LOWER SAUCON TWP., Pa. — Members of Lower Saucon Township Council currently serve four-year terms with no succession limit, so long as they continue to be voted in by their constituents.
A 3-1 vote from council on Wednesday could change that.
- Lower Saucon Township Council voted 3-1 on Wednesday, sending a term limits vote to the general election ballot
- If approved by voters, any new council member starting their terms in 2026 could only serve eight years at most
- Council members currently serve four-year terms with no limits on succession, as long as they're voted in by residents
Come the Nov. 7 general election, voters can submit a “yes” or “no” on whether to limit future council members — with terms starting on Jan. 5, 2026 — to serve no more than two consecutive four-year terms, or eight years total.
Council member Priscilla deLeon disagreed with the proposal. Sandra Yerger was absent.
“In my opinion, voters already have control of this in the ballot box. They control how many terms an applicant or candidate can succeed in the election.”Priscilla deLeon, Lower Saucon Township Council member
“In my opinion, voters already have control of this in the ballot box,” deLeon said. “They control how many terms an applicant or candidate can succeed in the election.”
Community comments
A couple of residents took a moment to share their thoughts with the group regarding the referendum.
“This ordinance seems unnecessary,” Susan Eustace said. “And I’m wondering what the rationale is for the suggestion of the ordinance at this point in time.”
“For whose benefit is this [referendum]?” Robert Blasko asked. “Yours or for the people’s?”
“Limiting service to eight consecutive years reduces the power of voters to choose candidates to perform their duties honorably and with the residents’ best interests at heart. Long-serving council members benefit the community with the deep and valuable knowledge they have acquired throughout their years of service. Losing this extra expertise would harm the township in numerous ways.”Lynn Hill, township resident
Township Manager Mark Hudson read an email on behalf of township resident Lynn Hill.
“Limiting service to eight consecutive years reduces the power of voters to choose candidates to perform their duties honorably and with the residents’ best interests at heart,” Hill wrote. “Long-serving council members benefit the community with the deep and valuable knowledge they have acquired throughout their years of service.
“Losing this extra expertise would harm the township in numerous ways.”
'A baseless accusation'
In other business, deLeon said she didn’t agree with the recent Department of Environmental Protection email that stated Bethlehem Landfill wasn’t a contributing factor for the July 16 washout on Riverside Drive.
She said she believed that “it didn’t start raining in the middle of the slope, or in this case, on top of the landfill.”
“When it rains and it’s coming down, it starts at the top of the hill,” deLeon said. “They’re saying that it didn’t start at the landfill, who happens to be on top of the hill.”
“If it started up there, there would be evidence down the whole mountain. They would not have been able to go on the mountain and clean that all up.”Mark Inglis, Lower Saucon Township Council vice president
Thomas Carocci, council member, said this was a “baseless accusation.”
“If it started up there, there would be evidence down the whole mountain,” Council Vice President Mark Inglis said. “They would not have been able to go on the mountain and clean that all up.”
She added that the department should consider collecting runoff samples in the future, especially in the area near the Lehigh River.
