Rising health insurance costs and inflation across key sectors have been significant challenges for borough officials, who have adopted a $31.9 million municipal spending plan that uses “wise budgeting” to limit the impact on municipal taxpayers.
For example, health insurance premiums increased by $1.3 million for the 2026 budget, yet North Arlington officials were able to reduce the budgeted amount to $1.089 million.
How?
“Wise budgeting and wise spending,” Borough Administrator Stephen Lo Iacono said. “Over the years, we built a firewall of reserves in case we hit a year with elevated costs. And that firewall worked. We were able to tap into the reserves and significantly limit the municipal tax increase.”
Instead of facing what some other local towns will face this year, municipal taxes will only increase by $13.91 a month for the average home, assessed at $546,800. The average municipal tax bill will be $4,150, up from $3,983 last year.
Compare those numbers to the cost of living increases, the increases in minimum wage and fuel costs.
“Through rigorous fiscal management, we have officially passed a budget that protects both our workforce and our residents,” Mayor Daniel H. Pronti said. “Even when confronted with sweeping cost increases across healthcare, bulk waste disposal and the general cost of living, this year’s budget features a lower rate increase than last year, defying local economic expectations.
“Most importantly, this was achieved with zero employee layoffs and absolutely no reductions in the high-quality services our residents rely on daily.”
Municipal auditors at Lerch, Vinci & Bliss in Fair Lawn determined the 2026 budget, which raises $20.9 million from local property owners, meets their expectations for structural strength and efficiency. The tax rate is 76¢ per $100 of assessed value.
Lo Iacono said the municipality faced steep increases in garbage and recycling collection, as well as snow removal from a particularly harsh winter. Pension contributions increased by $262,000, state-mandated library funding was up nearly $100,000, and utility costs also saw a significant increase, he said.
Meanwhile, North Arlington was fortunate to have paid off loans on capital expenditures over the past few years, driving down the debt service that had to be funded in the 2026 budget by nearly $1 million.
“We’ve set up reserve accounts over the past seven or eight years to prepare for a tough budget,” Lo Iacono said. “It arrived this year. This is the first time we needed to use stop-gap measures to guard against excessive increases.”
“Like all of our residents, the borough has been facing rising costs over the last several years,” Council President Mario Karcic said. “This year, we are facing a significant cost impact on employee health benefits. This is something that is impacting every municipality and Board of Education in the state. We remain focused on affordability and the real impact to our residents. Through sound financial management and disciplined budgeting, we minimize the tax burden while ensuring our community continues to receive the essential services it relies on every day.”
It is important to note the Mayor and Borough Council oversee only the municipal portion of the tax bill, which also comprises funding for the Board of Education and Bergen County. Those are separate budgets, with their own tax rates, that are included in the property tax bill.
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Kevin A. Canessa Jr. is the editor of and broadcaster at The Observer, an organization he has served since 2006. He is responsible for the editorial content of the newspaper and website, the production of the e-Newspaper, writing several stories per week (including the weekly editorial), conducting live broadcasts on social media channels such as YouTube, Facebook, and X, including a weekly recap of the news — and much more behind the scenes. Between 2006 and 2008, he introduced the newspaper to its first-ever blog — which included podcasts, audio and video. Originally from Jersey City, Kevin lived in Kearny until 2004, lived in Port St. Lucie. Florida, for four years until February 2016 and in March of that year, he moved back to Kearny to return to The Observer full time. Click Here to send Kevin an email.