What is a freeholder, and why is the name found only in New Jersey?

Want to baffle friends and family? Ask what a freeholder does.

Throughout North Jersey, freeholders often toil in relative anonymity as elected leaders who oversee hundreds of millions of tax dollars annually spent by county governments.

People rarely know what freeholders do. Those who do will often resort to the cheap joke about "freeloaders" collecting a paycheck for what on paper is a part-time job.

"I know I vote for them, but at the moment, I'm embarrassed to say I really don't know what a freeholder does," said Nancy Lopes, a Somerset County resident who works in Morristown.

One New Jersey legislator is trying to change that.

Sen. Joseph Pennacchio, R-Montville, has introduced a bill that would give counties the option of changing the name of their leaders from freeholder to commissioner.

The switch, he believes, would not only shed light on these elected officials but also remove a Jersey-centric title many claim is archaic and offensive to women and minorities.

"New Jersey stands alone while other states have changed the position of freeholder to a commissioner, which modernizes the position,” Pennacchio said. “When you have a title, which refers to men ‘free and clear,’ you ultimately discourage individuals from participating in critical local government positions.”

Women and blacks excluded

The freeholder title dates to before the American Revolution, and loosely translates to mean the only people eligible to hold public office at the time — white male owners of debt-free land.

New Jersey's first constitution, adopted two days before the Declaration of Independence on July 2, 1776, declared that a county representative must be worth "fifty pounds proclamation money, clear estate in the same and have resided in the county in which they claim a vote for twelve months immediately preceding the election."

Technically, this declaration did not specifically exclude women or black slaves, but because circumstances at the time prevented them from owning property, they were effectively barred from county office.

According to an essay published by the New Jersey Historical Commission, the New Jersey Legislature in 1807 imposed additional impediments on women and blacks by specifically restricting suffrage — the right to vote — to white male citizens who paid taxes.

"There's definitely a debate around the historical nature of the word 'freeholder,' what that tradition means and what it doesn't," said Essex County Freeholder Director Brendan Gill. "And there's a lot of history wrapped into the origination of the word itself."

Elected in 2017, Heather Darling, Morris County's newest freeholder, said she was not familiar with the negative connotation of the title until she spoke with a black woman at a unity event in Morristown.

"She equated the term with landholder," Darling said. "Would I have ever thought of changing the name before that? No. But now that I hear that some people do have a negative connotation to it, I could potentially be convinced that a different term could apply."

Like Darling, David Ganz, a 16-year veteran of the Bergen County Board of Chosen Freeholders, said he was neutral on the name change but would not oppose it.

"It's been doing OK for 320 years," Ganz said. "I don't think there's a need to change it. If it were changed, I think the practical effect would be that some people would not know what a commissioner is, either. But at least some people would have an idea what a commissioner does, just from the name."

Is there a need?

Freeholder boards are granted broad powers by the state Legislature to regulate county property, finances and affairs, including preparing and adopting the county budget.

Despite wielding so much control, Darling said, people rarely know about the frequently full-time demands of the job.

"People don't realize how many moving parts there are to running a county," she said.

Jokes that she is a "freeloader" bother her.

"I signed up for this job because I wanted to do the right thing and help the community," Darling said. "So when someone says 'freeloader,' it's beyond just the negative connotation, especially now that I'm doing it."

Morris County Freeholder John Cesaro agrees. He said he often has to explain to residents what he does.

"It would definitely make it easier for people to recognize what we are," Cesaro said. "But I look forward to determining what the collective wisdom of our Freeholder Board is on this issue."

Cesaro also observed that despite the origin of the term, "in current times, we have female freeholders, we have African-American freeholders."

Gill said he supported the bill.

"There are people who think it's important to recognize all aspects of that history, good and bad," Gill said. "But in terms of the aim of allowing people to be more familiar with who their county elected officials are, I would be OK with changing the name, particularly if it allowed for greater understanding of who your county representatives are and what their function is."

Some, however, argue that there are more pressing issues facing residents than what their county leaders are called.

"County government is local enough to be close to those it serves, but operates at a scale that lets us provide excellence and efficiency in many areas, from county schools and community colleges to law enforcement to regional infrastructure planning," Passaic County Freeholder John Bartlett said. "The work we’re doing, the tax savings we achieve through shared services with our towns and cities, and being responsive to our constituents matters more than whether we’re called freeholders or commissioners."

Morris County Freeholder Deborah Smith concurs.

"The historical derivation of 'freeholder' is not appealing, but it has been something New Jersey has utilized for its entire history," Smith said. "Of all the things that are necessary to do in county government, changing the title is low on my bucket list."'

Confusion, extra costs cited

Her colleague, Morris County Freeholder Kathy DeFillippo, added another wrinkle, wondering if the name change would clear up some confusion or add to it.

"I would be concerned about the confusion if some counties had commissioners and other had freeholders," she said of Pennacchio's bill, which would provide only the option of changing the name in each of New Jersey's 21 counties.

John Donnadio, director of the New Jersey Alliance of Counties, noted that changing letterhead and names on buildings would cost money.

Further, he said, the public is becoming more aware of county government since the imposition of the 2 percent tax levy cap encouraged municipalities to partner with county government on shared and cooperative services including health care, emergency management and 911 response.

Previous proposals to eliminate the freeholder term never gained traction with his organization, Donnadio said.

"We have not taken a position on the bill," Donnadio said. "We've been focused more on issues that have an impact on everyday lives of New Jersey residents."

But Pennacchio, whose bill was voted out of a Senate committee last Monday, argues that the name change is necessary to educate residents and promote greater civic engagement.

"The most important thing is to get people engaged with the way people are governed," Penacchio said. "You have to know who is governing you. And I think it's easier to know that a county commissioner deals with county issues as opposed to a freeholder, which is foreign to many people."

Related editorial: Questions on ‘freeholders,’ and vital civic engagement

Staff Writer William Westhoven: 973-917-9242; wwesthoven@GannettNJ.com.