Request for Proposal for an Administrative Hearing Officer
for the City of Cambridge

The City of Cambridge is seeking proposals for an Administrative Hearing Officer to handle administrative citation appeal hearings for administrative traffic and code enforcement citations. Minnesota Statutes requires cities to provide a “civil process” for citation appeals and retain a neutral third party to hear and rule on challenges to a citation.

Qualifications
We are looking for individuals who have work experience as an arbitrator.

Duties
Act as the neutral presiding officer who conducts the appeal hearing, actively listen to the evidence and arguments of the parties, and issue a final decision. The hearings should be modeled after an administrative law judge proceeding giving both sides an opportunity to present information. The Administrative Hearing Officer must prepare a short-written findings of facts at the conclusion of the hearing supporting their decision as to whether or not the appeal was granted or denied by applying deductive and inductive reasoning. The written findings of fact must be provided to the city and appellant within two weeks of the hearing date.

Hearing date(s) and time options will be requested from the Administrative Hearing Officer when we receive a Request for an Administrative Hearing, and those date/time options will be provided to the appellant. We strive to provide a mutually agreed upon schedule, and hearings are booked in 20-minute increments between the hours of 8:00 am – 4:30 pm. The hearing location will depend upon the demand for appeal hearings, but will typically take place at City Hall of the respective city. Hearings will be audio recorded by the entity/location hosting the hearing.

Joint Powers Agreement
These services may be provided to another governmental entity, such as the City of Isanti, pursuant to a Joint Powers Agreement, and will be served under the terms of this agreement.

Restrictions on who may submit a proposal
Due to the need for a neutral third party, we will not entertain proposals from anyone employed by an Isanti County law enforcement agency or Isanti County Court Administration.

Contract Period
We are proposing a two-year contract with a 60-day cancellation clause.

Proposals Due
Proposals are due by 4:00 pm on Tuesday, February 10th, 2026.

Proposal Contents
Proposals should include a statement of interest and a detailed resume highlighting your arbitration, dispute resolution, and legal experience. Proposals should also include a cost for the 20-minute Administrative Hearing that would include your findings. Proposals should be submitted to:

Amy Norling
City of Cambridge
300 3rd Ave. NE
Cambridge, MN 55008
anorling@ci.cambridge.mn.us

Questions
Questions can be directed to Amy Norling at 763-552-3257 or emailing anorling@ci.cambridge.mn.us