Photo: Toinfin · CC BY-SA 3.0How is Highland Park run?
Highland Park’s borough government spent $2.3 million on day-to-day services in the year to June 30, 2022, about $172 per resident. These are Census Bureau estimates: Highland Park didn’t report its figures, so this page shows them without comparisons.
What stands out about how Highland Park is run
Read from the borough’s budget and official records.
One full-time borough employee for every 174 residents
On the payroll in March 2022, from the Census Bureau’s Annual Survey of Public Employment & Payroll. Residents: the Census population in the 2022 finance file (13,592).
By department full-time, plus part-time, March 2022
The Census reports one month’s payroll (March); yearly figures are that month × 12, an estimate. Part-timers count half in the bar lengths.
About $172 per resident a year, or $0.47 a day
Day-to-day services only (a Census Bureau estimate). The biggest line: housing & development, at 100%.
Thank you for being a neighbor
Revenue is well above spending. That usually means Highland Park collects property taxes for the school district and county and passes them on, so only its own spending is counted.
Highland Park didn’t report all of its 2022 figures to the Census Bureau, so most of these numbers are the Bureau’s estimates.
No comparison or trend for Highland Park yet
Every year of Highland Park’s figures is a Census Bureau estimate: the borough reported none of its dollars for 2022. Estimates are shown above, labeled, but never ranked against places that reported or drawn as a trend.
How Town Hall compares budgets →Typical bills top $10,000 a year
Every local property tax on the home: town, schools and county.
Typical yearly bill next door and statewide
The Housing page’s calculator splits a monthly payment into loan, tax and insurance at Highland Park’s rate.
Can I afford it? →The median bill homeowners report to the Census survey (bills of $10,000+ are reported as “$10,000+”). The effective rate is that bill ÷ the median home value: a rough guide, not the official tax rate.
Tax bills are one input to Highland Park’s Cost of living grade. Cost of living in Highland Park →
Who’s in charge in Highland Park
Names change after every election, so we link to the source that keeps them current.
Highland Park’s meeting calendar isn’t in our feed yet. The borough posts agendas and minutes on hpboro.com ↗.
Highland Park Borough School District
Highland Park’s K–12 school district. It’s its own government, with a budget separate from the town’s.
Of the $28,905 per pupil, $16,522 goes to the classroom (teachers, aides, supplies); the rest to buses, buildings, counselors and administration. Building projects and debt payments aren’t in the per-pupil figure.
New Jersey districts overall: 48% local, 46% state, 6% federal.
School year 2023–24. Census Bureau school finance survey.
From town hall to Washington
Every level of government that speaks for Highland Park.
- 1Your cityMayor & councilOfficials: hpboro.com ↗
- 2New Jersey General AssemblyState representatives
- 3New Jersey SenateState senator
- 4GovernorStatewide
- 5U.S. HouseYour representative in Congress
- 6U.S. SenateBoth represent all of New Jersey
Democrat · Republican · other or independent. Tap a name for their official page.
How Highland Park compares with the towns next door
Highland Park’s own figures are Census estimates, so it isn’t placed among its neighbors. 2 of the 2 towns next door reported 2022 figures, from $4,683 to $6,520 per resident. Tap a town to see its page.
| Town | Day-to-day, per resident (2022) | Tax bill |
|---|---|---|
| Edison Township | $4,683 runs schools | $10,000+ |
| New Brunswick | $6,520 runs schools | $6,316 |
| Highland Park | estimate | $10,000+ |
Day-to-day spending in 2022, the last year every government was counted, for governments that reported it; hospital and utilities left out. Tax bill: the typical homeowner’s bill (Census ACS, 2020–24).
Reach Highland Park’s government
The official site has phone numbers, hours and forms. Neighbors add the rest to the Handbook.
Questions about Highland Park’s government
How much does Highland Park spend per resident?
About $172 per resident on day-to-day services in the year to June 30, 2022, a Census Bureau estimate (Highland Park didn’t report its figures). With building projects and interest, the whole budget was about $2.7 million.
Who runs Highland Park’s government?
See hpboro.com for current officials. We name an official only when a public source lists a current term, and none does for Highland Park yet.
How many people work for Highland Park?
78 full-time and 42 part-time employees in March 2022, with a March payroll of $595,177 (about $7.1M a year if every month were the same), as reported to the Census Bureau.
Who represents Highland Park in the state legislature?
State Senate District 18 (Patrick Diegnan) and General Assembly District 18 (Robert Karabinchak and Sterley Stanley). The General Assembly district also covers six other towns. Listed by Open States; districts from the Census Bureau.
Ask neighbors about Highland Park’s government
Neighbors who’ve been to the meetings can help.
Budget and staff: U.S. Census Bureau, Census of Governments (2022, every government) and Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances (2023–24, a sample) and the Annual Survey of Public Employment & Payroll (for Highland Park, the Bureau’s estimates); day-to-day spending is current operations, with hospitals, utilities and airports apart. School district: Census school finance survey, 2023–24. Property tax: Census American Community Survey, 2020–24. Elections: official 2024 returns via the MIT Election Data + Science Lab; turnout uses Census citizen voting-age population (CVAP, 2020–24). Officials: Open States, names shown only with a current term (checked October 9, 2026). Districts: Census Bureau (119th Congress, 2024 state districts); legislators: Open States and congress-legislators. How Town Hall works →