The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1896-11-27
LEGISLATURE WILL HAVE PLENTY
TO Do IN THAT PARTICULAR
DIRECTION.
1T WILL LAY DOWN LINES
WITHIN WHICH THE RECENT
AMENDMENT MAY BE APPLIED
H NECESSARY.
Which He WIFI Introduce to Change
Some of the Provisions of the
Howard Charter.

Inc legislature Will this winter be
called upon to consider a good deal Of
charter legislation. Senator Ozmun is
now preparing an amendment to the
Howard charter, which he will intro
duce early in the session. The Repub-
lican politicians Of st. Paul are prom
Using themselves something in the line
of municipal legislation, now that the
supreme court has spoiled the efforts of
Chamberlain and Chaplin. Then the
amendment which was voted on at the
last election provides that before any
city shall incorporate under this act,
the legislature shall prescribe by law
the general limits within which such
charter shall be framed" It is also
necessary to lay down way in which
any city may proceed that desires to
frame up it's own charter.
One Of the first bills introduced in
the senate during the session Of 1895
was charter bill introduced by Sen
ator Howard, of Minneapolis, and
thereafter Familiarity known by his
name. There were objections to this
bill in many quarters, however, and a
few weeks later, while the Howard bill
was under consideration in the com
mlttee on municipal corporations SEN
ator Sheehan, of Ramsey, who was
member Of that committee, presented
the bill which resulted in the sub
mission to the people Of what was brief
ly described as the home rule for cit
les" act.
This bill gives, with certain limita-
lions, every city the right to build
its own charter. The restrictions are:
First. that in any city where patrol
limits exist, three-fourths majority
vote or the people shall be necessary
to change the limits; second, that the
charter shall not overstep the general
lines laid down by the legislature:
third, that such charter shall always
be in harmony with and subject to
the constitution and laws Of the state
OF Minnesota; fourth, that no local
charter or provision or ordinance
passed hereunder shall supersede any
general law Of the state defining or
Furnishing crimes or misdemeanors, and
fifth, that 1t shall be a feature of all
such charters that there shall be pro-
V1ded for mayor and chief magis-
trate and legislative body. The lat
ter may consist Of either one or two
houses, but If Of two houses, one of
them must be elected by a general
vote Of the citizens. There are thus
left open to the legislature for future
enactment a number of regulations a.
to administrative departments. The
question Of ruling various departments
with boards or without is to be ad
justed among other things, and the
extension or limitation Of the appoint
i've power Of the mayor. How closely
or how loosely the legislature will draw
these general lines remains to be
seen before the cities determine upon
any future procedure. The law saws.
The legislature may provide general laws
relating to affairs of cities the application
OF which may be limited to cities of over
afty thousand inhabitants, or to cities of
NIFTY or not less than fifteen thousand in
habltantS, or to cities of fifteen thousand in
hab1tants or less, which shall apply equally
TO all such cities of either class and which
snail be paramount while in force to the nro-
Visions relating to the same matter included
IN the local charter herein provided for
When the legislature has prescribed
these limitations the procedure shall
be as follows:
The district court shall appoint a
board Of fifteen freeholders, none of
whom shall have been less than five
years qualified voter; but whether the
court shall make this appointment at
the request of any citizen, or ONLY at
the request of some official body, re-
mains for the legislature to determine
hereafter. Within six months after it's
appointment, this board shall return
to the chief magistrate of the city a
dFaft OF charter signed by a major
ity Of all Of the members thereof. This
shall be submitted to the people at
the next election, and if it receives a
1our-seVenths vote shall supersede any
pre-eXlStlng charter. The mayor shall
certify to the charter and its ratifica-
ton, filing one certificate with the Sec
rotary Of state and one with the
register of deeds. Such charter NAV
be amended by q proposal therefor
made by the board of fifteen freehold
ers, published for at least thirty DAYS
in three newspapers of general circula-
ton in such city or village, and &C
copied by three-fifths of the qualified
voters Of such city or village at the
next election, and not otherwise.
The board Of freehOlders provided
for shall be permanent, and all the
vacancies by death, disability to per-
form duties, resignation or removal
from the corporate limits shall be filed
by appointment in the same manner
as the original board was created, and
said board shall always contain it's full
complement of members.
The Bell charter, under which ST
Paul is now governed, was granted
to the city before the Legislature passed
the law fOrbidding special legislation.
The Bell charter was, it was claimed,
defective in some features, ambiguous
in others, and steps were taken to re-
lieve the city from provisions that, in
the minds Of some, were harmful. 1t
was necessary that some measure that
would be general in it's effects be
passed by the legislature in order to
give relief to st. Paul.
That there is to be an attempt to
materially change the existing city
charter at the coming session of the
legislature, there is no doubt. The
Sheehan bill was passed and the amend
ments submitted to the people as one
Of the ways in which the obnoxious
features of the present charter could
be reached and modified. But none of
the Ramsey delegation pretendS to be
able to tell at what point the attack
on the Bell charter will be made SEN
ator Sheehan said there were some
features of the Bell charter that were
questionable in law, If not unconstitu-
tional. 1.-THE board of public works
difficulty is but one example Of the
weakness Of the present law" he said.
But he did not know positively what
other points were defective, and could
not say just where or when the work
of improvement on the present char
ter would begin.
Senator Ozmun likes the Howard
charter. AS a matter Of fact it con-
tainS q good deal Of the material which
was embodied in a charter bill which
he himself drew up. But he is not sat-
isfied with the provisions for the ap-
pointment Of certain officers. AS now
provided in the Howard charter the
chief Of the fire department Is ap-
pointed by the council. The evil eff
fects O. such a provision, he says, is
seen in the working Of the Minneapolis
charter. The result is that once year
there is q scramble for the position