Amendments To Leaf Blower Ban Tabled Until 2024 In Morristown

MORRISTOWN, NJ — Morristown voters agreed last week to push forward a referendum looking to allow a partial ban on gas-powered leaf blowers.

During the Nov. 9 town council meeting, Morristown officials learned that the process of implementing the new ban may bring forward more questions.

Morristown voters were asked during the general election to decide on the prohibition on the use of gas-powered leaf blowers during the period of Jan. 1 through Sept. 30 of each year, commencing on Jan. 1, 2024.

Here are the unofficial tallies, according to the Morris County Clerk:

• Yes: 1,345
• No: 1,120

With the unofficial election results affirming the ban, council member Stefan Armington attempted to introduce an amendment to the chapter of the town's municipal code titled "Landscaping Equipment and Construction Noise."

The purpose of the amendment, according to Armington, was to better reflect the referendum results by defining gas blowers and setting consequences for violations of the voter-approved prohibition.

However, this attempt was preemptively stopped by caution from town Attorney David Minchello, who advocated deferring the amendment until Morris County Clerk Ann Grossi certified the election results.

The results of the general election do not become official until they are certified by the Morris County Clerk's office no later than Nov. 22.

"The fact that the referendum has not yet been certified but appears to be in the affirmative for the ordinance, legally we cannot vote on that ordinance. Once the election results are certified, it will take effect on Jan. 1, so we cannot vote at this time on that. Legally I recommend that we withdraw it," Minchello said.

When Armington asked if he would be allowed to instead amend the ordinance, Minchello replied saying that the ordinance would not be able to be amended or repealed for the next three years.

Because there is just one council meeting left this year, there will not be enough time to introduce and pass Armington's amendment, thus it will be up to the next council to determine whether to take it up.

Armington said that the point of his amendments was to clarify the penalties for the violation of the ordinance and to strictly define what qualifies as a gas-powered leaf blower, as neither of those is included in the current one.

According to Armington, the municipal code currently allows the town to levy fines of up to $1,000 for each infringement. "Whether that's the first offense or the third offense, it's not clear whether that applies to the contractor or to the residents," he said.

The council clarified that Armington's amendments would be able to be introduced by the council at their first meeting in January, to which Minchello said yes.