November ballot will ask residents whether to permit use of existing funds for ecological restoration on protected public lands
MORRISTOWN — Morris County voters will be asked this fall to decide whether the county’s Preservation Trust Fund can be expanded to support stewardship activities on permanently preserved public lands. The question will appear on the November 4, 2025 General Election ballot.
If approved, the measure would allow existing, unspent funds within the Morris County Open Space, Farmland, Floodplain Protection, and Historic Preservation Trust Fund to be used for ecological restoration projects such as habitat restoration, reforestation, invasive species removal, and green infrastructure improvements. The proposal would not involve any new tax increase and would exclude general maintenance or recreational development.
The initiative stems from an April 2025 recommendation by the Preservation Trust Fund Review Committee, a group established by the Board of County Commissioners in January 2024 to evaluate potential updates to the fund. After six meetings and consultations with technical experts, the committee concluded that supporting stewardship efforts on protected lands is a “fitting and responsible” use of existing trust fund resources.
The proposed program would initially be open only to municipal applicants managing publicly owned preserved lands. Eligible stewardship projects could include meadow and forest restoration, pollinator gardens, wildlife habitat enhancements, and green infrastructure installations like bioswales and rain gardens. Future expansions may allow nonprofit organizations to apply for funding as well.
Excluded from the program are routine maintenance, legal fees, land acquisition, work on unpreserved lands, and installation of recreational amenities such as playgrounds or athletic fields.
“This is a natural next step in our preservation efforts. For more than 30 years, our residents have overwhelmingly supported preservation in Morris County. Adding this program builds upon a long list of successful, voter-approved initiatives, including open space, historic preservation, farmland preservation and trail development. The committee’s recommendation reflects months of evaluation regarding the merits if such a program. Stewardship allows us to care for the lands we’ve protected, ensuring they remain healthy and accessible for future generations,” said Morris County Commissioner Deputy Director Stephen Shaw, who chaired the review committee.
The ballot question was officially authorized by the Morris County Board of Commissioners in June 2025. The final ballot language was submitted to the Morris County Clerk in accordance with state election procedures last month. Voter education materials will be provided by the county through its website and social media platforms ahead of the election.
The public question on the ballot will ask:
Shall the County of Morris amend the Morris County Open Space, Farmland, Floodplain Protection, and Historic Preservation Trust Fund to include the purpose of stewardship of permanently preserved land acquired for recreation and conservation purposes that are designed to restore or enhance its utilization for those purposes and allow the use of previously collected funds for those purposes?
An interpretive statement clarifies that a "YES" vote would allow the use of Preservation Trust Fund dollars for natural resource management and land enhancement projects, without increasing taxes.
This ballot initiative follows a precedent set in 2014, when Morris County voters approved a similar expansion of the Trust Fund to support trail construction. Like the trail program, the proposed stewardship initiative would be structured as a matching grant program, with municipalities covering a portion of project costs. The committee also recommended exploring tiered matching requirements based on project type, similar to existing county programs for historic preservation and flood mitigation.
A full copy of the Preservation Trust Fund Review Committee’s report, along with more information about the fund and the upcoming ballot question, is available through the county’s official website.