Cranford and off-duty police work

Why this is published at all

New Jersey is the only state where you can look up what a patrol car costs on a detail, town by town, and the reason is statutory. The Attorney General and the Division of Local Government Services determined that municipal officers may work off duty for private parties — and state law then requires that the assignment be arranged by contract with the municipality, not with the officer. So the town has to set the price, and it sets it in an ordinance that anyone can read.

So what follows is not a policy manual. It is Cranford's own ordinance, and it says what the town charges.

What the ordinance charges

What the officer's time costs: $90/hour including $5/hour administrative fee; Board of Education $75/hour including $5/hour administrative fee; third-party vendor may add its contracted fee Minimum per job: 4 hours generally; Board of Education 3 hours

The car, and what it costs

The vehicle is priced separately: $30/hour, four-hour minimum per vehicle

Whether the car may go at all: with approval.

In the ordinance's own words: “there shall be a fee charged to the employer of $30 per hour, with a minimum of four hours per vehicle.”

66 of the 141 New Jersey towns here price the car by the hour, from $5 to $60. Cranford sits above the middle of them at $30, with 55 charging less.

How the work is arranged

Who approves it: Chief of Police oversees billing; vehicle use requires Chief/designee authorization How a job is arranged: desk officer or designated vendor records requests; Township may use a third-party vendor for communications, scheduling, invoicing and payment How the officer is paid: third-party provider reimburses Township and officer through funds transfer, generally aligned with payroll periods

What the ordinance does not say

An ordinance sets the terms of the contract between the town and whoever hires the officer. It is not a conduct policy, and this one does not deal with who carries the liability, what may be worn, any weekly hour cap or what kinds of employer are off limits.

Those answers, where they exist, sit in the department's own rules and this page has not read them.

Vehicles

Set by Cranford's own ordinance, which is how New Jersey prices off-duty police work — the town contracts with the employer, so the town sets the fee.

• $30/hour, four-hour minimum per vehicle

Every agency here, side by side on vehicles →

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Common questions

What does an off-duty Cranford police officer cost?

$90/hour including $5/hour administrative fee; Board of Education $75/hour including $5/hour administrative fee; third-party vendor may add its contracted fee

Does Cranford charge for the police vehicle?

$30/hour, four-hour minimum per vehicle

Who arranges an off-duty job in New Jersey?

The municipality. State law requires the assignment to be arranged by contract with the town rather than privately with the officer, which is why the town publishes a rate at all.