We, the residents of West Milford Township, urge the West Milford Town Council to rescind OR vote “NO” on both Ordinance 2024 – 009 and Ordinance 2024 – 011 changing the role of our Mayor. The ordinances are separate and either could be enacted independently.

The first ordinance would empower the West Milford Township Council to switch the official, elected position of Mayor from a part-time to a full-time position and back again on an annual basis.

The second ordinance would change the role of Mayor from a part-time position to a full-time position with a salary increase of over 550%. The current salary range for the mayor is $5,348.00 to $16,000.00 (according to Ordinance 2023 – 007). The proposed ordinance specifies a salary range of $90,000 to $135,000 with benefits and a pension.

To earn this salary, the Mayor would take on administrative duties not currently performed due to resource constraints. 

We oppose both ordinances because:

This could lead to future impropriety as the Mayor could be “punished” by the Council for his or her votes and appointments, weakening the independence of the executive branch.

The reason for changing the law seems to be for the benefit of the current sitting Mayor and not in the best interests of the citizens and taxpayers of West Milford.

We do not agree that West Milford requires two full-time staff administrators.

In 2002, residents of our town petitioned to change our form of government to one with an independently elected mayor. Our current form of government is the Council-Mayor-Administrator, which is considered to be a strong mayor model. A strong mayor is independent of the council, can veto legislation, acts as a tie-breaker, and makes appointments. By giving the council the authority to change the mayor position from full-time to part-time, or vice versa, annually, the proposed ordinance makes the mayor dependent on the council and negates the principle of a strong and independent executive branch. 

We see no changes in West Milford that would precipitate a need for a full-time mayor. The population of West Milford has been declining since 2017 (from 26,418 to 24,382 in 2022). While we have a large township by square mileage (80 square miles), much of this land is undeveloped and managed by other authorities including the Newark Watershed and the state and county park systems. In addition, the Highlands Act prohibits new development so we cannot expect significant increase in needs for services in the near future.

The council is proposing that West Milford employs two full-time administrators at full salary and benefits. We have other alternatives that would improve administrative capacity with less long-term taxpayer burden, such as separating the dual administrator/clerk position into two or hiring contractors. 

Mayor Salaries in Comparable NJ Municipalities

Municipality, Area, Population, Salary

Galloway, 115 Square Miles, 37,349, $9,936

Jackson, 100.1 Square Miles, 29,000, $42,724

Rockaway, 45.7 Square Miles, 25,539, $49,179

Municipalities with Comparable Mayor Salaries

Municipality, Area, Population, Salary

Paterson, 8.7 Square Miles, 148,678, $119,000

Woodbridge, 24.6 Square Miles, 101,965, $129,000

Trenton, 8.2 Square Miles, 84,964, $130,253

We urge the council to rescind or vote "no" on these ordinances.