Clifton’s no-bid insurance broker resolutions list no dollar value, and the property-casualty one calls itself a health contract

Clifton’s City Council is scheduled to vote Tuesday night on two insurance broker contracts that would be awarded without public bidding. Neither draft resolution says how much the brokers would earn, and the property-and-casualty resolution, in the paragraph that actually makes the award, describes the job as “health insurance broker services.”

CLIFTON — The City Council is scheduled to vote Tuesday, Oct. 20, on two insurance broker contracts that would be awarded without public bidding, and the draft resolutions posted in the council’s 419-page agenda packet contain inconsistencies that the packet does not explain.

Both awards are listed as “extraordinary unspecifiable service” contracts, a category state law lets towns award without formal bids. Both cover calendar year 2027. Neither resolution gives a dollar estimate. Each says only that the contract’s value “is determined to exceed $17,500,” to be paid by the providers.

What the agenda documents show

• Property and casualty broker (R494-26): Acrisure, LLC, doing business as Polaris Galaxy Group, would be paid commissions on the premiums the city pays: 15% of environmental impairment insurance (which the resolution says is already paid in full under an existing three-year policy), 10% of excess workers’ compensation, 10% of property coverage and 10% of “various liability” coverage.
• Health broker (R495-26): Marsh McLennan Agency would receive a flat fee of $10 per employee per month for medical, prescription and stop-loss coverage, plus a 1% commission on dental coverage, or 50 cents per employee per month if the city self-insures dental.

Where the documents don’t line up

• The property-and-casualty resolution’s operative paragraph says it awards a contract “for health insurance broker services” to Acrisure/Polaris Galaxy. Its own title and the city manager’s subject line say property and casualty.
• The legal notice printed at the bottom of that resolution, which the city would publish in a newspaper, lists five commission rates, including “5% of excess liability insurance premium.” The resolution’s operative paragraph lists only four and does not include the 5% excess-liability commission.
• The city manager’s certification for the Acrisure/Polaris contract leaves the “Firm” line blank and describes the work as “Health Insurance Broker Services,” including in the paragraph describing how proposals were solicited.
• The two certifications describe the solicitations differently. The property-and-casualty certification says a request for proposals ran on the city website and the League of Municipalities website for 27 days and drew three proposals; the resolution says sealed proposals were received Oct. 1 and followed by negotiations and a revised proposal dated Oct. 14. The health certification describes a “Request for Non-Fair and Open Informal Quotations” posted on the city website for 27 days that drew five proposals.
• Both resolutions say a Business Entity Disclosure Certification, required under the state pay-to-play law for contracts awarded without a fair and open process, was received. Those disclosures are not in the posted packet.

The council’s agenda also lists “Recommendations for Property and Casualty Insurance Services & Health Insurance Services (R494-26 & R495-26)” as a closed-session item before the public meeting. As of Tuesday afternoon, the agenda and packet posted on the city’s CivicClerk meeting portal had not been amended since they were published Oct. 16.

Background

Clifton has used both firms before. A Nov. 8, 2023 council agenda lists an extraordinary unspecifiable service contract to Acrisure, LLC d/b/a IMAC Insurance Agency for health insurance broker services, and the renewal appointment of Polaris Galaxy Insurance, LLC, “an Acrisure Agency Partner,” as the city’s insurance broker of record for property, liability, workers’ compensation and other lines.

On Dec. 5, 2025, Acrisure NJ Partners Insurance Services LLC, doing business as IMAC Insurance Agency, filed an action in lieu of prerogative writs in Passaic County Superior Court against the City of Clifton and Marsh & McLennan Agency, LLC (docket PAS-L-4101-25), according to a court-filing listing on Law.com Radar. Jersey Intel has not reviewed the complaint, and the case’s current status is not listed on Tuesday’s agenda.

The city’s insurance costs have been under pressure. NorthJersey.com reported in December 2025 that Polaris Galaxy told officials the city’s premiums could rise from about $2.02 million to $2.4 million and that its liability policy carries a $1 million self-insured retention.

The city’s response

Jersey Intel emailed five questions to City Manager Gary DeMarzo on Monday morning, Oct. 19, asking what each broker is expected to earn, which version of the Acrisure/Polaris commission schedule is correct, whether a completed certification was issued, how the proposals were scored and what the status of the IMAC lawsuit is. We asked for a reply by noon Tuesday. The city did not respond by publication time. This story will be updated if it does.

Also on Clifton’s agendas this week

• The council’s closed session lists “Potential Litigation ~ Clifton & Co. Apartments (Former Black Prince Distillery Site) Sewer Connection Fee.”
• The council will hear a presentation on a “City of Clifton Solar Initiative.”
• On Wednesday, Oct. 21, the Zoning Board of Adjustment is scheduled to hear iLearn Facility Development, Inc.’s application for an approximately 8,800-square-foot, two-story addition to the school building at 43 Clifton Ave. The agenda says the proposal “does not meet all of the conditions required for a school” and seeks bulk variances for signs and parking, including 12 tandem parking stalls without drive aisles.

Questions the documents raise

1. What is the city’s estimate of the total commissions and fees each broker would earn in 2027?
2. Which version of the Acrisure/Polaris commission schedule is correct, and does it include 5% on excess liability?
3. Will the resolution be corrected before the vote to describe property and casualty services?
4. How were the proposals scored, and who were the other proposers?
5. What is the status of the IMAC lawsuit against the city and Marsh?

Nothing in this story has been adopted. The council is scheduled to vote Tuesday night; any adoption will be confirmed from the final resolutions and minutes.

Attend or send us documents: The council’s closed session begins at 6 p.m. and the regular meeting at 8 p.m. at City Hall, 900 Clifton Ave. If you attend or record it, or have the proposals, scoring sheets or disclosures, send them to jerseyintel@gmail.com.