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From: Simanek, Justice (LC-SHiljus) <Justice.Simanek@courts.state.mn.us> Sent: Tuesday, February 22, 2022 2:00 PM To: Colleen Lasher <CLasher@ci.ramsey.mn.us> Subject: Charter Appointments Hi Colleen, I spoke to Judge Hiljus about our phone call today. He agreed that Ramsey is one of the few cities in the tenth district to send applicants directly to the Chief Judge. After looking through a few letters we've gotten recently from other cities, it mostly seems that applicants are put before the city council and the city council makes a recommendation on how to appoint. That means Judge Hiljus just sees the applicants who the city council/commission wants appointed. Judge Hiljus said that the practice varies from city to city and there is no set process in statute, some city charters have a set process but others do not. From his own experience as Coon Rapids City Attorney, he believes that the commission itself typically solicited applicants and had their own system of due process to select them. He states you may wish to consult your city attorney. Here is some of the email Judge Hiljus sent to me in response to my questions: "Most of the cities have a set deadline for applications and either the charter commission itself or the city council reviews applicants and recommends appointment to the Chief Judge. Once I receive the request to appoint I sign the order at their request. Ramsey is one of the few cities to send applicants directly to the Chief Judge. I did not know of their "open until filled" process and assumed that the six applicants sent to me were the six they received at the end of their application process. I reviewed all six applications and tried to appoint those I felt well qualified and from a diverse background. I chose not to conduct interviews and 1 understand Chief Judges have never conducted interviews. At least not to my knowledge. I assume that may be one of the reasons why some cities have conducted their own interviews and make recommendations. If Ramsey chose to have a deadline for applications and then found a way to conduct their own due process and make recommendations to the Chief Judge 1 would support that process. In the end the City Council and/or Charter Commission know more about the City and its needs than do 1." I hope this helps. If you have more questions please feel free to let me know! Sincerely, Justice Simanek Law Clerk to the Honorable Stoney Hiljus 10th Judicial District — Kanabec County District Court 18 N Vine Street Ste. 318 Mora, MN 55051 320-679-6400 ext. 133419 they/them/theirs