Some New Jersey lawmakers uneasy that towns can override tax cap

But municipalities had been trimming spending even before that. According to the state Civil Service Commission, 1,908 positions have been targeted for elimination this year by municipalities, counties, fire departments, libraries, and commissions in the civil service system, which includes about a third of towns in New Jersey. (The number of positions eliminated could be smaller if towns change their minds after notifying the state.) That figure is nearly twice the number that were targeted for elimination in all of 2009.

Collingswood Mayor Jim Maley said that in this economic climate, few elected officials in New Jersey were likely to risk asking voters for permission to spend beyond the cap.

"Where they're at right now, they would opt to lay more people off, and it won't be until after those layoffs happen that a town realizes that we really needed some of those cops or firemen or a public works guy to fix the sewer lines," Maley said.