Faulkner Act (Mayor-Council)

The Faulkner Act, or Optional Municipal Charter Law, provides for New Jersey municipalities to adopt a mayor–council government.

This form of government provides for election of a mayor and five, seven, or nine council members. All council members may be elected at large, or some may be elected by wards; they may be partisan or nonpartisan, and serve four-year concurrent or staggered terms. There may be up to ten administrative departments.

As in all Faulkner Act municipalities, citizens in the mayor–council system enjoy the right of initiative and referendum, meaning that proposed ordinances can be introduced directly by the people without action by the local governing body. This right is exercised by preparing a conforming petition signed by 10% of the registered voters who turned out in the last General Assembly election. Once the petition is submitted, the local governing body can vote to pass the requested ordinance, and if it refuses, it is then submitted directly to the voters.

The following municipalities have adopted mayor–council system under the Faulkner Act.

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