A A A

Municipal Clerk

The Municipal Clerk’s Office is responsible for preparing and maintaining agendas, resolutions, and ordinances for the Mayor and Council. The office also oversees elections and voter registration, processes various licenses and registrations, including legalized games of chance, raffle and bingo permits, Alcoholic Beverage Control licenses, landscaper and tree service registrations, landlord registrations, limousine and taxi licenses, and more.

In addition, the Municipal Clerk’s Office handles Open Public Records Act requests and vital records, including birth, marriage, and death records. The office serves as a liaison between residents and the Mayor and Council.

The Municipal Clerk also serves as the confidential secretary to the Borough Council and is responsible for maintaining the Borough’s official records and contracts.

Open Public Records Law (OPRA)

To obtain public records, please complete an OPRA request.

You can either fill out the Online OPRA Request Form.

You can print out the attached OPRA (Open Public Records Act) Request Form and email the completed form to Municipal Clerk Nicholas J. Magarelli at nmagarelli@fairlawn.org or bring it to the Municipal Clerk's Office in Borough Hall.

A written response will be received within 7 business days. Your responsive documents will be received within 7, 14 or 21 business days, in accordance to New Jersey OPRA Laws.

*We highly suggest that you do not use third party websites or applications when making an OPRA requests. Very often the requests do not make it to us or the response documents do not make it back to the requestor when using these sites. It is important to us that there is complete transparency and that YOU receive your records in a timely fashion. We cannot be held liable for requests that do not make it to us or response documents that don't make it to you. Therefore we encourage you to utilize the above form for accuracy and accountability.

PLEASE NOTE: Effective September 3, 2024, the New Jersey Open Public Records Law (OPRA) have been updated.

N.J.S.A. 47:1A-5(f) and N.J.S.A. 47:1A-5(g)

All OPRA requests provided on September 3, 2024 or thereafter, must include the following:

Under penalty of N.J.S.A. 2C:28-3, I certify that

I HAVE / HAVE NOT been convicted of any indictable offense under the laws of New Jersey, any other state, or the United States;
I, or another person, WILL / WILL NOT use the requested government records for a commercial purpose;
I AM / AM NOT seeking records in connection with a legal proceeding.

OPRA request(s) that do not include this information will not be processed and will be returned to the requestor so the request can be updated with the above listed information.

OPRA requestors that refuse to include the above listed information will be reported to the State of New Jersey's Government Records Council and may face a penalty.

For more information on OPRA, follow this link to the New Jersey Government Records Council website.

Council, Board And Committee Meeting

Borough Ordinances & Codes

Elections

2026 Election Dates:

Primary Election, Tuesday, June 2, 2026

General Election, Tuesday, November 3, 2026

PLEASE CLICK HERE FOR INFORMATION ON BECOMING A POLL WORKER
PLEASE CLICK HERE FOR THE VOTER INSTRUCTIONAL VIDEO

PLEASE CLICK HERE FOR PRIMARY 2026 EARLY VOTING INFORMATION

Anyone wishing to register to vote MUST:

Be a citizen of the United States
Be 18 years of age on or before the election day
Have resided in the county at least 30 days
Register at least 29 days prior to the election

You must re-register if:

You move from one county to another
You have a name change due to marriage, divorce or Judgement of the Court
Any change of address

Voter Registration Information

Vote by Mail:
Registered voters can apply to vote by mail. Just click on the link for the State's Division of Elections website and download the correct County application:

Bergen County residents should mail their application to:

John S. Hogan
Bergen County Clerk
One Bergen County Plaza, Room 130
Hackensack, New Jersey 07601

Raffle & Bingo License Information

Submit the following:

Organization registration (must be the original certificate issued by the State of New Jersey for the current year).
Four (4) Sets of a Complete Application (with original signatures and original notary stamp/seal on all 4 copies). *Note that an officer of the organization as well as the member in charge of the game must sign all applications before a notary.
Submit Criminal Affidavit.
Submit two (2) copies of sample raffle ticket for off-premise raffles.
Two (2) checks in the amount applicable (based on raffle type and/or value of prizes):

1 check payable to the “Legalized Games of Chance Control Commission”
1 check payable to the “Borough of Fair Lawn”

You must submit separate applications for each on-premise draw, off-premise draw, on- premise 50/50, and off-premise 50/50.

Raffles are regulated and governed by the New Jersey Legalized Games of Chance Control Commission.

For complete details and requirements refer to the State & website at NJ Community Affairs Website.

Vital Records

You must email or call for a marriage application appointment: 201-794-5344 or mkissane@fairlawn.org.

The Registrar of Vital Statistics in Fair Lawn is located in the Health Department of Borough Hall. Vital Statistics consists of records for births, deaths, marriages, civil unions and domestic partnerships that have occurred in Fair Lawn from 1924 to present.

You must call the Registrar to make an appointment for a marriage/remarriage license, or domestic partnership no walk-ins can be processed.

On this page you will find information about the following:

ORDERING A COPY OF A VITAL RECORD
MARRIAGE LICENSING
DOMESTIC PARTNERSHIP REGISTRATION

For information on Adoption, Divorce Decrees and Frequently Asked Questions about Vital Records, please visit the NJ State Vital Statistics Website.

For more information, click Vital Records

Garage / Yard Sales

Landscaper & Tree Service Registration

Under Borough Code, Chapter 126, Landscaping (Ord. 2688-2024, adopted 3/26/2024) and Chapter 227, Tree Care (Ord. 2689-2024, adopted 3/26/2024), all Landscaping and Tree Service/Removal businesses must register with the Borough, annually, prior to conducting business within the Borough of Fair Lawn.

Registration can be completed at the Municipal Clerk's Office:
8-01 Fair Lawn Avenue, Room 206 (2nd Floor)
Fair Lawn, New Jersey 07410

Fee: $25.00 for the first vehicle, $15.00 for each additional vehicle payable by Check or Money Order ONLY.

Please download Landscaper Form here or the Tree Service Form here bring the completed form with you.