Marotta's salary increase faces long odds

By Hema Easley
VERNON — By most accounts Mayor Victor Marotta puts in a full day at the Vernon Township Municipal Center even though the township code is silent on whether the position is full time. He arrives in the morning, and doesn’t leave until the evening.

And that’s why he has persisted in his three-year effort to get a raise.

Last month, after weeks of back and forth, the township council voted 3-2 to approve the 133 percent raise Marotta had sought, taking his salary from $30,000 to $70,000. Vernon, a town of about 24,000 people, has a budget of about $26 million.

“He’s been a wonderful mayor, he’s there 24/7 and he works hard,” said Jody Currey, a long-time resident who supports the raise. “He’s taken our taxes down for two years. He’s given us revenue from the recycling center.”

But like the council, local residents are divided on whether he should get a pay hike.

The morning after the vote, opponents of the ordinance were at supermarkets in the town urging shoppers to sign a petition that would force a referendum on the raise. Objections by critics range from the inappropriateness of the raise in this economy to assertions that the mayor is trying to turn a public service position into paid employment.

“All you have to say is ‘Would you like to sign this petition?’ and people say, ‘Give me the pen,’” said Mary Ellen Vichiconti, who was seeking signatures outside A&P last week. “It was like Groundhog Day. It was the exact same thing over and over again.”

“This mayor needs a job, he needs money. That’s why he’s trying to morph this position into a paid employment,” said Sally Rinker, the former mayor who was defeated by Marotta in the 2010 election and has since then filed a lawsuit against him and the township.

While the mayor’s critics are vocal, Marotta himself did not return many calls over several days for comment. All phone calls went to voice mail.

Marotta has been saying he deserves a raise because he works full time for a salary that is inadequate. He first asked for the pay hike just weeks after he was elected in 2011, and got it, but opponents forced a referendum on the issue. Eighty-seven percent of voters voted no. Now he is taking another shot at it.

Comparing salaries
Marotta may have a point. Most full-time administrators in nearby municipalities are paid several times the money he makes.

Michael Sweeton, the elected supervisor of Warwick, N.Y., that has a population of more than 32,000, makes about $67,000. The Wantage township administrator earns more than $122,000.

In Sparta, David Troast, the township manager who left under a cloud in Aug. 2013, had an annual salary of $132,000. His replacement is an interim manager and his salary may not be representative.

Newton, a town of 8,000 with a budget of $16 million, pays its manager, Thomas Russo, Jr., $147,000 a year.

Russo oversees all the departments in the town, is in charge of the town budget, advises the town council, and has the ability to hire and fire. Marotta has similar responsibilities.

“The salary is commensurate” with the responsibility, he said.

A different government
Critics say comparing Vernon to nearby municipalities is like comparing apples to oranges. A better comparison would be with municipalities that have a similar kind of government.

In 2010, Vernon residents voted to change the government from the council-manager form to a mayor-council version under the Faulkner Act. Under this system, a mayor elected directly by voters oversees the day-to-day operations of the township with the help of a business manager. The council provides oversight.

In previous years, a professional administrator ran the day to day business of the township while the council and a rotating mayor dealt with legislation.

Under the new plan, Vernon has a business administrator who works under the direction of the mayor. The current business administrator, William I. Zuckerman, is a CPA and has a management degree. He is paid $62,000 a year.

A quick review of municipalities with a similar form of government shows there is no pattern to mayoral pay. Some pay their mayors a small amount while others earn a salary much higher than Marotta's.

Parsippany, a city double the size of Vernon, pays its mayor $110,791. It also has a business administrator who is paid $123,249. Hoboken, too, pays its mayor more than $100,000.

Rob Greenbaum, the mayor of Mount Olive, a town just slightly larger than Vernon, earns $7,000 a year. He also has another job. David Patriapa, the mayor of Pemberton Township, earns $6,500 a year and does not have another job.

The mayor’s supporters say any such comparisons are imperfect. Vernon is the only municipality in Sussex County with a mayor-council form of government, and comparisons to other cities or towns would be misleading.

“Quite honestly, it’s tough to ask someone who works 50 hours a week to work for $30,000,” said Councilman Brian Lynch who voted yes to raising Marotta’s salary.

Councilwoman Jean Murphy who voted no didn’t think that was a good enough reason to give the mayor a raise.

“He’s an elected official, not a hired employee,” said Murphy. “If he chooses to work many hours, that’s his prerogative, but he shouldn’t be taking over responsibility from the professional.”

The petition
Vichiconti needs about 750 signatures within 20 days of the Jan. 27 council vote vote to place it before the council. If the council refuses to take action on the petition, it will go on the ballot in November. If it does, it would reprise the events of 2011.

“In this environment who gets this kind of raise?” asked Vichiconti. “It’s absolutely cost driven.”