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City (New Jersey)
 
 
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A City in the context of New Jersey
New Jersey

New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic States and Northeastern United States regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north by New York, on the east by the Hudson River and the Atlantic Ocean, on the southwest by Delaware, and on the west by Pennsylvania....
 local government refers to one of five types and one of eleven forms of municipal government.

Despite the widely-held perception of a city
City

A city is an urban area with a high population density and a particular administrative, legal, or historical status.Large industrialized cities generally have advanced systems for sanitation, utilities, land usage, house, and transportation and more....
 as a large, urban area
Urban area

An urban area is an area with an increased Population density of human-created structures in comparison to the areas surrounding it. Urban areas may be city, towns or conurbations, but the term is not commonly extended to rural settlements such as villages and hamlet ....
, cities in New Jersey have a confused history as a form of government and vary in size from large, densely populated areas to much-smaller hamlets
Hamlet (place)

A hamlet is usually a rural Human settlement which is too small to be considered a village, though sometimes the word is used for a different sort of community....
.

History
The 1897 and 1899 city charter laws applied only to areas with a population under 12,000, and provided for a directly-elected mayor, who served a two-year term and had strong executive powers.






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A City in the context of New Jersey
New Jersey

New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic States and Northeastern United States regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north by New York, on the east by the Hudson River and the Atlantic Ocean, on the southwest by Delaware, and on the west by Pennsylvania....
 local government refers to one of five types and one of eleven forms of municipal government.

Despite the widely-held perception of a city
City

A city is an urban area with a high population density and a particular administrative, legal, or historical status.Large industrialized cities generally have advanced systems for sanitation, utilities, land usage, house, and transportation and more....
 as a large, urban area
Urban area

An urban area is an area with an increased Population density of human-created structures in comparison to the areas surrounding it. Urban areas may be city, towns or conurbations, but the term is not commonly extended to rural settlements such as villages and hamlet ....
, cities in New Jersey have a confused history as a form of government and vary in size from large, densely populated areas to much-smaller hamlets
Hamlet (place)

A hamlet is usually a rural Human settlement which is too small to be considered a village, though sometimes the word is used for a different sort of community....
.

History


The 1897 and 1899 city charter laws applied only to areas with a population under 12,000, and provided for a directly-elected mayor, who served a two-year term and had strong executive powers. Both featured a council elected from wards to staggered three-year terms, plus one councilman elected at-large for a term of two years. The Mayor had veto power, which could be overridden by a two-thirds vote of the Council. The two acts differed in a number of ways, including the process for selection of a Board of Education (1897: elected; 1899: appointed by Council).

By 1987, there were only eleven cities under these City Acts (including East Orange
East Orange, New Jersey

East Orange is a City in Essex County, New Jersey, New Jersey, USA. As of the United States 2000 Census, the city had a total population of 69,824....
, which effectively operated under a special City charter). As in other forms, many amendments, revisions and changes had been made over the years, leading to confusing and often conflicting legislation.

The City Act of 1987 provides for a directly-elected mayor who serves a four-year term and for a council that consists of seven members; six elected from two wards for staggered three-year terms and one elected at large for a four year term. There are three councilmen in each ward with one councilmember from each ward up for election every year. The mayor is the chief executive and votes only to break a tie. The Mayor has veto power over all or portions of any ordinance, subject to override by a two-thirds vote of the Council. The Act also provides for the delegation of executive responsibilities to a municipal administrator.

Those cities operating under pre-1987 charters could retain the characteristics of their structure of government regarding terms of office, number of positions and other powers. Provisions of the 1987 Act can then be adopted through a petition and referendum process by the electorate.

See also

  • List of cities in New Jersey


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