Paul Anthony Sarlo (born August 31, 1968) is an Italian-American construction industry executive and Democratic Party politician who has served in the New Jersey Senate since 2003, where he represents the 36th Legislative District.

[4] He is chief operating officer of Joseph M. Sanzari, Inc., a general contractor specializing in heavy construction, site work and utilities located in Hackensack near Interstate 80.

He has been a supporter of the construction of LG Electronics USA's headquarters in Englewood Cliffs, abutting The Palisades near the George Washington Bridge.

[11] During Sarlo's tenure as Mayor over 50% of the town's roads have been resurfaced, over 1,000 new trees have been planted, 14th Street Field was built, Donna Ricker Field at Wood-Ridge High School was upgraded with artificial turf, the Robert I. Stoesser[12] The senior center and civic center were renovated and completed in 2012–2013 and Historic Bianchi House was preserved and improved.

[4] He and then-Wallington, New Jersey mayor Walter Wargacki sought to unseat Republican incumbent Paul DiGaetano and take the second seat that was vacated when John V. Kelly decided to challenge for the State Senate (which he lost).

While in the Assembly, Sarlo was the prime sponsor of the bill creating a $29 million grant to establish a statewide bio-terrorism response plan.

He also sponsored legislation to restore the Office of Public Advocate and to provide benefits and incentives for members of volunteer fire departments and rescue squads.

[20] Sarlo has been a long-time proponent of the EnCap proposal to build golf courses and homes on remediated landfills in the New Jersey Meadowlands.

He sponsored a bill in 2004 that enabled three Meadowlands communities -- Lyndhurst, North Arlington, and Rutherford—to negotiate their own deals with EnCap under which the impacted area municipalities would receive 40% - 50% of all future tax revenues.

[21] Even though Guarino was knocked off the ballot because of a lack of signatures, he received enough write-in votes to win the GOP nomination.

[25] In February 2019, Sarlo recommended that Mark Musella, a 56-year-old attorney also from Wood-Ridge, should be chosen to replace outgoing Bergen County Prosecutor Gurbir Grewal.

[26][27] In April 2019, Sarlo had made a statement on the Newark water crisis by saying, "The United States of America is not a Third World developing country.

"[28] On February 24, 2022, Sarlo announced that he would introduce legislation that would bar public entities in New Jersey from doing business with Russia or Russia-tied companies in response to the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine.

[30] Just one day later Sarlo's long-time friend and political ally Congressman Bill Pascrell Jr passed away at the age of 87 after losing a battle with a respiratory illness.

"[31] On November 25, 2024 Governor Phil Murphy signed Mr. Sarlo's sponsored bill S-3608,[32] that allows for the continuation of an expansion in operations that proved successful during the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States.

Following the signing of the bill Sarlo commented, "The outdoor service initiated during the pandemic proved to be a real success for restaurants and the communities they serve.

[35] The representatives from the 36th District for the 2024—2025 Legislative Session are:[36] While playing baseball as a NJIT student-athlete from 1989 to 1991, Sarlo earned NCAA Division III All-American honors.

In 2005, he was inducted into the NJIT Athletic Hall of Fame in 2005 for his accomplishments on the field, which include holding the program's highest single-season batting average.