Saint Paul Legislative Code tit. XVIII, ch. 184 — Employment Inquiries | Saint Paul Legislative Code (Supp. No. 133, Update 1: codified through Ordinance No. 26-26, adopted May 13, 2026) — City of St. Paul

Saint Paul Legislative Code § 184.01 Rules and regulations adopted.

Sec. 184.01. - Rules and regulations adopted. The rules and regulations relative to lawful and unlawful employment inquiries and application form items, adopted by the Fair Employment Practice Commission of the City of Saint Paul [3] and set forth hereinafter, shall be and hereby are approved by the council of the City of Saint Paul. (1) Name. It shall be deemed lawful to ask an applicant for information relative to maiden name; any names (if different) used by applicant in criminal proceedings, if any; any names used by applicant if previously employed under different name. Any inquiry into previous name of applicant where said name has been changed by legal proceedings, or any inquiry into previous names other than those inquiries cited as "lawful" shall be deemed to be unlawful. (2) Address. It shall be deemed lawful to inquire as to place and length of current and previous residences of applicant in the United States. It shall be deemed unlawful to inquire into foreign address which would indicate national origin. (3) Birthplace. Any inquiry as to place of birth shall be deemed to be unlawful. (4) Religion—Creed. It shall be deemed lawful to tell said applicant the work days involved in the position for which said applicant is applying, such as "Monday through Friday." It shall be deemed unlawful to tell said applicant that the employing organization or its employees are members of a specific faith or group; or to make any inquiry to indicate or identify religious denomination, preference or customs of said applicant. (5) Race—Color. It shall be deemed unlawful to make any inquiry which would indicate race, color of skin, or complexion of said applicant. (6) Photographs. It shall be deemed unlawful to require or request photograph of applicant before hiring; photographs may lawfully be required or requested only after hiring, for identification purposes. (7) Citizenship. It shall be deemed lawful to inquire whether said applicant is a citizenship of the United States; and, if applicant is not a citizen, it shall be deemed lawful to inquire whether he intends to become a citizen of the United States. It shall be deemed lawful to inquire if said applicant's residence in the United States is legal. It shall be deemed unlawful to inquire whether said applicant is native-born or naturalized; the date on said applicant received United States citizenship; to require proof of said applicant's United States citizenship; or to make any inquiry concerning citizenship which would indicate national origin. (8) Language. It shall be deemed lawful to inquire into applicant's language skills, i.e., which languages applicant can read, write and speak. It shall be deemed unlawful to make inquiry which, rather than to indicate knowledge of, or skill in, a language, serves to identify national origin or ancestry of applicant, e.g., the language spoken at home, or the language spoken by applicant's parents. (9) Education. It shall be deemed lawful to inquire as to the extent of applicant's education, and as to names and places of schools attended. It shall be deemed unlawful to make any inquiry which would specifically ask the nationality, racial or religious affiliation of any school, attended by the applicant. (10) National origin. It shall be deemed unlawful to make any inquiry into applicant's national origin or ancestry, or national customs observed by said applicant. (11) Relatives. It shall be deemed unlawful to make any inquiry concerning applicant's relatives which would be unlawful if made concerning said applicant. (12) Organizations and activities. It shall be deemed lawful to ask said applicant to enumerate any organizations or activities in which he is participating or in which he has engaged in the past, other than those inquiries designated as unlawful; or to inform said applicant that he may voluntarily enumerate any organizations or activities in which he is participating or in which he has engaged in the past. It shall be deemed to be unlawful to make any inquiries as to organizations and activities in which said applicant is participating or may have engaged in the past which would indicate said applicant's religious creed, race, or national origin. (Code 1956, § 75.01)

Saint Paul Legislative Code § 184.02 List not all-inclusive.

Sec. 184.02. - List not all-inclusive. The items listed in Section 184.01 are neither all-inclusive nor all-exclusive. Consequently, any inquiry which, although not specifically listed among said items, is designated to indicate information as to national origin, ancestry, religious creed, race or color, in violation of Section 183.03 is hereby deemed to be unlawful. (Code 1956, § 75.02)

Saint Paul Legislative Code § 184.03 Information excluded from rules.

Sec. 184.03. - Information excluded from rules. Lawful information required by a government agency, for such reasons as national security, shall be excluded from the rules set forth herein, where withholding such information would be unlawful. (Code 1956, § 75.03)

Saint Paul Legislative Code § 184.04 Exemption for bona fide job requirements.

Sec. 184.04. - Exemption for bona fide job requirements. Any inquiry or item of information which pertains to a bona fide job requirement may be declared exempt from the rules set forth herein and in Section 183.03 upon request to and permission of the human rights commission. (Code 1956, § 75.04)