Edison Scales Back Council Raises To 48% After Public Backlash

EDISON, NJ — Edison Township Council reintroduced a salary ordinance Wednesday with significantly reduced pay increases after tabling an earlier version that faced public criticism.

The amended Ordinance O.2275-2026 would raise the council president's salary from $18,500 to $27,500 — an increase of $9,000. Councilpersons' salaries would increase from $17,500 to $26,500, also a $9,000 raise, according to the ordinance.

The original ordinance, which was tabled at a previous meeting, proposed raising the council president's salary to $39,500 and councilpersons' salaries to $38,500 — a $21,000 increase for each position.

The revised figures still represent more than a 50 percent increase over current salaries.

During the public comment period on Wednesday, former councilwomen Margot Harris and Joyce Ship-Freeman criticized the proposed increases.

Harris, who served from 2022 to 2025, disputed statements made by Council President Joseph Coyle at a Jan. 28 meeting justifying the raises. She said there have been no changes to the township charter since 2019, contradicting Coyle's claim that council responsibilities had changed.

Harris also questioned whether higher salaries would make council seats more accessible to candidates of lesser means, as Coyle had suggested.

"No one should be looking to be serving on council primarily to support their families," Harris said. "People serving on council should be doing so first and foremost because they want to serve our community."

Ship-Freeman suggested some council members were motivated by financial gain rather than public service.

"Some people are just in it to see how much money they can get," Ship-Freeman said, while noting she was "not talking about everybody up there."

She also referenced previous discussions about opening salaries for township employees and questioned the pay disparity.

"I do remember council member Ajay Patil, when we were discussing the opening salaries of the people who work here every single day, and wondering why at that time, they wasn't even meeting minimum wage," Ship-Freeman said. "But you want the same thing that a person who works all day gets."

A public hearing on the ordinance is scheduled for Feb. 25.

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