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Montclair manager outlines budget steps as state health‑plan premiums surge
Summary
Township Manager Steven Marks told residents the mayor and council face a projected $4 million increase from a reported 36.5% rise in state health‑plan premiums and will consider leaving the state plan next week; the administration also described cost‑saving moves on a civic arena bond and a municipal senior hub.
Township Manager Steven Marks told a joint 3rd‑ and 4th‑ward community meeting that rising health‑insurance premiums released by the New Jersey Department of the Treasury will put “significant” pressure on Montclair’s 2026 budget and that the mayor and council will consider a resolution next week to leave the state health‑benefits plan.
Marks said the state announcement indicates premiums could rise about 36.5%, a shift that he estimated would add roughly $4 million to the township’s health‑benefits line item in 2026 and could translate into about a 6.39% increase in the tax levy if fully implemented. “We spend, the township of Montclair spends about $10,000,000 per year in employee health benefits. That 36.5% increase translates…into a $4,000,000 over a $4,000,000 increase for Montclair for 2026,” he said.
To reduce taxpayer impact, Marks said the administration has instituted a hiring freeze for non‑essential positions, is reducing discretionary spending while preparing the draft 2026 budget, and will seek alternatives to the state plan to control premium costs. “So we are actually next week, there will be a resolution before the mayor and council to leave the state health benefits plan, go to a more cost effective alternative,” he said.
Marks also reviewed recent fiscal decisions the council has made or approved: canceling a previously approved $6 million general obligation bond for Clary Anderson Arena and instead creating a self‑liquidating utility funded by user fees for the arena; and ending a costly lease for a senior center at the Mills Building in favor of a “senior hub” in excess municipal building space at 205 Claremont Avenue.
On the senior hub, Marks said the township will use a $200,000 federal grant plus $165,000 budgeted this year to retrofit municipal space rather than pay roughly $13,000 per month under the previous lease. “It will save us in year 1 about a 100 and over a $160,000,” he said, and the hub should carry little to no recurring lease expense going forward.
Marks said the administration will also pursue state and federal funding for capital projects where possible and that the council’s policy choices direct the manager’s implementation. He urged residents to attend budget hearings and to provide input during the council’s deliberations.
The council has not yet voted on leaving the state plan; Marks described a proposed resolution expected at the next mayor and council meeting and emphasized that more budget details would be available as staff prepares the 2026 draft.
