a mayor~and four councilmembers and the majority rules. A charter ca~ pr0~ide for 'd~fferent than that. With a charter you could have 11 councilmembers and-a mayor chosen from those 11 or you could have council/manager or aldermen/mayor. The mayor could have power or no power, the mayor could be elected by council or by PeOple. Mayor is basically a parliamentary officer and conducts meetings. Charter could provide for a different length of term for elected officials but cannot go beyond 4 years. A charter can also set dates for municipal elections. Finance: There is no a great deal of difference between statutory and charter cities when it comes to raising money. Debt Limit: A city cannot borrow in excess of a certain percentage of it's assessed valuation. That limit is the same for statutory and charter cities. A charter could set a lower borrowing limit. StatUtory cities are required to conduct an annual audit and charter cities can deviate from this requirement. A charter can be written to allow the city to spend money more freely. Utilities and Franchises: If it is included in the charter, a city can own and operate public utilties. Statutory cities can own and operate public utilities if certain procedures are followed. Ordinances: An ordinance is a law and it applies uniformly to everyone in the community and violation thereof is a crime. Resolutions are simply enabling acts. Ordinances under a statutory city are not subject to review by the people. A charter can provide for a process called initiative and referendum which gives the people the opportunity to review ordinances. The key items provided by a charter are: 1. Initiative and referendum 2. Recall of Mayor/Council C~/June 23, 1983 Page 3 of 8-