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East Orange, N.J. votes Monday on budget raising city tax levy 14%
East Orange, N.J.'s posted 2026 budget raises the city's municipal tax levy by $13.4 million, or 14.2%, uses all $8.45 million of its banked levy-cap room and leans on a $14 million state loan. The City Council holds a hearing on unposted amendments and votes Monday, Oct. 26 at 6 p.m.
EAST ORANGE, N.J. — The 2026 municipal budget East Orange, N.J. has posted for the public raises the amount the city collects from property taxpayers for municipal purposes by $13.4 million, or 14.2%, and the City Council is scheduled to adopt it Monday night after a public hearing on amendments the city has not posted.
The introduced CY2026 budget sets the local tax for municipal purposes at $107,791,849.74, up from $94,429,734.83 in 2025. Total spending rises to $203.3 million from $175.0 million, a 16.2% increase, according to the city’s own revenue and appropriations summary.
Image: Jersey Intel infographic. Photo: East Orange City Hall, Paul Sableman / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 2.0).
- What we know: East Orange’s posted 2026 budget raises the municipal tax levy 14.2% to $107.8 million, cuts surplus used to balance the budget from $17 million to $4.4 million, and counts a $14 million state loan as revenue.
- Why it matters: The levy is set at exactly the maximum state law allows, after the city applied $8.45 million in banked levy-cap room, leaving none for future years.
- What’s next: The City Council holds a public hearing on budget amendments and votes on adoption (Resolutions I-366 and I-367) Monday, Oct. 26 at 6 p.m. at the East Orange Board of Education, 199 Fourth Ave.
Levy set at the legal maximum
New Jersey’s 2010 levy cap limits most yearly increases in the municipal tax levy to 2%, but towns may add certain exclusions and “bank” unused cap room from the three prior years. East Orange’s levy-cap sheet starts from a 2%-adjusted levy of $96.15 million, adds $2.66 million in health and pension exclusions and $739,929 for new construction, then applies $8,454,240.27 in banked cap room. The result, $107,791,849.74, is the “maximum allowable amount to be raised by taxation,” and the budget raises exactly that amount. The sheet lists the total levy cap bank remaining after 2026 as zero.
Using the city’s 2025 municipal tax rate of $1.951 per $100 of assessed value, also listed in the budget, and the $37.9 million in new construction the assessor certified, the increase works out to roughly $259 more per $100,000 of assessed value on the municipal portion of the bill, if the tax base is otherwise unchanged. That is a Jersey Intel estimate, not a city figure; school and county taxes are set separately. Homeowners can check whether their assessment is in line with the free GardenState.ai property tax appeal check or estimate a bill change with the Tax Shock calculator.
Less surplus, a state loan, and 2025 overspending
The budget’s revenue sheets show where else the money is coming from, and where it is not:
- Surplus: $4.4 million anticipated in 2026, down from $17 million used in 2025.
- State loan: $14 million listed as “Transitional Aid Program – State Loan Proceeds.” The council approved the $14 million Transitional Aid loan agreement with the state Department of Community Affairs in September, as TAPinto East Orange & Orange reported. The state describes Transitional Aid as short-term help for towns with “severe structural difficulties,” in Local Finance Notice 2026-03.
- Municipal court fines: $1.8 million anticipated, down from $5.4 million budgeted in 2025 ($4.77 million was actually collected).
- Investment interest: $500,000 anticipated, down from $2.85 million budgeted in 2025 ($1.19 million collected).
On the spending side, the budget carries a $5.31 million deferred charge for “Over Expenditure – 2025 Appropriations,” more than double the $2.48 million overexpenditure charge in the 2025 budget, plus $1.22 million for an overexpenditure of grant reserves. Employee group insurance rises to $19.3 million from $14.6 million, and police and fire salaries rise by a combined $4.0 million.
The posted document also contains spreadsheet errors. In 12 places, including the “Overexpenditures” line of the summary of 2025 spending and several total-appropriations rows, the budget shows “#REF!” instead of a number.
Amendments not posted before the vote
The council’s Oct. 26 special-meeting agenda lists Resolution I-366, approving amendments to the 2026 budget after a public hearing, and Resolution I-367, adopting the budget. The amendment resolution is to be read in full at the meeting, but as of Monday morning the city had posted only the introduced budget and a one-page hearing notice, not the amendments themselves. The final levy could change if the amendments shift revenues or spending.
The council delayed adoption last month as residents pressed for more financial detail, TAPinto reported. The council approved the introduced budget July 31, held budget hearings in August and opened the formal public hearing Sept. 14. Jersey Intel will report the adopted figures after the vote.
Do you live in East Orange? Have budget records or a tip about city finances? Send documents to jerseyintel@gmail.com.
