June - July 2001 Edition

Roles of Mayor, Deputy Mayor and Borough Manager    by Deputy Mayor Sheri Adler   The borough of Fair Lawn is a Faulkner Act town which means we have council-manager government.  Although the New Jersey Constitution gives us a variety of options, Fair Lawn chose to have 5 Council members and elect the mayor and deputy mayor from among them for a one year term. (We could, for example, have seven member, or  elect our mayor separately.)    In the council / manager government, the borough manager is the Chief Executive Officer and is responsible for the day to day running of the town. The council hires that individual and the government is run in accordance with state law and the policies that are set, through ordinance, by the council.   The mayor runs meetings, represents the community, signs certain documents and is generally seen as the leader of the government.  However, as an elected councilperson he or she is really the first among equals.  Any council member may put an item on the agenda, meet with the manager and, with the knowledge of the manager, speak to and meet with heads of departments and other employees on known matters.  The council may only speak with one voice  and issue policy as a group after a vote.   Each member of the council is a liaison to one or more boards or committees so information can be brought back to the body for discussion.  The Deputy is essentially the first runner-up.  When the mayor is absent, the deputy is in charge.  In Fair Lawn, we currently have a second deputy mayor who is responsible for constituent affairs.  That person is Marty Etler who takes a great deal of responsibility and pleasure in responding to questions and concerns of citizens.   If anyone has more specific questions, please ask them.  It is important that you know how your government works.     What Do You Think?: Send an e- mail to editor@fairlawnnews.com or post a message on the Fair Lawn News Discussion Forum.