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History of Municipal and Local Government in New
Jersey
Townships
King Charles II of England granted the state
of New Jersey to his brother James Duke of York
in 1664. The grant gave the Duke broad powers
to form government and laws. The Duke subsequently
transferred his powers to Lord John Berkeley and
Sir George Carteret who incorporated municipalities
in a general assembly. Legislative creation of
municipalities continued in both East and West
Jersey till 1702. When East and West Jersey merged
to form the royal colony of New Jersey in 1702
the power to incorporate municipalities was taken
away from the general assembly and municipalities
began to be incorporated by royal charters. After
the American Revolution municipalities were governed
and incorporated by the state legislature. (Wolfe,
Albert J)
The Township Act of 1798 was the first law passed
by the state legislature and it created the original
104 townships of New Jersey. 88 of these original
municipalities are still incorporated under this
act and 27% of the 566 municipalities in New Jersey
are currently townships under the Township Act
of 1989. The Township Act of 1798 gave the town
meetings the power to manage common land, provide
welfare support, build and maintain roads and
to tax the local public. The town meeting would
appoint tax collectors, judges and overseers of
‘good character’. The primary function
of township meetings was to supervise the expenditure
of funds. This act was well suited for towns with
an agricultural economy and a widely distributed
small population. (Wolfe, Albert J)
The Civil War and The Industrial Revolution in
the United States had a profound impact on the
economy of the country and New Jersey. This era
was coupled with the enormous population influx
from Europe. Villages became towns and towns became
cities. During that period the Township Act was
amended 168 times and it became very obvious that
the Township system was inadequate. The Township
Act of 1899 abolished the town meeting and gave
in its stead the Township Committee legislative
and governing powers. The Township committee was
given powers of policy and law making. The process
of electing officials to administrative positions
however remained the same. The New Jersey Statute
records the most recent Township Act of 1989 as
follows, “The Township Act of 1989 retained
the basic structure of the township form as it
had evolved under the 1899 law and its many amendments:
a three or five member township committee serving
staggered three year terms, partisan elections,
at large representation, and the mayor elected
by the committee from among its members.”
(Wolfe, Albert J)
Boroughs
Seventeen Boroughs existed in New Jersey prior
to the passage of the first Borough Act in 1878.
Each of these 17 boroughs was established by a
special act of legislature and in 1875 the State
Constitution prohibited special acts by local
legislature. Under the first Borough Act of 1878
any township or part of a township could become
an independent borough through a petition and
referendum process if it did not occupy a land
area of more than 4 square miles and a population
not exceeding 5000. The first act defined the
basic features of the Borough government still
in use today. The act called for a six member
council and an elected mayor who would preside
over council meeting. The mayor did not have a
vote and nor did he have the veto power which
is invested in the current Borough mayor’s
office. The quorum constituted of the mayor and
three other council members and four council members
in the absence of the mayor. The Borough Act of
1878 granted significant judicial powers to the
mayor and he had jurisdiction regarding criminal
maters as the Justice of Peace. The Mayor had
very broad powers relating to the maintenance
of peace, he could arrest without process or warrant
or issue a warrant. The mayor performed the duties
of a judge and could preside over criminal and
Borough ordinance violation cases. As judge the
mayor could order punishment of 10 days in jail
and could impose fines. The mayor could remain
one year in office and council members had a term
of three years. For the purpose of administration
the mayor and council members could appoint borough
clerk and marshals of their own choosing. (Wolfe,
Albert J)
It is clearly evident that the borough system
has more management power than the Township Act
of 1798. The objective of the Township Act of
1798 was to provide community management for sparsely
populated agricultural areas and when the township
grew too populous and industrialized it became
necessary to enact amendments in the Township
act leading to major changes introduced in the
Township Act of 1989. The Borough system also
serves a small land area and community however
it has more efficient allocation of executive
powers along with the necessary legislative powers.
As a result the borough administration can engage
in activities most suitable to the local public
and can form policies accordingly. However, it
is very apparent that the quality of services
provided by the boroughs depends on the wealth
of the local public and poor areas would not want
to gain independence as independent boroughs.
(Wolfe, Albert J)
The borough taxation system involved the local
people as a decision making public. Voters could
designate the total amount of taxation for the
next year at the annual election. This amount
was then collected as borough tax. However, the
collecting authority was not the borough but the
parent township from which the borough seceded.
As mentioned earlier, the borough incorporation
process according to the Borough Act of 1878 did
not require special acts of legislature to be
passed and was self executing. This self executing
nature of borough formation became troublesome
in 1894 when the local public schools law was
amended by the legislature. The new amendment
declared that all the separate school districts
in each township would be consolidated into one
township wide school district. Previously each
public school was a separate school district.
The result of this act was that the debts of some
public schools became the responsibility of the
whole school district. The amendment had a loop
hole which declared that each incorporated city,
town or borough was a separate school district.
The Borough Act of 1878 was self executing and
many townships dwindled in size as they were broken
up into separate and independent boroughs. One
township in particular, Bergen County all but
disappeared. The revised Borough Act of 1897 removed
the self executing nature of borough incorporation
by declaring, “Hereafter no borough shall
be incorporated or dissolved, nor shall its territory
be increased or diminished, or its lines altered,
except by special act of the Legislature.”
(Wolfe, Albert J)
Besides patching up the loop holes in the Borough
Act of 1878, the Borough Act of 1897 made some
very important changes. The mayor’s term
was extended to two years and the borough government
was given the power to assess and collect its
own taxes. The voters could vote in tax collectors,
assessors and tax appeal commissioners for three
year terms. The tax collectors role also included
the responsibilities of borough treasurer. The
1897 revision allowed the boroughs a more extensive
list of officials. By special provision a borough
recorder or municipal court judge was also allowed
who was to be appointed by the council. For the
first time the mayor was given veto power, but
this power was futile since only a two thirds
majority could override a veto decision and a
two thirds majority was needed to pass a resolution.
The mayor had the same extensive judicial powers
as he had in the previous act. An amendment to
the revised Borough Act of 1878 allowed for a
salary to be allocated to the mayor and council
members.
Since the Borough Act of 1878 numerous amendments
were made and finally in January 1, 1988 the Borough
Act of 1987 was enforced. The 1987 act was simplified
the previous act and rewrote the borough law without
redundant, outdated and conflicting provisions.
The 1987 act retained all the power dynamics of
the borough system as they had evolved over time.
However, the Borough Act of 1987 made a crucial
and major change to the borough management process
by delegating executive responsibilities to an
appointed administrator. Also, the borough council
was allocated all executive powers and responsibilities
of the municipality not placed under the mayor
and the council delegate such responsibilities
to the administrator. (Wolfe, Albert J)
Departments Responsible for Administration and
Management of Boroughs
The modern governing style of boroughs has made
full use of specialization departments dealing
with specific areas of borough management. The
council and the mayor have retained themselves
to policy making, negotiating and legislative
roles. The general management of the state of
affairs in any New Jersey borough is run by an
appointed administrator and heads of specialized
departments. These departments maintain strict
financial records of their activities and every
year or any time period which the council decides,
a budget is prepared and funds are allocated to
these departments according to their various needs.
Borough Ordinances are passed by the Borough councils
which govern the function of departments for which
they have been formulated.
According to the Borough Act of 1987 the Borough
council and mayor control borough property and
finances, formulate and adopt annual budgets,
levy taxes, issue bonds, and adopt ordinances
and resolutions governing municipal affairs. The
day to day management is carried out by the municipal
departments, some of the common departments found
in most municipalities are:
• Administrative Department
• Department of Finance
• Chamber of Commerce
• Public works Department
• Planning and Zoning Office
• Board of Health
• Office of Emergency Management
• Police department
• Fire Department
• And various commissions such as The Recreation
Commission
The administrative department usually functions
dual roles as chamber of commerce and department
of finance in small and suburban boroughs. Otherwise
the department of finance is a highly specialized
and perhaps the most important department in any
borough. It is responsible for the collection
and controlling of revenues of the borough. This
department functions according to the guidelines
in the annual budget and all monies received as
taxation or income is either invested or distributed
to other departments in the manner specified by
the annual budget. The chief forms of revenue
collected by an average borough are statutory
taxes, delinquent taxes and tax liens and local
property taxes. An average home in a borough pays
taxes for school, local, county and open space.
The New Jersey State legislature is responsible
for prescribing standards and formulas for property
valuation assessment. Assessment of property tax
is a major function of the department of finance.
The chamber of commerce is a vital function of
all municipalities. Economic success depends on
the policies implemented by the chamber of commerce.
Most chambers dedicate their resources to small
and medium sized corporation, helping them grow
and assisting them with finding sources of finance.
This department also deals with collective bargaining
and insurance issues.
Perhaps the heaviest cost allocation goes to
the public works department in every borough.
This department is responsible for sanitation,
streets and roads, sewers, parks and playgrounds
and public buildings. The public works department
carries out the function of building, repairing
and maintaining borough property. Recently many
private organizations have taken over many of
the public works department’s responsibilities
either on a contractual basis or tender agreement
with the Borough council.
The responsibility of enforcing and administrating
the land development ordinances falls on the planning
and zoning office. The rules and regulations regarding
site plan standards, administrative procedures
and fees, design standards and enforcement penalties
are all contained in the ordinance. The zoning
office also acts as a permit office which processes
application for construction, issues construction
permits, certificates of occupancy, collects fees,
penalties and fines and issues notices and orders.
The planning and zoning department has a planning
board which overseas the orderly development of
the borough.
The health department provides a variety of health
services. This department is concerned with enforcing
sanitary and animal control laws. It provides
animals clinics where animals can be treated and
vaccinated. It issues licenses for dogs and cats.
The health department also carries out regular
food inspections at retail outlets in the municipalities.
Some boroughs which do not have an environmental
department enforce air pollution, noise and housing
codes via the heath department.
All local governments are required to have an
active emergency management plan under the New
Jersey emergency Management Act. The boroughs
are supposed to submit their emergency plans for
state approval. Currently most boroughs have emergency
plans relating to large-scale emergencies such
as mass casualty incidents, large scale fires,
losses of utilities, and large traffic disruptions.
Most municipalities have also formulated anti
terrorism plans as a part of their emergency plans.
Training is provided to police, fire, public works
and emergency medical services officers under
the emergency management plan.
Local Government Budget Review Program
The local Government Budget Review Program (LGBR)
was designed to make municipalities accountable
for their expenditures and create a partnership
between the state and the municipalities. This
programs aim was to identify cost drivers, improve
efficiency and reduce costs. The LGBR was introduced
by the New Jersey State to municipalities in the
following words, “Of major concern is the
rising cost of local government. There is no doubt
that local government costs and the property taxes
that pay for them have been rising steadily over
the past decade. Prior to Governor Whitman’s
taking office in 1994, the state had never worked
as closely with towns to examine what is behind
those costs. That is why she created the Local
Government Budget Review (LGBR) program. Its mission
is simple: to help local governments and school
boards find savings and efficiencies without compromising
the delivery of services to the public. The LGBR
program utilizes an innovative approach combining
the expertise of professionals, primarily from
the Departments of Treasury, Community Affairs
and Education, with team leaders who are experienced
local government managers. In effect, it gives
local governments a comprehensive management review
and consulting service by the state at no cost
to them. To find those “cost drivers”
in local government, teams review all aspects
of local government operation, looking for ways
to improve efficiency and reduce costs.”
(The Report of the Borough of Fanwood)
This program has been very successful and an
increasing number of municipalities and boroughs
are requesting the review services offered by
this program. Interesting features of the review
services includes the analyses and identification
of ‘best practices’ so that these
can be adopted by other municipalities. Another
feature of the review reporting program is the
opportunity for change and recommendation section
which essentially identifies all unnecessary costs
and inefficiencies and prescribes methods to improve
the administration system. (The Report of the
Borough of Fanwood)
The borough form of local government is the most
successful and popular form with 218 municipalities
operating under the borough system. This form
of government is ideal for small, compact and
developed municipalities. Municipalities operating
on the borough system do not feel the need to
leave this traditional form of government for
the new Optional Municipal Charter Law form proposed
by the Faulkner Act.
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