Maximum firefighter pay would reach $131,086 and fire-officer pay could reach $150,749 by 2029, but posted records do not calculate the full payroll, overtime or pension expense.
MORRIS TOWNSHIP, NJ – Morris Township is scheduled to vote Aug. 19 on two four-year fire salary ordinances that would take effect retroactively to Jan. 1. The proposed schedules identify what individual firefighters and fire officers can earn, but the township has not published a calculation of the total cost.
The missing information includes how many employees occupy each salary step, the resulting annual payroll increases, the retroactive payments due after adoption and the effect on overtime and pension expenses.
Without those figures, taxpayers cannot determine the plans’ complete cost from the ordinances alone.
Firefighter maximum would rise 12.6 percent by 2029
Under Ordinance 26-26, the maximum Class 1 salary for a firefighter hired before 2015 would increase from $116,468 in 2025 to $119,962 in 2026. It would reach $131,086 in 2029.
That is an increase of $14,618, or 12.6 percent, over the maximum established for 2025 in the township’s previous salary ordinance.
A firefighter receiving the maximum in every year would earn $501,877 in base salary from 2026 through 2029. That is $36,005 more than paying the 2025 maximum for four years. The calculation is an illustration for one position, not an estimate of the township’s total expense.
For employees hired after 2014, Class 1 salaries would range from $47,400 to $119,962 in 2026 and from $51,795 to $131,086 in 2029.
The proposal also changes portions of the progression schedule. The first Class 1 step, for example, would cover 12 months instead of the 18 months established by the prior ordinance. The fiscal effect depends on each employee’s hiring date, classification and movement through the steps.
The township has not published a roster showing how many firefighters would be paid at each rate.
Fire officers have two proposed schedules
Ordinance 27-26 establishes separate rates for fire officers working a 40-hour schedule and those assigned to a proposed 24-hours-on, 72-hours-off schedule.
Under the 40-hour schedule, base pay would rise from $134,100 in 2026 to $146,436 in 2029. The four-year total is $560,737 per position.
Under the 24/72 schedule, pay would rise from $137,957 in 2026 to $150,749 in 2029. The four-year total is $577,159, or $16,422 more per officer than the 40-hour schedule over the contract period.
The township directory currently lists three fire lieutenants. If all three received the 24/72 rate for all four years, the schedule difference would total $49,266 compared with the 40-hour rates. That calculation assumes the current number of lieutenants remains unchanged and all three participate throughout the period.
Separate annual stipends would remain at $1,050 for an associate degree, $2,075 for a bachelor’s degree, $2,500 for serving as fire official and $1,000 for serving as deputy fire official.
The current budget is not a contract cost estimate
Morris Township’s 2026 user-friendly budget estimates $4.26 million in total personnel costs for 23 full-time firefighters, including superior officers.
That figure includes:
- $2.42 million in base pay
- $254,100 in overtime and other compensation
- $762,359 in pension costs
- $585,887 in health benefits after employee contributions
- $239,523 in other employment benefits
The 2025 budget estimated $4.05 million for 22 employees. The year-to-year increase is $213,306, or 5.3 percent.
Base pay increased by $98,233, while the budgeted headcount increased by one. Health-benefit costs accounted for another $92,814 of the total change. The budget documents do not identify how much, if any, of those increases resulted from the proposed labor agreements, ordinary step progression or the additional employee.
The township therefore should not characterize the $213,306 budget increase as the cost of the new pay plans without a separate calculation.
Overtime rates would increase with base pay
The township’s posted 2022-2025 Local 70 agreement calculates overtime at one-and-a-half times an hourly rate based on annual salary divided by 2,080 hours.
If that formula continues in the new agreement, the overtime rate for a firefighter at the maximum would rise from approximately $83.99 an hour under the 2025 salary to $86.51 in 2026 and $94.53 in 2029.
The actual expense depends on the number of overtime hours worked and which employees work them. The 2026 budget keeps the combined fire overtime and other-compensation estimate unchanged at $254,100.
The proposed ordinances do not contain an overtime projection, and the complete 2026-2029 agreements have not been posted with the salary measures.
Pension costs will appear later
Higher pensionable salaries also affect Morris Township’s required contributions to the Police and Firemen’s Retirement System.
The state’s Division of Pensions and Benefits lists a 36.75 percent PFRS employer contribution rate for the payment due April 1, 2026. That bill is based on annualized payroll reported during the second quarter of 2024, illustrating the system’s approximately two-year billing lag. Future contribution rates can also change. New Jersey Division of Pensions and Benefits
The 2026 raises therefore cannot be converted into an immediate pension cost simply by multiplying them by the current rate. Their effect would appear in later employer bills and, for eligible employees, in future retirement calculations.
Retroactive payment remains unknown
Both ordinances make the new salaries retroactive to Jan. 1. Eligible employees who retire before enactment would also receive retroactive compensation. Employees who resigned or were discharged between Jan. 1 and the applicable introduction date would not.
For illustration, a firefighter remaining at the old $116,468 maximum would receive a $3,494 base-pay increase for the full 2026 calendar year. The payment owed immediately after adoption would depend on payroll dates, overtime, step changes and the employee’s status during the retroactive period.
The township has not published the combined retroactive obligation for either bargaining unit.
Why the ordinances were delayed
The two measures followed different procedural paths.
Ordinance 26-26, covering Local 70 firefighters, was introduced May 20. Its June 17 hearing was held, but final action was carried to July 15. It was tabled again July 15 and moved to Aug. 19.
At the July meeting, Township Administrator Timothy Quinn said the measure was being carried because the township had not yet received the signed agreement back from the union. The public record reviewed for this article does not establish a fiscal dispute over the ordinance.
Ordinance 27-26, covering Local 270 fire officers, was first introduced June 17. On July 15, the committee considered an amended version containing both the 40-hour and 24/72 salary schedules. The committee also listed a sidebar agreement establishing a trial schedule. Because the salary ordinance was amended, it was reintroduced rather than advanced to final passage that night.
The complete memoranda of agreement, executed contracts and Local 270 sidebar agreement were not attached to the posted salary ordinances.
Public hearing set for Aug. 19
Both ordinances are scheduled for public hearings and possible final passage at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 19, at the Municipal Building, 50 Woodland Ave. The township also plans to offer Zoom participation as a courtesy.
Before voting, the committee could provide taxpayers with an employee-by-step count, annual payroll projections, the expected retroactive payment and estimates of associated overtime and future pension costs.
The ordinance notices state that related correspondence and documents are public records. Residents may request them from the Township Clerk at clerk@morristwp.com or 973-326-7430.