FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CLIFTON, NJ — Tafari Anderson, candidate for Clifton City Council, is calling for stronger overtime controls that protect taxpayers while ensuring police, fire, and other essential departments remain properly staffed.
Overtime is sometimes unavoidable. Emergencies, vacancies, retirements, and major incidents can require employees to work beyond normal schedules. But recurring overtime should never become a substitute for sound workforce planning.
“Public safety employees deserve proper staffing, and taxpayers deserve competent management,” Anderson said. “When overtime becomes predictable year after year, City Hall should identify the cause instead of treating the overrun as a surprise.”
Anderson is proposing quarterly overtime reports by department showing spending, reasons overtime was incurred, vacancy levels, staffing trends, and whether costs were emergency-driven or avoidable. Departments with persistent overruns should present corrective plans.
He also supports reviewing scheduling practices, hiring timelines, retirement forecasts, and staffing models to determine when filling vacancies is more cost-effective than continually paying overtime.
“This is not about cutting police officers, firefighters, or frontline services,” Anderson said. “It is about staffing those services intelligently so employees are not burned out and taxpayers are not paying a premium because government failed to plan.”
Responsible budgeting requires City Hall to distinguish genuine emergencies from recurring management problems and make that information public.
“Clifton should support the men and women who serve this city while demanding accountability from the system managing them,” Anderson said. “Strong services and fiscal discipline are not competing goals.”
About Tafari Anderson
Tafari Anderson is a Clifton City Council candidate focused on fiscal responsibility, public safety, responsible development, infrastructure, and transparent government.
Paid for by Friends for Tafari Anderson.
RESEARCH BASIS: City of Clifton 2026 budget materials and budget meeting records.