Editing Carteret, New Jersey (section)

=== Local government ===
[[File:Carteret, NJ municipal building front and public library, Jan. 2025.jpg|thumb|left|Carteret Memorial Municipal Building (right) and Public Library (left)]]
Carteret is governed under the [[Borough (New Jersey)|borough]] form of New Jersey municipal government, which is used in 218 municipalities (of the 564) statewide, making it the most common form of government in New Jersey.<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''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230601184216/https://njdatabook.rutgers.edu/sites/njdatabook.rutgers.edu/files/documents/inventory_of_municipal_forms_of_government_in_new_jersey.pdf |date=June 1, 2023 }}, [[Rutgers University]] Center for Government Studies, July 1, 2011. Accessed June 1, 2023.</ref> The governing body is comprised of the mayor and the borough council, with all positions elected [[at-large]] on a partisan basis as part of the November general election. A mayor is elected directly by the voters to a four-year term of office. The borough council includes six members, who are elected to serve three-year terms on a staggered basis, with two seats coming up for election each year 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. 87.</ref> The borough form of government used by Carteret is a "[[weak mayor]] / strong council" government in which council members act as the legislative body with the mayor presiding at meetings and voting only in the event of a tie. The mayor can [[veto]] ordinances subject to an [[veto override|override]] by a two-thirds majority vote of the council. The mayor makes committee and liaison assignments for council members, and most appointments are made by the mayor with the advice and consent of the council.<ref>Cerra, Michael F. [https://www.njlm.org/809/3982/Forms-of-Govt-Magazine-Article "Forms of Government: Everything You've Always Wanted to Know, But Were Afraid to Ask"], [[New Jersey State League of Municipalities]], March 2007. Accessed January 1, 2025.</ref><ref>[https://njdatabook.rutgers.edu/sites/njdatabook.rutgers.edu/files/documents/forms_of_municipal_government_in_new_jersey_9220.pdf#page=6 "Forms of Municipal Government in New Jersey"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230604040836/https://njdatabook.rutgers.edu/sites/njdatabook.rutgers.edu/files/documents/forms_of_municipal_government_in_new_jersey_9220.pdf#page=6 |date=June 4, 2023 }}, p. 6. [[Rutgers University]] Center for Government Studies. Accessed June 1, 2023.</ref>

{{As of|2023}}, the [[mayor]] of Carteret is [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democrat]] Daniel J. Reiman, whose term of office ends December 31, 2026. The members of the Borough Council are Council President Dennis DiMascio (D, 2024), Vincent Bellino (D, 2025), Jorge Diaz (D, 2025), Ajmar "AJ" Johal (D, 2024), Randy Krum (D, 2026) and Susan R. Naples (D, 2026).<ref name=GoverningBody>[https://www.carteret.net/borough-council/ Borough Council], Borough of Carteret. Accessed April 14, 2024. "Borough Form Of Government: Mayor – 4 Year Term; Six (6) Councilmembers – 3 Year Term".</ref><ref>[https://portal.laserfiche.com/Portal/DocView.aspx?id=22656&repo=r-e165aebc 2024 Municipal Data Sheet], Borough of Carteret. Accessed May 27, 2024.</ref><ref name=Middlesex2023>[https://results.enr.clarityelections.com/NJ/Middlesex/119048/web.317647/#/summary November 7, 2023 General Election Official Results], [[Middlesex County, New Jersey]], December 7, 2023. Accessed January 1, 2024.</ref><ref name=Middlesex2022>[https://results.enr.clarityelections.com/NJ/Middlesex/116148/web.307039/#/summary November 8, 2022 General Election Official Results], [[Middlesex County, New Jersey]], updated November 22, 2022. Accessed January 1, 2023.</ref><ref name=Middlesex2021>[https://results.enr.clarityelections.com/NJ/Middlesex/110780/web.278093/#/summary General Election November 2, 2021 Official Results], [[Middlesex County, New Jersey]], updated November 19, 2021. Accessed April 13, 2022.</ref>

First elected in 2002, Reiman was paid an annual salary of $102,610 in 2016, placing him 13th among the highest-paid mayors in the state.<ref>Crvenka, Susanne. [http://www.app.com/story/news/investigations/data/2017/07/31/nj-mayors-6-figure-salaries/504787001/ "These NJ mayors make 6-figure salaries from taxpayers. Is yours one of them?"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231001134136/https://www.app.com/story/news/investigations/data/2017/07/31/nj-mayors-6-figure-salaries/504787001/ |date=October 1, 2023 }}, ''[[Asbury Park Press]]'', July 31, 2017. Accessed October 11, 2017. "13. Carteret Mayor Daniel J. Reiman, $102,610"</ref> He has been elected for 6 consecutive elections, some of them unopposed.

In May 2016, the borough council selected Ajmar Singh Johal from three candidates nominated by the Democratic municipal committee to fill the seat expiring in December 2018 that became vacant following the death of Joseph W. "Skippy" Sitarz the previous month.<ref>Russell, Suzanne. [http://www.mycentraljersey.com/story/news/politics/2016/05/06/carteret-selects-new-councilman/84024460/ "Carteret selects new councilman"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200215195251/https://www.mycentraljersey.com/story/news/politics/2016/05/06/carteret-selects-new-councilman/84024460/ |date=February 15, 2020 }}, ''[[Courier News]]'', May 6, 2016. Accessed June 6, 2016. "Ajmar Johal is Carteret's newest Borough Council member.Johal was selected by the governing body to fill the vacancy created by the April 11 death of Democratic Councilman Joseph W. 'Skippy' Sitarz, who had served on the council for 22 nonconsecutive years."</ref>

Members of Carteret's 13.9% South Asian community<ref name=LWD2010 /> have been active in local government, serving on several governing boards and contesting elections. Members of notable activity in the government include Sultan M. Babar, an alternate member of the board of health and the head of its medical department.<ref>[http://www.ci.carteret.nj.us/content/57/192/default.aspx Carteret Board of Health] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120420215624/http://www.ci.carteret.nj.us/content/57/192/default.aspx |date=April 20, 2012 }}, Carteret Board of Health, Accessed August 26, 2011.</ref><ref>[http://www.sultanbabar.com/ Sultan Babar] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221231174603/http://www.sultanbabar.com/ |date=December 31, 2022 }}, Accessed August 27, 2011</ref> Babar also ran for borough council and was a candidate in the Democratic primaries.<ref>Shahid, Aliyah. [http://www.nj.com/news/local/index.ssf/2009/06/middlesex_county_incumbent_fre.html "Middlesex County incumbent freeholders easily beat challenge in primary"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120809092718/http://www.nj.com/news/local/index.ssf/2009/06/middlesex_county_incumbent_fre.html |date=August 9, 2012 }}, ''[[The Star-Ledger]]'', June 3, 2009. Accessed August 29, 2011. "In the Democratic race in Carteret, incumbent Joseph W. Sitarz and Dennis DiMascio beat Sultan M. Babar for two three-year terms for borough council."</ref> He has been chosen to represent the 10th delegate district part of Middlesex County, which consists of [[New Jersey's 18th legislative district|18th]] and [[New Jersey's 19th legislative district|19th]] state legislative districts, as a delegate to the [[2012 Democratic National Convention]].<ref>[http://www.facebook.com/SultanMBabar/posts/10150773349977891 Sultan M. Babar] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231109195027/https://www.facebook.com/SultanMBabar/posts/10150773349977891 |date=November 9, 2023 }}, Accessed March 25, 2012. "NJ Democratic State Committee and President Obama's campaign has chosen [Sultan M. Babar] to represent 18 and 19th legislative districts in the DNC"</ref><ref>Jackson, Herb. [https://web.archive.org/web/20120403045852/http://blog.northjersey.com/thesource/2443/legislators-top-list-of-obama-delegates/ Legislators top list of Obama delegates], The Source, Accessed April 4, 2012</ref><ref>NJ Board of Elections [http://www.nj.gov/state/elections/2012-results/2012-official-primary-candidates-dem-dist-delegates-0412.pdf Democratic District Delegates] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130309064032/http://nj.gov/state/elections/2012-results/2012-official-primary-candidates-dem-dist-delegates-0412.pdf |date=March 9, 2013 }} State of NJ. April 5, 2012</ref> Other members of notability are Amijit Cheema, member of the Planning Board;<ref>[http://www.ci.carteret.nj.us/content/105/784/154/default.aspx Carteret Planning Board] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111002093033/http://www.ci.carteret.nj.us/content/105/784/154/default.aspx |date=October 2, 2011 }}, Accessed August 25, 2011</ref> and Hardyal Singh Johal, former member of the Planning Board.<ref>Rommel, Leo D. [https://beta.app.com/article/CN/20100415/NEWS/4150349/1401/NEWS05/Sikhs-to-celebrate-with-parade-Saturday-in-Carteret "Sikhs to celebrate with parade Saturday in Carteret"]{{dead link|date=November 2016 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}, [[Google]] cache copy of article from ''[[Asbury Park Press]]'', April 15, 2010. Accessed August 29, 2011. "Hardyal Singh Johal, chairman of the borough's Planning Board, said he was the first Sikh ever to move into Carteret, back in the early 1970s."</ref>

==== Emergency services ====
The borough maintains a 50-person police department. An October 2017 report by NJ.com found that Officer Joseph Reiman, brother of Mayor Daniel Reiman, accounted for 20% of the police department's 115 arrests that involved the use of force in the two years following his July 2015 hiring.<ref>McCarthy, Craig. [http://www.nj.com/middlesex/index.ssf/2017/10/in_carteret_1_cop_accounted_for_20_percent_of_use_1.html "In Carteret, indicted cop accounted for fifth of arrests involving force"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171010231513/http://www.nj.com/middlesex/index.ssf/2017/10/in_carteret_1_cop_accounted_for_20_percent_of_use_1.html |date=October 10, 2017 }}, NJ Advance Media for [[NJ.com]], October 10, 2017. Accessed October 11, 2017. "The borough police officer charged with assaulting a teenager is responsible for more than one-fifth of all arrests involving force recorded by the department over a 23-month period, an NJ Advance Media analysis has found.From the time Joseph Reiman was hired in July 2015, the 50-person department logged 115 incidents in which an officer used force, such as a punch, baton or weapon against a suspect, according to documents obtained under the state Open Public Records Act."</ref>

The Carteret Volunteer First Aid Squad, established in 1934, ended operations in April 2013 after becoming financially insolvent. Starting in April 2013, emergency medical services in the borough are provided around the clock by the EMS division of the Carteret Fire Department.<ref>[https://www.carteret.net/news/carteret-fire-department-begins-24-7-ems-coverage-as-carteret-volunteer-first-aid-inc-ceases-operations/ "Carteret Fire Department begins 24/7 EMS coverage as Carteret Volunteer First Aid Inc. ceases operations"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200715230049/https://www.carteret.net/news/carteret-fire-department-begins-24-7-ems-coverage-as-carteret-volunteer-first-aid-inc-ceases-operations/ |date=July 15, 2020 }}, Borough of Carteret, April 10, 2013. Accessed April 30, 2020. "Mayor Dan Reiman has announced that in the wake of the Carteret Volunteer First Aid Squad shutting its doors and ceasing operations, the Carteret Fire Department EMS division will expand operations from 12 hours a day to 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. The private, non-profit Carteret Volunteer First Aid Squad was first established in 1934. In 1999 due to the inability of the Volunteer squad to staff day time hours the Borough selected Rural Metro Inc. to provide EMS coverage for the Borough on weekdays, while the under-staffed volunteer organization continued to provide coverage on weekends."</ref><ref name="carteret2013-04-10">[https://www.carteret.net/news/carteret-fire-department-begins-24-7-ems-coverage-as-carteret-volunteer-first-aid-inc-ceases-operations/ Carteret Fire Department begins 24/7 EMS coverage as Carteret Volunteer First Aid Inc. ceases operations] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200715230049/https://www.carteret.net/news/carteret-fire-department-begins-24-7-ems-coverage-as-carteret-volunteer-first-aid-inc-ceases-operations/ |date=July 15, 2020 }}, Borough of Carteret, April 10, 2013. Accessed June 6, 2023. "Mayor Dan Reiman has announced that in the wake of the Carteret Volunteer First Aid Squad shutting its doors and ceasing operations, the Carteret Fire Department EMS division will expand operations from 12 hours a day to 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. The private, non-profit Carteret Volunteer First Aid Squad was first established in 1934. In 1999 due to the inability of the Volunteer squad to staff day time hours the Borough selected Rural Metro Inc. to provide EMS coverage for the Borough on weekdays, while the under-staffed volunteer organization continued to provide coverage on weekends."</ref>

The Borough of Carteret hired its first firefighter in the late 19th century.<ref name=carteretFDHistory>[https://www.carteret.net/fire-department-history/ Fire Department History] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200715192350/https://www.carteret.net/fire-department-history/ |date=July 15, 2020 }}, Borough of Carteret. Accessed June 6, 2023. "The Carteret Fire Department began in the late 1800's with the hiring of a single fire fighter to operate the fire apparatus. At that time, the fire apparatus was horse drawn, and the duties of a firefighter were quite different than they are today. In case of a fire, the team of horses would be unhooked from another borough wagon, and raced to the firehouse."</ref> The department relied on a single paid firefighter up until 1920, when paid staff was expanded to five firefighters to operate the borough's first motorized [[fire truck]]. In the 1950s with the construction of the New Jersey Turnpike, which included an exit in Carteret, the department started to purchase trucks designed for safe operation fighting vehicle fires on busy high-speed highways.

In August 1990, a pipeline carrying jet fuel burst in Carteret. The Carteret Fire Department joined with personnel from [[GATX Terminals Corporation]] and the Middlesex County Hazardous Materials Unit to construct a temporary dike to prevent the fuel from flowing into the [[Arthur Kill]].<ref name=nytimes1990-08-04>[https://www.nytimes.com/1990/08/04/nyregion/metro-dateline-pipeline-ruptures-dike-contains-spill.html "Metro Dateline; Pipeline Ruptures; Dike Contains Spill"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200720071350/https://www.nytimes.com/1990/08/04/nyregion/metro-dateline-pipeline-ruptures-dike-contains-spill.html |date=July 20, 2020 }}, ''[[The New York Times]]'', August 4, 1990. Accessed June 6, 2023. "Crews from GATX, the Carteret Fire Department and the Middlesex County Hazardous Materials unit helped after the spill, she said."</ref>

Up until 2011, Carteret would request help from fireboats of the [[Fire Department of New York]] when there was a waterfront fire.<ref name=nytimes1974-12-08>{{Cite news
 |url          = https://www.nytimes.com/1974/12/08/archives/n-y-fireboats-help-state-vessel-cost-924000-no-payments-offered.html
 |title        = N. Y Fireboats Help State
 |work         = [[The New York Times]]
 |author       = Longin W. Marzecki
 |date         = 1974-12-08
 |page         = 130
 |location     = Carteret, New Jersey
 |access-date  = 2020-07-15
 |quote        = Marine Fire Company No. 9, which operates the largest fireboat in the world, the Firefighter, is usually the first unit on the scene of a Jersey waterfront blaze; it has its headquarters adjacent to the Staten Island‐Manhattan ferry slips in St. George.
 |archive-date = July 15, 2020
 |archive-url  = https://web.archive.org/web/20200715195759/https://www.nytimes.com/1974/12/08/archives/n-y-fireboats-help-state-vessel-cost-924000-no-payments-offered.html?searchResultPosition=1
 |url-status   = live
}}</ref> In 2011, through the assistance of a [[FEMA Port Security Grant]], the department acquired its first fireboat.<ref name=nj2011-12-21>{{Cite news
 |url          = https://www.nj.com/news/local/2011/12/carteret_receives_297k_fire_bo.html
 |title        = Carteret receives $297K fire boat via federal Homeland Security funds
 |work         = [[NJ Advance Media]]
 |author       = Tom Haydon
 |date         = 2011-12-21
 |location     = Carteret
 |access-date  = 2020-07-15
 |quote        = The twin-engine, 27-foot Boston Whaler, with a price tag of $297,000, will have pumps to assist distressed vessels and night-vision goggles and camera.
 |archive-date = July 17, 2020
 |archive-url  = https://web.archive.org/web/20200717054804/https://www.nj.com/news/local/2011/12/carteret_receives_297k_fire_bo.html
 |url-status   = live
}}</ref> The {{convert|27|ft|m}} vessel cost $297,000.<ref name=carteret2011-12-21>{{Cite news
 |url          = https://www.carteret.net/news/carteret-awarded-fire-boat-through-port-security-grant-program/
 |title        = Carteret awarded fire boat through Port Security Grant Program
 |work         = Borough of Carteret
 |date         = 2011-12-21
 |location     = Carteret, New Jersey
 |access-date  = 2020-07-15
 |archive-date = July 15, 2020
 |archive-url  = https://web.archive.org/web/20200715184328/https://www.carteret.net/news/carteret-awarded-fire-boat-through-port-security-grant-program/
 |url-status   = live
}}</ref>

In December 2014, the ''[[Courier News]]'' reported on an investigation of serious sexual harassment targeting the department's sole female firefighter.<ref name=mycentraljersey2014-10-19>{{Cite news
 |url          = https://www.mycentraljersey.com/story/news/local/middlesex-county/2014/10/19/carteret-fire-department-sex-scandal-harassment-reiman/17456309/
 |title        = Exclusive details: Sex, lies & text messages in Carteret Fire Dept. scandal
 |work         = [[Courier News]]
 |author       = Sergio Bichao
 |date         = 2014-10-19
 |location     = Carteret, New Jersey
 |access-date  = 2020-07-15
 |quote        = But when a firefighter texted a female volunteer a picture of his penis, and then admitted under oath that he had sex in the parking lot of a borough elementary school, neither the fire chief nor the mayor thought to reprimand the borough employee.
 |archive-date = September 18, 2020
 |archive-url  = https://web.archive.org/web/20200918145652/https://www.mycentraljersey.com/story/news/local/middlesex-county/2014/10/19/carteret-fire-department-sex-scandal-harassment-reiman/17456309/
 |url-status   = live
}}</ref>