As mayors try to meet Christie's 2 percent property tax cap without slashing services, they're turning like never before to school districts, counties and neighboring towns to share services
TRENTON — Residents of Netcong may be reporting to neighboring Mount Olive for municipal court appearances next year.
In Somerset County, 19 police forces could combine into one regional force by 2013.
And Gov. Chris Christie recently met with the mayors of Newark, Camden and Trenton to explore dealing with public safety shortfalls "in a countywide, regional sense."
As New Jersey’s mayors try to meet Christie’s newly implemented 2 percent property tax cap without slashing services, they’re turning like never before to school districts, counties and neighboring towns to share services.
"We don’t have a choice," Kinnelon Mayor Robert Collins said Thursday night, where officials discussed a plan to eventually serve Morris County with four regional police departments. "We don’t have anywhere else to go to make additional cuts. To reduce any further would present public safety issues."
While such agreements have been used since the 1970s, a recent New Jersey League of Municipalities survey found sharing services is now the No. 1 cost-saver mayors say they’ll use in 2011.
Tim Smith, a Roxbury councilman who founded Government Efficiency Movement, which proposed the Morris County police regionalization plan, believes this year more towns will agree to share than ever before.
"I think shared services has a much better reputation now than several years ago," said Smith, who is organizing regionalization summits in Bergen, Monmouth, Ocean and Middlesex counties.
Shared-services agreements range from joint health departments and animal control divisions to the new wave of proposals across the state that suggest combining or regionalizing public safety forces. Like Somerset and Morris, Camden County officials from 34 towns are discussing such a police plan.
Senate President Stephen Sweeney (D-Gloucester), a longtime supporter of shared services, said efforts in Gloucester County, where he was freeholder director until December, saved every household an average of $275 on its property tax bill. He plans to introduce legislation this month that would cut state aid for towns that refuse to share services, if a study proves it could save money.
Municipalities like Mount Olive have had success in the past with such agreements, allowing Mayor David Scapicchio to propose a budget this year that fits well within the 2 percent cap. The township provides fire prevention, animal control and other services to neighboring towns. "We’re generating some additional revenue, they’re saving some money," he said.
But sharing services is not a catch-all, experts warn. Several hurdles can hamper the process, and it often takes years to reap the benefits of joining forces.
"It’s not going to give instant results," said Chuck Chiarello, president of the League of Municipalities and Buena Vista mayor. "It may help next year or the year after."
Civil service rules that govern the hiring, promotion and firing of employees can prevent towns from combining forces, especially when one town has civil service rules and the other does not. Existing labor contracts and binding arbitration may also prevent combining departments, especially police and fire forces, they say.
Local politics often keeps towns from sharing, especially if residents fear reduced services. Sometimes, layoffs must occur for the agreement to work out.
"On the one hand, both elected officials and legislators talk about the need to save money and the need to reduce government for the taxpayer, but on the other hand they talk about the need to protect employment for public employees," said Gregory Fehrenbach, who coordinates interlocal service agreements for the league. "You just can’t have your cake and eat it, too."
And there’s the famous Jersey tradition of home rule, which has been a major impediment to sharing services.
"It’s the fear of the unknown — what is it that my town is going to get out of this," said Chiarello. "There is a competitive nature to make sure each town gets the best deal. New Jersey is a home-rule state and we certainly want to have our independence. You can still have that with shared services."
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