ON THE GREEN: POLICE SALARIES TOP $100K
The median municipal police salary in New Jersey crossed the $100,000 threshhold in 2016, according to a data analysis published Tuesday by NJ Advance Media.
Five of the six towns considered as the core of the Greater Red Bank Green were among those in the six figures, according to the report.
The analysis of public employee salary data found that the median for more than 19,000 local police officers was $105,106 at the end of 2016, the report said. That’s up about $14,400, or 16 percent, from a 2010 report by Advance’s predecessor company, the Star-Ledger.
Among the other findings:
• 60 percent of local police made at least $100,000 in 2016, up from 30 percent in 2009.
• Rich towns with low crime rates often pay the most for police.
• The pace of increases has slowed in recent years.
The report also includes a discussions on the impact of a two-percent salary-increase cap imposed in 2011; competition with the private sector that municipalities say they drives salaries up; and a shift in healthcare coverage cost-sharing that has offset some of the salary gains.
The report, by Carla Astudillo, includes a database that’s searchable by town.