January 03, 2024
Thom Carroll/for PhillyVoice
SEPTA Board Chairman Pat Deon is retiring later this month. The Bucks County Republican joined the board in 1995 and became its chairman in 1999.
SEPTA riders may not know who Pat Deon is, but they have felt his influence on the transit system over the years.
Pasquale T. Deon Sr. has served as the SEPTA Board chairman since 1999. Though the Bucks County Republican keeps a low profile, his colleagues know him as a consensus builder with solid connections among Pennsylvania's lawmakers.
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Deon, 65, is set to retire when his current five-year term expires early this year. The SEPTA board meeting scheduled for Jan. 25 will be his last. Deon announced his retirement last February but had floated the idea for years, particularly after the board shifted to a Democratic majority in 2020.
Ken Lawrence, the Montgomery County Democrat who currently serves as the vice chairman of the SEPTA Board, will handle Deon's duties as chairman until a new chair is selected.
The 15 members of the SEPTA board are appointed by county and state officials. Bucks, Chester, Delaware, Montgomery and Philadelphia counties each select two representatives. The remaining five members are appointed by the governor and legislative leaders.
The board has not been known to be overtly partisan. Most decisions are discussed behind closed doors and result in unanimous votes.
Deon told KYW Newsradio that he realized there was a smaller chance that he would be reappointed by the Bucks County Commissioners, who are now led by Democrats, but he did not seek reappointment.
"Last year before the election even came up I decided it was time to go," Deon said. "I think it's time for some new looks and some new leadership here at the authority."
Deon's connections to lawmakers have helped him broker deals that benefitted SEPTA and the state's transit system as a whole. Deon, who joined the board in 1995, told KYW that he was most proud of helping to secure the passage of the 2007 law that established predictable funding for transit. But with that funding having run out last year, Deon said he was disappointed that state lawmakers did not replace that funding as SEPTA approaches a fiscal cliff.
Still, Deon touted that he'll be "ending up with a balanced budget after 20-some years of being on the board." During his tenure, SEPTA reconstructed a stretch of the Market-Frankford Line in West Philly, rolled out the SEPTA Key payment system and began selling station naming rights for additional revenue.
Deon also serves as a Pennsylvania Turnpike Commissioner and has his hands on several other industries. He has a chain of beer distributors and a real estate company. He also has reported income from an AM radio station and a stake in Bethlehem's Sands Casino.
