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Rockleigh council adopts 2026 reorganization resolutions, approves shared services and insurance
Summary
At its Jan. 5, 2026 reorganization meeting, Rockleigh's mayor and council approved professional-service contracts, named officials and board members, passed a temporary 2026 budget, authorized shared services for catch-basin inspections and renewed insurance arrangements; no members of the public attended.
Mayor James Pontone and the Borough Council of Rockleigh met Jan. 5, 2026, at Borough Hall for the annual reorganization meeting and adopted a slate of routine resolutions to staff the borough government, authorize one-year professional contracts and set administrative policies for 2026.
The council approved Resolution 2026-1 authorizing one-year contracts for professional services — including borough counsel, bond counsel, engineering and auditing services — noting the Chief Financial Officer had certified that the anticipated value of each contract may exceed $17,500. Borough CFO/Tax Collector Kunjesh Trivedi certified funds were available. The council also designated official depositories (ConnectOne and PNC) and set the borough's delinquent-tax interest policy at 8% per year on the first $1,500 and 18% on amounts above that threshold (Resolution 2026-2; Resolution 2026-3).
The council amended its public-notice practice to comply with P.L. 2025, c.72, designating The Bergen Record and The Star-Ledger as official newspapers through March 1, 2026, and confirming that borough public notices will be posted at https://www.rockleighnj.org/public-notices beginning March 1 (Resolution 2026-4). Borough Clerk Marcella Giampiccolo certified the minutes and resolutions as required.
Elected officials and administrative appointments were confirmed for 2026: Frank Cumiskey was reappointed council president by unanimous vote of members present; annual appointments included borough administrator and deputy roles, zoning and recycling coordinators, and court-related appointments under a shared-services arrangement with Northvale (Resolution 2026-7; Resolution 2026-8). Council also ratified a set of board and commission appointments and reappointments, including Historic Preservation Commission members and Board of Health representatives (Resolution 2026-9).
On finance, the council approved a temporary budget for 2026 under N.J.S.A. 40A:4-19, within the Director of Local Government Services' 26.25% cap on prior-year appropriations (Resolution 2026-13). The borough continued a petty-cash fund of $250 for the borough clerk (Resolution 2026-5).
The council approved two shared-service measures: a no-cost Certified Recycling Professional service agreement with the Bergen County Utilities Authority to allow the borough's recycling tonnage report to be signed and filed with the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (Resolution 2026-14), and a paid Shared Services Agreement with the Borough of Northvale for catch-basin inspection work — Northvale will inspect 103 catch-basin grates and the masonry/concrete of 21 catch basins by Dec. 31, 2026, for $1,560 (Resolution 2026-15).
Michael Malhame of MJM Global presented the borough's insurance status, saying, "the Borough is in its second of a three-year contract with Statewide and will stay with them for 2026." He also reported that workers' compensation claims filed by former Rockleigh Fire Department Chief Scott Roberts "have been fully paid." Following that presentation, the council appointed Mayor Pontone as Fund Commissioner and William J. McGuire as Alternate for the Statewide Insurance Fund and named Michael Malhame as the borough's risk management consultant for 2026 (Resolutions 2026-16 and 2026-17).
Mayor Pontone stated for the record that no members of the public were present for the meeting. With no further business, the council voted to adjourn.
Votes at a glance: Consent agenda and most resolutions were recorded as passed on roll-call votes with AYES recorded as Councilman Mender, Councilwoman Bresnak and Councilwoman Antine; ABSENT: Cumiskey (except reappointment as president), Hansen, Altman. Where a full roll-call listing was not enumerated in the record, the minutes state motions carried on the affirmative vote of the councilmembers present.
What happens next: Appointed officials take their positions for 2026; the borough will post public notices on its website starting March 1, 2026, and staff will coordinate the catch-basin inspection with Northvale DPW and the recycling report filing with BCUA.
