How South Amboy is run
Who runs South Amboy, 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 South Amboy's own public documents. Every number links to its source and says which year it describes. Checked Oct 10, 2026.
Who runs South Amboy
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
South Amboy city staff
75 full-time-equivalent positions, including Other union employees 34, Police officers 30, Department heads and managers 10, Other non-union employees 1. 2026. Full-time employees budgeted for 2026. The budget also lists 40 part-time positions. City of South Amboy · Apr 15, 2026
The 2026 user-friendly budget gives head counts and total pay by group. We found no list of individual employee pay. We name pay only for elected officials and the city manager.
Is South Amboy 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 lowers the municipal tax levy by $269,169 to $11.30M. The municipal tax rate falls from 1.282 to 1.262, and the average home's municipal tax goes from $3,529.35 to $3,486.17. The budget uses $2.2M of surplus, noting future surplus is uncertain, and lists a $580,000 redevelopment authority contribution as non-recurring revenue. City of South Amboy · Apr 15, 2026
Savings
Unassigned general fund balance: $5.9M (2025-12-31). City of South Amboy · Aug 5, 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$11.3M · 46%
- State aid$3.9M · 16%
- Other special items (PILOTs, fees and contributions)$3.6M · 15%
- Local revenues (fees, fines and charges)$2.4M · 10%
- Fund balance (surplus) used$2.2M · 9%
- Library property tax$510,056 · 2%
- Other (grants and construction code fees)$627,567 · 3%
Goes to (2026)
- Public safety$6.1M · 25%
- Insurance$4.4M · 18%
- Public works$3.4M · 14%
- Debt service$2.4M · 10%
- Statutory expenditures (pensions and Social Security)$2.3M · 9%
- General government$2M · 8%
- Utilities and bulk purchases$1.8M · 7%
- Other (library, health, construction code, recreation and others)$2.2M · 9%
Your property tax bill: who gets it
South Amboy collects one property tax bill and passes most of it on: about 42% goes to the local schools and about 17% to Middlesex County. The city's own share, including the library, is about 41%.
41¢
of each property-tax dollar goes to the city of South Amboy
- South Amboy Public Schools (local school district)1.34 · 42%
- City of South Amboy (municipal purposes)1.282 · 40%
- Middlesex County0.496 · 15%
- South Amboy Public Library0.052 · 2%
- Middlesex County open space0.047 · 1%
- Total ($ per $100 of assessed value)3.217
2025 tax rates for a property in the City of South Amboy (Middlesex County). City of South Amboy · Apr 15, 2026
Who provides your services
Not everything in South Amboy is run by the city. Who provides a service decides whose budget pays for it and whose election decides it.
- PoliceThe citySouth Amboy Police DepartmentCity of South Amboy · Aug 5, 2026
- Trash collectionThe cityCity of South Amboy (Solid Waste Collection)City of South Amboy · Aug 5, 2026
- StreetsThe cityCity of South Amboy (Streets and Roads Maintenance)City of South Amboy · Aug 5, 2026
- SewerThe cityCity of South Amboy (Sewers)Sewer user charges are billed quarterly based on water use.City of South Amboy · Aug 5, 2026
- Parks and recreationThe cityCity of South Amboy Department of RecreationCity of South Amboy · Aug 5, 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 | MaywoodNJ | WaldwickNJ | South AmboyNJ | Somers PointNJ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 10,166 | 10,252 | 10,403 | 10,590 |
| 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 | $2,055 | $1,745 | $2,360 | $2,056 |
| Debt per resident | $1,666 | $1,825 | $2,058 | $2,697 |
| Unfunded pension per resident | $1,048 | $965 | $1,326 | $1,146 |
| City staff per 1,000 residents | — | — | 7.2 | 6.9 |
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 South Amboy 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 budget and adopted user-friendly budget are posted on the city's Budgets and Audits page, with earlier years. City of South Amboy
- No: City manager's contract findable onlineWe found no contract or posted document stating the Business Administrator's pay. City of South Amboy · Apr 15, 2026
- Yes: Council votes recorded member by member onlineCouncil minutes record roll call votes by name, including the 4-0 vote adopting the 2026 budget. City of South Amboy · Apr 15, 2026
- Partly: Council pay stated in a public documentThe 2026 user-friendly budget gives total base pay of $58,360 for the governing body. We found no document stating each member's pay. City of South Amboy · Apr 15, 2026
Questions to ask your council
- Current Fund balance fell by $514,209 to $5.86 million in 2025, and the 2026 budget uses $2.2 million of it. How will future budgets be balanced if surplus does not regenerate?
- The 2026 budget sets $4.41 million for insurance, its second-largest spending area after public safety. What is driving insurance costs?
- South Amboy's share of state pension liabilities was $13.8 million at June 30, 2025. How will pension contributions fit into future budgets?
- The city had $21.4 million of bonds, notes and loans outstanding at the end of 2025 and $6.89 million more authorized but not issued. Which projects will that new borrowing pay for?
South Amboy's budget year is the calendar year. The council introduced the 2026 budget on March 18, 2026, held the public hearing on April 15, 2026, and adopted the budget the same night by Resolution 26-103 on a 4-0 vote. See who is running for council
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