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Belmar council adopts ordinance to raise appropriation cap, approves bills and moves to executive session
Summary
Council adopted Ordinance 2026-5 to increase the municipal appropriation cap (allowing cap banking), approved payment of bills by roll call and introduced an amendment to sign regulations. Council also adopted a resolution to enter executive session on pending litigation and contract matters.
Belmar’s mayor and council adopted an ordinance to increase the local appropriation cap and permit ‘cap banking,’ approved the consent agenda including payment of bills, introduced a sign-regulation ordinance on first reading and adopted a resolution to move into executive session.
At the workshop on April 26, a staff member explained the measure before the public hearing for Ordinance 2026-5: the ordinance would raise the permissible increase in appropriations from 2% to 3.5% and allow the borough to bank unused cap amounts for up to two subsequent budget years. The staff member said the change is a municipal tool to manage levy and appropriation constraints imposed by state limits. “One of the tools that they have left us is adopting an ordinance to increase the appropriations cap from 2% to 3 and a half percent,” the staff member said.
Council voted on the payment-of-bills resolution (Resolution 2026-63). Roll call produced the following recorded votes: Councilwoman Donovan — Yes; Councilman McKinney — Yes; Councilman De Blasio — No; Councilman Maroney — Yes; Mary McPherson — Yes. The consent agenda items were then approved by roll call.
On Ordinance 2026-5, the council opened a public hearing, heard no public comment and adopted the ordinance by motion and roll call; the transcript records affirmative votes from the council during the adoption sequence. Council then offered Ordinance 2026-6 (amending Chapter 40, Section 7.24, signs) for first reading and introduction; the motion and second to introduce the ordinance were recorded.
The council adopted Resolution 2026-72 authorizing a closed executive session to discuss pending litigation, contract negotiations and confidentiality matters; minutes of the closed session were described as confidential until released by the borough attorney. After the motion to recess into executive session, the meeting was adjourned.
What’s next: Ordinance 2026-6 will proceed through required first-reading procedures and subsequent hearings as prescribed by municipal law. Staff will circulate the finalized ordinance language and schedule future hearings and publication steps.
