What The St. Paul Companies does

The St. Paul Companies, as represented in the source data, is the City of Saint Paul, Minnesota — a municipal government entity serving the residents, businesses, and visitors of Saint Paul, Minnesota. Founded in 1854 and headquartered at Saint Paul City Hall (15 Kellogg Blvd. West), the city serves a population of more than 300,000 residents across seven wards. It is governed by Mayor Kaohly Her, the city's first woman and first Asian American mayor, and provides the full range of municipal services including public safety (Police, Fire, EMS), Parks and Recreation, Public Works, Planning and Economic Development, Safety and Inspections, Housing, and Utilities.

The city's core technology platform is PAULIE (Permitting and Utility Licensing Inspection Engine), launched September 17, 2025, which consolidates permits, licenses, inspections, code complaints, and planning cases into a single mobile-friendly online portal. PAULIE replaced the legacy AMANDA and ECLIPS systems and enables residents, contractors, and businesses to apply for permits, track inspections, upload documents, submit complaints, make secure online payments, and receive status updates. The broader digital ecosystem includes the stpaul.gov website, an Open Data Portal, an Open Budget portal, and a Community Engagement Platform (engagestpaul.org).

Revenue is derived primarily through taxation rather than commercial transactions. The city collects a 1.5% total local option sales tax (including the voter-approved 1% Common Cent increase from 2023, projected to generate approximately $1 billion over 20 years), a lodging tax on hotels and motels (3% for properties with ≤50 rooms, 7% for larger facilities), and fees from business licenses, construction permits, and contractor registrations processed through the PAULIE system. The Common Cent initiative allocates $738 million for street improvements and $246 million for parks and recreation facilities over the next two decades. Customer segments include city residents (primary), local businesses and contractors (primary), and visitors and tourists (secondary). Note: a 1998 acquisition of USF&G Corp. for $2.8 billion appears in the data under a separate historical entity context.

Name

The St. Paul Companies

Legal name

City of Saint Paul

Website

https://stpaul.gov

Company type

Private

Founded year

1854

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1,001–5,000 employees

Short description

The City of Saint Paul, Minnesota (labeled "The St. Paul Companies") is a municipal government founded in 1854, serving 300,000+ residents and local businesses across seven wards with public safety, parks, permitting, and infrastructure services.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Municipal Government Services

NAICS

Administration of Housing Programs, Urban Planning, and Community Development (925), Services for the Elderly and Persons with Disabilities (62412)

SIC

Services-Management Services (8741), Services-Computer Programming, Data Processing, Etc. (7370), Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Public Works & Municipal Infrastructure (Streets, Stormwater, Facilities) (BPAIACAF)

akta.pro secondary industries

Government Digital Service & eGovernment (Service Delivery, IDs, Portals) (BPAIAAAE), Housing & Neighborhood Services (Local Housing Programs) (BPAIACAJ), Public Libraries & Information Services (BPAIACAO)

Keywords

• Municipal government services
• Permitting and licensing
• Parks and recreation
• Public safety services
• Urban infrastructure management

Headquarters

HQ city

Saint Paul

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Local Sales Tax: The City of Saint Paul collects a 1.5% total local option sales tax rate as of April 1, 2024. This includes a 0.50% Sales Tax Revitalization (STAR) program implemented January 1, 2000, and a 1.00% increase approved by voters in 2023 for streets, bridges, parks and recreational facilities.
2. Hotel/Motel Lodging Tax: A lodging tax on hotels and motels within city boundaries. Hotels with 50 or fewer rooms pay 3%; facilities with more than 50 rooms pay an additional 4% (increased from 3% as of October 1, 2019). Administered by Minnesota Department of Revenue.
3. Business Licenses and Permits: Revenue from various business licenses including Class N licenses for neighborhood-affecting activities (restaurants, bars, breweries, event venues, auto shops), construction permits, contractor licenses, and other municipal permits processed through the PAULIE system.
4. Common Cent Sales Tax Revenue: The voter-approved one-cent increase in local sales tax generates approximately $1 billion over 20 years, with $738 million allocated for street improvements and $246 million for parks and recreation facilities.

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

The City of Saint Paul operates as a municipal government delivering a broad portfolio of public services to residents, businesses, and visitors, including permitting and licensing (via the PAULIE platform), parks and recreation, public safety (police, fire, EMS), public works, planning and economic development, housing programs, and trash/recycling collection. The PAULIE online system is the flagship digital product, consolidating permits, licenses, inspections, code complaints, and planning cases into one mobile-friendly portal that replaces the legacy AMANDA and ECLIPS systems.

Product overview

The City of Saint Paul (The St. Paul Companies) operates PAULIE as its primary digital platform for permitting and licensing services. PAULIE serves as a unified portal for residents, contractors, and businesses to access city services including permit applications, license renewals, inspection scheduling, complaint submissions, and secure online payments. The system consolidates previously separate functions from legacy systems (AMANDA and ECLIPS) into one integrated platform.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• PAULIE Online Permitting and Licensing System Secure online portal allowing residents, contractors, and businesses to apply for permits and licenses, track inspections, upload documents, submit code complaints, make secure online payments, and receive status updates for planning cases, replacing legacy AMANDA and ECLIPS systems.
• Business Licenses and Permits Municipal business licenses issued by the Department of Safety and Inspections, including Class N licenses for neighborhood-affecting activities such as restaurants, bars, breweries, event venues, and auto shops, plus construction permits and contractor licenses, processed through the PAULIE system.
• Parks and Recreation Programs City-operated recreation programming across parks, aquatics (swimming lessons), athletics, activities and events, summer programs, Right Track youth employment, and park space rentals, ranked second-best parks system in the nation by Trust for Public Land.
• Public Safety Services Police, fire and emergency medical services, neighborhood safety, community-first public safety response, and the Familiar Faces program for unsheltered homelessness support, serving Saint Paul residents and visitors.
• Garbage and Recycling Collection Residential and commercial solid waste, recycling, and organics collection services managed by Saint Paul Public Works, including snow emergency response for city streets.
• Housing Assistance Programs

Quantifiable outcome

• 50 people housed from streets to stable housing within 18 months (November 2024 to May 2026)
• +5 more outcomes

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Ramsey CountycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 November 2024Saint Paul and Ramsey County collaborate on the Familiar Faces program within Saint Paul government to support people without safe places to stay. The county works with the city on preventing and ending homelessness initiatives through the Heading Home Ramsey partnership.
• Catholic CharitiescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFormer employer of Familiar Faces team members who transitioned to city government. Catholic Charities is a key nonprofit partner in providing services to vulnerable populations in Saint Paul.
• Minnesota Department of RevenuecoreTechnology or IntegrationThe State of Minnesota administers and collects the local option sales tax on behalf of the City of Saint Paul. The department also administers the city's lodging tax.
• University of Minnesota Youth Health and Housing LabminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic partner collaborating with 180 Degrees on developing a new substance abuse prevention curriculum for youth workers, combining academic research with on-the-ground experience.
• 180 DegreesminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNonprofit organization operating Brittany's Place shelter for girls affected by sex trafficking. Partnering with ONS and University of Minnesota to develop substance abuse prevention training curriculum for youth workers.
• 30,000 FeetminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCommunity organization committed to empowering Black youth through leadership development, mentorship, education, wellness, and cultural pride. Recognized by City Council for youth empowerment work.
• Miss Juneteenth Minnesota State PageantminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerOrganization empowering Black youth and families through leadership development, mentorship, education, wellness, and cultural pride. Recognized by City Council for youth empowerment work.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Emerging players

• CivicPlus: Vendor of municipal website, content management, and citizen-request platforms to U.S. local governments. Emerging player comparable to the digital front-end layer that hosts Saint Paul's permitting and resident-services experience.
• Accela: Civic-tech vendor specializing in permitting, licensing, and code-enforcement software for state and local governments. Emerging player with meaningful overlap in the PAULIE use case (permits, inspections, code complaints).

Direct peers

• City of Minneapolis: Twin-city municipal government of comparable size in Minnesota, operating parallel permitting, licensing, public works, and parks functions. Direct peer along geography, scope of services, and revenue model (local sales tax, lodging tax, license fees).
• City of Milwaukee: Mid-size Midwest municipal government of roughly similar population profile (~570K), operating comparable permitting, public works, and parks services. Direct peer in scale, climate-driven infrastructure burden, and revenue mix.
• City of Cincinnati: Mid-size post-industrial municipal government with a comparable population (~310K) and similar mix of permitting, parks, and infrastructure services. Direct peer in municipal scale, aging infrastructure profile, and operating model.
• City of Saint Louis: Mid-size urban municipal government operating similar permitting, licensing, and parks functions within a constrained fiscal envelope. Direct peer in urban governance scale and reliance on transactional revenue streams.
• City of Madison: Mid-size Wisconsin municipal government of similar population (~270K) with parallel permitting, parks, and digital-services priorities. Direct peer in operational scale and e-government investment trajectory.

Broad incumbents

• Tyler Technologies: Large established provider of municipal permitting, licensing, and public-sector ERP software — a likely vendor or analog to PAULIE-style functionality. Broad incumbent in the same operational category rather than a direct municipal competitor.
• OpenGov: Established provider of budgeting, permitting, and civic-engagement software to U.S. cities and counties. Broad incumbent in the government technology stack Saint Paul's PAULIE platform sits within.
• Granicus: Established government technology vendor for digital communications, content management, and service delivery to U.S. municipalities. Broad incumbent comparable on the digital service-delivery layer that PAULIE extends.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks4 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/cityofsaintpaul
• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/stpaulgov
• Facebookfacebook.com/cityofsaintpaul
• Instagraminstagram.com/officialcityofsaintpaul

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A1 record

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about The St. Paul Companies