How Ramsey is run
Who runs Ramsey, what it costs, and where your money goes
The city manager, council pay, the budget, your property tax bill and who provides each service, from Ramsey's own public documents. Every number links to its source and says which year it describes. Checked Oct 11, 2026.
Who runs Ramsey
The elected mayor heads the city government and appoints its top administrator and department heads. The council passes laws, adopts the budget and sets the tax rate.
What they are paid
Ramsey city staff
The 2026 budget lists salaries and wages by department. We found no staff count or list of individual employee pay. We name pay only for elected officials and the city manager.
Is Ramsey in the red?
Cities must pass a balanced budget, so "profit" and "deficit" mean something different here. The useful questions: does the city's everyday money (the general fund) cover its everyday costs, how much does it keep in savings compared with its own target, and how big are its pension and debt bills.
The city's own outlook
The 2026 budget raises the municipal tax rate 2.80%, to $0.435 per $100 of assessed value, or $167 a year for the average home assessed at $753,445. It uses $2.30M of fund balance, down from $2.70M in 2025. State health insurance premiums rose over 35%. The borough plans a new fire, rescue squad and emergency management station and adopted a $15.05M bond ordinance for it in 2026. Borough of Ramsey · Apr 1, 2026
Savings
Unassigned general fund balance: $4.4M (2025-12-31). Borough of Ramsey · Sep 24, 2026
Why we skip the "budgeted deficit": many cities plan to dip into savings, then spend less than planned. The audited result tells you what really happened.
Where the money comes from and goes
The general fund only: the city's everyday money for 2026.
Comes from
- Property tax for municipal purposes$22.4M · 70%
- Fund balance (surplus) used$2.3M · 7%
- Library property tax$1.7M · 5%
- State aid (energy receipts tax)$1.5M · 5%
- Grants with offsetting appropriations$792,048 · 2%
- Receipts from delinquent taxes$700,000 · 2%
- Construction code fees$495,000 · 2%
- Other (fees, court fines, interest, utility surplus, cable and hotel taxes, Allendale dispatch payment and others)$2.2M · 7%
Goes to (2026)
- Police, prosecutor, courts and 911 dispatch$6.7M · 21%
- Insurance (including employee health)$4.2M · 13%
- Pensions, Social Security and other statutory charges$3M · 10%
- Utilities and landfill fees$2.1M · 6%
- Road maintenance, resurfacing and sidewalks$1.9M · 6%
- Library$1.7M · 5%
- Debt service$1.6M · 5%
- Other (garbage and recycling, administration, public works, fire, capital fund, reserve for uncollected taxes and others)$10.9M · 34%
Your property tax bill: who gets it
Ramsey collects one property tax bill and passes most of it on. In 2025 about two thirds of the rate went to the schools and about 11% to Bergen County. The borough's own share, including the library, was about 22%. 2025 was a revaluation year, so rates fell from 2024.
22¢
of each property-tax dollar goes to the city of Ramsey
- Ramsey Public Schools1.371 · 67%
- Borough of Ramsey (municipal purposes)0.423 · 21%
- Bergen County0.233 · 11%
- Ramsey Free Public Library0.032 · 2%
- Total ($ per $100 of assessed value)2.059
2025 tax rates for a property in the Borough of Ramsey (Bergen County). Borough of Ramsey · Sep 24, 2026
See what a Ramsey home costs each year, line by line →Who provides your services
Not everything in Ramsey is run by the city. Who provides a service decides whose budget pays for it and whose election decides it.
- PoliceThe cityRamsey Police DepartmentBorough of Ramsey · Apr 1, 2026
- FireThe cityRamsey Fire Department (volunteer)Borough of Ramsey · Sep 24, 2026
- RescuePrivate companyRamsey Rescue Squad (volunteer)Borough of Ramsey
- Water and sewer linesThe cityBorough of Ramsey Water-Sewer UtilityBorough of Ramsey · Sep 24, 2026
- Trash and recyclingContractorSuburban Disposal (borough contract)Borough of Ramsey
- StreetsThe cityBorough of RamseyBorough of Ramsey · Sep 24, 2026
- Parks and recreationThe cityBorough of RamseyBorough of Ramsey · Sep 24, 2026
- Swimming poolThe cityBorough of Ramsey Swimming Pool UtilityBorough of Ramsey · Sep 24, 2026
Compared with similar cities
The cities in this state closest in population that we cover. Read it for scale, not as a ranking: cities provide different services.
| Per city | MiddlesexNJ | HopatcongNJ | RamseyNJ | EdgewaterNJ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 14,740 | 14,824 | 14,925 | 15,499 |
| Top administrator's base pay | $40,000 | Not confirmed | Not confirmed | Not confirmed |
| Council member pay | Not confirmed | Not confirmed | Not confirmed | Not confirmed |
| General fund per resident | $1,797 | $1,384 | $2,148 | $2,645 |
| Debt per resident | $1,018 | $1,535 | $1,191 | $2,648 |
| Unfunded pension per resident | $1,026 | $791 | $1,224 | $1,268 |
| City staff per 1,000 residents | — | — | — | — |
Figures as shown in each city's section, divided by its population. Years differ by state, and pension figures are measured differently in each state (each city page says how).
What Ramsey publishes
What a resident can find online today. A "no" is something you can ask the council to publish.
- Yes: Adopted budget posted onlineThe 2026 adopted and introduced budgets are posted on the borough's Budget Documents page, with a budget newsletter. Borough of Ramsey
- No: City manager's contract findable onlineThe Finance page links budgets, audits, debt statements and financial statements. We found no contract or resolution stating the Borough Administrator's pay. Borough of Ramsey
- Yes: Council votes recorded member by member onlineCouncil minutes record a roll call naming each member's vote, including on the 2026 budget adoption. Borough of Ramsey · Apr 22, 2026
- Yes: Meeting videos and minutes online Borough of Ramsey · Apr 1, 2026
- Partly: Council pay stated in a public documentThe 2026 budget sets $50,000 of salaries and wages for the mayor and council together, without a per-member figure. Borough of Ramsey · Apr 22, 2026
Questions to ask your council
- The borough adopted a $15.05 million bond ordinance in 2026 for a new fire, rescue squad and emergency management station. How will the borrowing change debt service in future budgets?
- Ramsey's share of state pension liabilities was $18.3 million at June 30, 2025. How will pension contributions fit into future budgets?
- Insurance, including employee health coverage, is budgeted at $4.19 million in 2026 after premiums rose over 35%. What options does the borough have to slow that cost?
Help decide what comes next
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Every number here was checked by hand against the linked document. Cities publish on different schedules, so years differ between sections; each figure says which year it describes. Spotted something wrong or out of date?
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