PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — The influential chair of the SEPTA Board, Pasquale T. "Pat" Deon, is stepping down this month after 24 years at the helm.
"I think it's time for some new looks and some new leadership here at the authority," Deon said.
Deon has been a member of the board since 1995 and chair since 1999. His current five-year term is ending.
With a now-Democratic Bucks County Commission, Deon, a prominent Republican, realized there was less of a chance he'd be reappointed, but he says he never asked.
"Last year before the election even came up I decided it was time to go," Deon said.
Suburban County Commissioners name two members each to the 15-member SEPTA Board.
Deon, who’s 65 and owns a beer distributorship in Bucks County, said that during his time as chair of the panel governing SEPTA, he’s most proud of helping to secure Act 89 and Act 44, establishing predictable funding for transit.
But with the sunset of that legislation last year, Deon says his biggest defeat came this past year when lawmakers were unable to replace the funding, as SEPTA faces a $240 million shortfall next fiscal year.
"[Legislators] are talking like they're going to work together to get it done next year," Deon said. "That was my biggest disappointment this year, not coming out with a predictable funding source."
During his tenure, SEPTA established station naming rights to bring in additional revenue.
"I'll be ending up with a balanced budget after 20-some years of being on the board,” he said. “It's the first time we've balanced a budget that long," Deon said.
The SEPTA board meeting on Jan. 25 will be Deon's last.
Board Vice Chair Ken Lawrence, a Democrat from Montgomery County, will handle the duties of chairman until a new leader is elected.
"I never viewed this board as political," Deon said. "We have men, women, Republican, Democrat, Black, white. We never viewed it being a broken board. We all worked together no matter what it was. I was very lucky during my lifetime here to meet these people and work with them, and they're all smart."