How Sayreville is run
Who runs Sayreville, 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 Sayreville's own public documents. Every number links to its source and says which year it describes. Checked Oct 10, 2026.
Who runs Sayreville
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
Sayreville city staff
265 full-time-equivalent positions, including Other union employees 128, Police officers 95, Other non-union employees 22, Department heads and managers 18, Governing body 2. 2026. Full-time employees budgeted for 2026. The budget also lists 40 part-time employees. Borough of Sayreville · Jul 20, 2026
The 2026 user-friendly budget gives head counts and total pay by group. Salary ordinances set pay ranges by position; we found no list of individual employee pay. We name pay only for elected officials and the city manager.
Is Sayreville 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 levy by $3.38M (8.98%) to $41.08M. The municipal tax rate rises from 1.592 to 1.732, and the average home's municipal tax goes from $2,328.75 to $2,537.91. The budget lists $6M of surplus, a $262,344 MCUA refund, $375,000 of police off-duty fees and $300,000 from a debt service reserve as non-recurring revenue. Borough of Sayreville · Jul 20, 2026
Savings against the city's own target
Unassigned general fund balance: $14M (2025-12-31). The city's own target: We found no written reserve target. New Jersey towns report a Current Fund balance (surplus) rather than an unassigned balance. Sayreville's was $14.0M on December 31, 2025. The 2026 budget uses $6.5M of surplus as revenue, down from $9.4M in 2025. Borough of Sayreville · Aug 13, 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$41.1M · 49%
- Local revenues (fees, fines and charges)$11.2M · 13%
- State aid$9.4M · 11%
- Other special items$8.3M · 10%
- Fund balance (surplus) used$6.5M · 8%
- Library property tax$2.6M · 3%
- Other (grants, delinquent taxes and construction code fees)$4M · 5%
Goes to (2026)
- Public safety (police, dispatch, fire)$18.9M · 23%
- Insurance (employee health and other)$14.2M · 17%
- Public works$9.3M · 11%
- Debt service$8.2M · 10%
- Pensions and payroll taxes (statutory)$7.4M · 9%
- General government$4.8M · 6%
- Landfill and solid waste disposal$3.9M · 5%
- Other (utilities, parks, library, reserve for uncollected taxes and others)$16.3M · 20%
Your property tax bill: who gets it
Sayreville collects one property tax bill and passes most of it on: about 56% goes to the local schools and about 17% to Middlesex County. The borough's own share, including the library and open space, is about 28%.
28¢
of each property-tax dollar goes to the city of Sayreville
- Sayreville Public Schools (local school district)3.466 · 56%
- Borough of Sayreville (municipal purposes)1.592 · 26%
- Middlesex County0.943 · 15%
- Sayreville Public Library0.099 · 2%
- Middlesex County open space0.089 · 1%
- Borough of Sayreville open space0.02 · <1%
- Total ($ per $100 of assessed value)6.209
2025 tax rates for a property in the Borough of Sayreville (Middlesex County). Borough of Sayreville · Jul 20, 2026
Who provides your services
Not everything in Sayreville is run by the city. Who provides a service decides whose budget pays for it and whose election decides it.
- PoliceThe citySayreville Police DepartmentBorough of Sayreville · Aug 13, 2026
- 911 dispatchThe citySayreville Police Department (Police Dispatch / 911)Borough of Sayreville · Aug 13, 2026
- FireThe citySayreville Fire DepartmentAn all-volunteer department with four stations.Borough of Sayreville
- EMS and rescuePrivate companySayreville Emergency Squad and Morgan First Aid SquadTwo volunteer squads.Borough of Sayreville
- Water and sewerThe cityBorough of Sayreville Water and Sewer DepartmentRuns its own 7 MGD water treatment plant.Borough of Sayreville
- LibraryThe citySayreville Public LibraryBorough of Sayreville · Aug 13, 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 | LindenNJ | SayrevilleNJ | Perth AmboyNJ | PlainfieldNJ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 45,752 | 46,787 | 56,739 | 57,141 |
| Top administrator's base pay | Not confirmed | Not confirmed | Not confirmed | Not confirmed |
| Council member pay | Not confirmed | Not confirmed | Not confirmed | Not confirmed |
| General fund per resident | $3,149 | $1,774 | $1,801 | $2,094 |
| Debt per resident | $1,514 | $1,557 | $2,221 | $898 |
| Unfunded pension per resident | $2,121 | $1,076 | $1,265 | $1,506 |
| City staff per 1,000 residents | — | 5.7 | — | — |
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 Sayreville publishes
What a resident can find online today. A "no" is something you can ask the council to publish.
- No: City manager's contract findable onlineWe found no contract or document stating the Business Administrator's pay. The management salary schedule it would be in was not posted where we looked. Borough of Sayreville · Feb 9, 2026
- Yes: Council votes recorded member by member onlineCouncil minutes record roll call votes by name, including a 5-1 vote on the 2026 budget amendment. Borough of Sayreville · Jul 20, 2026
- Yes: Meeting videos and minutes online Borough of Sayreville
- Partly: Council pay stated in a public document Borough of Sayreville · Jul 20, 2026
- Partly: Employee pay publishedSalary ordinances set pay ranges by position, and the user-friendly budget gives pay totals by group. We found no list of individual employee pay. Borough of Sayreville · Feb 9, 2026
Questions to ask your council
- Current Fund balance fell by $3.1 million to $14.0 million in 2025, and the 2026 budget uses another $6.5 million of surplus. How will future budgets be balanced as the surplus shrinks?
- The 2026 budget raises the municipal tax levy by 8.98% and sets $14.15 million for insurance, its second-largest spending line. What is driving insurance costs?
- Sayreville's share of state pension liabilities was $50.4 million at June 30, 2025. How will rising pension contributions fit into future budgets?
Sayreville's budget year is the calendar year. The council introduced the 2026 budget on April 13, 2026 and held a public hearing. On July 20, 2026 it amended the budget by a 5-1 vote and then adopted it by Resolution #2026-185. See who is running for council
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