Editing Bedminster, New Jersey (section)

=== Local government ===
Bedminster Township is governed under the [[Township (New Jersey)|Township]] form of New Jersey municipal government, one of 141 municipalities (of the 564) statewide that use this form, the second-most commonly used form of government in the state.<ref>[https://njdatabook.rutgers.edu/sites/njdatabook.rutgers.edu/files/documents/inventory_of_municipal_forms_of_government_in_new_jersey.pdf ''Inventory of Municipal Forms of Government in New Jersey''], [[Rutgers University]] Center for Government Studies, July 1, 2011. Accessed June 1, 2023.</ref> The Township Committee is comprised of five members, who are elected directly by the voters [[at-large]] in partisan elections to serve three-year terms of office on a staggered basis, with either one or two seats coming up for election each year as part of the November general election in a three-year cycle.<ref name=DataBook>''2012 New Jersey Legislative District Data Book'', [[Rutgers University]] [[Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy]], March 2013, p. 77.</ref><ref>[https://njdatabook.rutgers.edu/sites/njdatabook.rutgers.edu/files/documents/forms_of_municipal_government_in_new_jersey_9220.pdf#page=7 "Forms of Municipal Government in New Jersey"], p. 7. [[Rutgers University]] Center for Government Studies. Accessed June 1, 2023.</ref> At an annual reorganization meeting held during the first week of January, the Township Committee selects one of its members to serve as mayor.<ref>[http://www.bedminster.us/index.asp?Type=B_BASIC&SEC={692B2515-3C47-483E-A052-FA604149FFCE} Your Municipal Government] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180126144734/http://www.bedminster.us/index.asp?Type=B_BASIC&SEC=%7B692B2515-3C47-483E-A052-FA604149FFCE%7D |date=January 26, 2018 }}, Bedminster Township. Accessed June 3, 2011.</ref>

{{As of|2024}}, members of the Bedminster Township Committee are [[Mayor]] Lawrence F. Jacobs ([[Republican Party (United States)|R]], term on township committee and as mayor ends December 31, 2024), R. Colin Hickey (R, 2026), Gina Lisa-Fernandez (R, 2025), Renee Mareski (R, 2024) and Douglas A. Stevinson (R, 2025).<ref name=TownshipCommittee>[https://www.bedminster.us/government/mayor_township_committee Township Committee], Bedminster Township. Accessed May 19, 2024.</ref><ref>[https://www.bedminster.us/common/pages/DownloadFileByUrl.aspx?key=m6FKvpn%2brEgYTW7UqAiLQTXNN1ldIhedrVbbkObtfWDQXwq8jAaRiy4j0rZUmLfKGFboA%2bNLKdwofCom%2bUPKsZMV8M1vLzZDbTZV%2ftEqwake5XL%2bFvypusW6hFItEx5ZfuJs1aaJwOtbF%2fz%2beQJhYrbuHRAP057uO0LhE9AhWZv3WAHAcnQelf%2bNd4cuKiS4YAWzM9vt%2bQ%2fRSy%2foNfPfawDeeqU%3d 2024 Municipal User Friendly Budget], Bedminster Township. Accessed May 19, 2024.</ref><ref name=SomersetDirectory>[https://www.co.somerset.nj.us/home/showpublisheddocument/46227/638203671214730000#page=52 ''2023 Directory of County & Municipal Offices''], [[Somerset County, New Jersey]]. Accessed April 10, 2024.</ref><ref name=Somerset2023>[https://results.enr.clarityelections.com/NJ/Somerset/119024/web.317647/#/summary 2023 General Election November 7, 2023 Certified Official Results RESULTS], [[Somerset County, New Jersey]], November 29, 2023. Accessed January 1, 2024.</ref><ref name=Somerset2022>[https://results.enr.clarityelections.com/NJ/Somerset/116175/web.307039/#/summary General Election November 8, 2022 Final Certified Results], [[Somerset County, New Jersey]], updated November 23, 2022. Accessed January 1, 2023.</ref><ref name=Somerset2021>[https://www.co.somerset.nj.us/home/showpublisheddocument/43891/637725959984900000 2021 General Election Winning Candidates], [[Somerset County, New Jersey]]. Accessed January 1, 2022.</ref>

In 2018, the township had an average property tax bill of $6,182, the lowest in the county, compared to an average bill of $9,975 in Somerset County and $8,767 statewide.<ref>[https://www.state.nj.us/dca/divisions/dlgs/resources/property_docs/18_data/18taxes.xls 2018 Property Tax Information], [[New Jersey Department of Community Affairs]], updated January 16, 2019. Accessed November 7, 2019.</ref><ref>Marcus, Samantha. [https://www.nj.com/politics/2019/04/these-are-the-towns-with-the-lowest-property-taxes-in-each-of-njs-21-counties.html "These are the towns with the lowest property taxes in each of N.J.’s 21 counties"], NJ Advance Media for [[NJ.com]], April 30, 2019. Accessed November 7, 2019. "New Jersey’s average property tax bill may have hit $8,767 last year — a new record — but taxpayers in some parts of the state pay just a fraction of that.... The average property tax bill in Bedminster Township was $6,182 in 2018, the lowest in Somerset County."</ref>

==== Emergency services ====
Emergency services in the township are offered by the Far Hills-Bedminster Fire Department, Bedminster Township Police Department<ref>[https://www.bedminster.us/government/police Police], Bedminster Township. Accessed December 14, 2022.</ref> and Far Hills-Bedminster First Aid Squad.<ref>[https://fhbfas.org Home Page], Far Hills-Bedminster First Aid Squad. Accessed December 14, 2022.</ref>

Far Hills-Bedminster Fire Department roots back to the establishment of Union Hook & Ladder Company #1 in December 1900; The current name was adopted in 1998 to avoid confusion with other departments with similar names.<ref>[https://www.fhbfd.org/about About], Far Hills-Bedminster Fire Department. Accessed December 14, 2022. "The Far Hills-Bedminster Fire Department began in December, 1900 when a group of concerned men gathered to discuss the formation of a fire company to protect the fast-growing community of Far Hills and adjacent area.... In 1998, citing confusion of its name, decided to officially call itself The Far Hills-Bedminster Fire Department, changing from its original name of Union Hook & Ladder Company #1."</ref>