JEFFERSON TWP — The township board of supervisors voted to turn down an offer from the borough of Saxonburg to provide police services for the township, which would have supplemented the police services currently offered by the Pennsylvania State Police.

The decision was made at the monthly board of supervisors meeting Monday night, Feb. 10. Township Supervisor Lois Rankin said that neither the board nor the residents felt the need for additional police coverage from Saxonburg.

“There really is no interest in Jefferson Township,” Rankin said. “With most of the people I’ve talked to, it’s been adequate with the state police.”

In addition, township manager Leo Rosenbauer pointed out that the money which would have compensated the Saxonburg Police Department for this arrangement, between $50,000 and $60,000, was not included in the township’s 2025 budget.

“We did not include anything like that in this year’s budget,” Rosenbauer said.

The proposal was first brought before Jefferson Township’s board in October, when Saxonburg Mayor William Gillespie attended that month’s meeting to present the idea. The proposal was tabled at the December meeting and sat idle until it was voted down on Monday night.

If Jefferson Township had accepted, it would have entered into a similar arrangement as Summit Township and — for a time — Oakland Township. Police coverage from Saxonburg would have supplemented, not replaced, coverage from the state. The arrangement would have called for Saxonburg police to dispatch an officer to patrol Jefferson Township for 20 to 24 hours per week.

Oakland Township’s four-month trial agreement with Saxonburg ended on Wednesday, Feb. 5. According to supervisor Brian Hans, the township has not made a decision on whether or not to renew it. A decision is expected at next month’s board of supervisors meeting on Wednesday, March 5.