Wainstein says North Bergen was hit with a '12 percent tax increase.' Here's what the records show

Assemblyman Larry Wainstein, Mayor Nicholas Sacco’s longtime North Bergen rival, says residents were left out of the videos in which Sacco announced his retirement and named Commissioner Hugo Cabrera as his successor, and that they have been “hit with a 12 percent tax increase.”

State and township tax records show a large rise in the municipal part of North Bergen’s tax bill, but not a 12 percent jump in any single year. The municipal tax levy grew about 10 percent in 2024 and another 10.4 percent in 2025. The average homeowner’s total property tax bill, which also covers schools and the county, rose about 5 percent in 2025.

What Wainstein wrote

In a recent Facebook post, Wainstein (D-33rd District) wrote:

“Last week, Nick Sacco and Hugo Cabrera released a pair of videos announcing Sacco’s resignation and Cabrera as his handpicked successor. While there was plenty of praise for each other, here is what they never mentioned — the hardworking people of North Bergen. These are the same people who have been hit with a 12 percent tax increase and who are watching the town become more unaffordable by the day. After four decades in power, one would think the people might get a thank you. Instead, they got more of the same from two machine politicians who will protect their power at all costs.”

The post did not say which year or which part of the tax bill the 12 percent figure refers to.

What the records show

A North Bergen property tax bill has three main parts: municipal, school and county. Hudson TV checked each against the Hudson County abstracts of ratables published by the New Jersey Division of Taxation, the township’s 2025 annual financial statement and the county’s budget tax exhibits.

• Municipal levy, 2024: $70,868,046.96, up from $64,425,000 in 2023, an increase of about 10 percent. When the 2024 budget was introduced, township officials put the municipal tax increase at 9.7 percent, or about $570 for the average home, and blamed a cut in state aid from $10 million to $2 million plus higher health care and pension costs, The Jersey Journal reported.
• Municipal levy, 2025: $78,225,000, up 10.4 percent from 2024, according to the 2025 county abstract and the township’s 2025 annual financial statement.
• Total tax rate, 2025: North Bergen’s general tax rate, which combines municipal, school and county taxes, went from 1.747 to 1.828 per $100 of assessed value, an increase of 4.6 percent. For the average residential property, assessed at $488,800 in 2025, that comes to about $8,935, up about $431, or 5.1 percent, from about $8,504 in 2024, according to Hudson TV’s calculation using state and county figures.
• Municipal tax, 2026: The township’s 2026 budget of about $122.1 million carries a 3.56 percent municipal tax increase, township spokesman Nick Bond told Hudson County View. The county’s share of North Bergen’s taxes is up 6.94 percent in 2026, and the North Bergen school board’s budget carries a 2.87 percent tax increase, according to Hudson County View.

Taken together, the municipal levy grew about 21 percent over two years, from $64.4 million in 2023 to $78.2 million in 2025. No single year in the records reviewed shows a 12 percent increase in the municipal levy or in the total tax rate. The township’s 2026 tax rates have not yet been posted by the state.

The handoff

Sacco, mayor since 1991, announced Oct. 8 at his annual Mayor’s Ball that he will resign effective Oct. 28, citing health challenges, and endorsed Cabrera to succeed him. The remaining commissioners are expected to appoint Cabrera mayor after the vacancy opens. (Read our story on Sacco’s retirement.)

Wainstein, who led tickets against Sacco in 2015, 2019 and 2023 and lost each time, called the plan “a coronation” last week. He has not said whether he will run for mayor in the May 11, 2027, township election. (Read more on whether Wainstein will run.)

When Wainstein criticized the succession plan last week, North Bergen spokesman Phil Swibinski told Hudson County View that Wainstein “decided to go right into the political gutter” and that Cabrera and the Sacco team “will work hard every single day to show the people why they are the clear choice.”