Washington was incorporated as a borough by an act of the New Jersey Legislature on February 20, 1868, from portions of Washington Township.[23] The borough was named for George Washington, one of more than ten communities in the state of New Jersey that were named for the first president.[24][25] The Borough of Washington is surrounded by Washington Township, which is one of five municipalities in the state of New Jersey with the name "Washington Township".[26]
The borough had the 26th-highest property tax rate in New Jersey, with an equalized rate of 4.206% in 2020, compared to 2.967% in the county as a whole and a statewide average of 2.279%.[27]
^Rondinaro, Gene. "Washington Slept Here And There And. . .", The New York Times, February 17, 1985. Accessed October 22, 2015. "First in war, first in peace and, come tomorrow, first in the hearts of his countrymen, George Washington may be nowhere more fondly remembered than in New Jersey, where 12 communities are named for him. The profusion of such names - six Washington Townships, one each in Bergen, Burlington, Gloucester, Mercer, Morris and Warren Counties; Washington in Warren, Washington Crossing in Mercer, Washington Heights and Washington Park in Middlesex, Washingtonville in Sussex and Washington Valley in Morris - causes problems."
^Wilk, Tom. "Awash in Washingtons: New Jersey has six towns named for the father of our country.", New Jersey Monthly, January 17, 2011. Accessed October 22, 2015. "In New Jersey, Washington can lay claim to another first. He's number one in names selected for the state's 566 municipalities. Bergen, Burlington, Gloucester, Morris and Warren counties all have a Washington Township. Warren also has a Washington Borough surrounded—naturally—by Washington Township. The largest is Gloucester County's Washington, with 52,096 people; the smallest is the Washington in Burlington, with a population of 649. New Jersey had a sixth Washington Township in Mercer County until 2008, when voters there approved a name change to Robbinsville."
^"Here are the 30 N.J. towns with the highest property tax rates", NJ Advance Media for NJ.com, March 15, 2021. Accessed January 19, 2022. "The average equalized tax rate in New Jersey was 2.279 in 2020, according to data from the Department of Community Affairs. Here is the list of 30 New Jersey towns with the highest property tax rates.... 26. Washington Borough Equalized tax rate in Washington Borough, Warren County, was 4.206 in 2020 Average equalized tax rate in Warren County: 2.967"