Ken Lawrence is a Montgomery County Democrat and current chair of the SEPTA board, beginning in 2024. He was previously elected as a Montgomery Count Commissioner. He has also served on the board of Committee of Seventy, the Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce, and the Philadelphia Industrial Development Corporation. He founded Public Affairs Strategies, a public relations firm in Montgomery County.
Who's on the SEPTA board?
How is the board organized? Who decides who gets to be on the SEPTA Board?
SEPTA is a state agency governed by a 15-member board of directors.
The City of Philadelphia appoints two members: one member is appointed by the Mayor, the other by the City Council President. These two board members can veto any item that is approved by the full SEPTA board because the city represents more than two-thirds of SEPTA's local subsidy, fare revenue, and ridership. However, the veto may be overridden with the vote of at least 75% of the full board within 30 days.
Bucks, Chester, Delaware and Montgomery counties appoint two members each. These members are appointed by the county commissioners in Bucks, Chester, and Montgomery and by the county council in Delaware County.
Both the majority and minority leaders of the two houses of the Pennsylvania State Legislature (the Senate and the House of Representatives) appoint one member each, for a total of four members.
The governor appoints one member.
The SEPTA General Manager reports to the SEPTA Board.
Under the SEPTA General Manager is a Deputy General Manager, under them Assistant General Managers.
The SEPTA board is supposed to meet at 3pm the fourth Thursday of each month, except in November and December, when the meetings are the third Thursday. The August meeting is subject to cancellation.
You can contact the SEPTA board secretary by phone or email:
Who is on the SEPTA Board?
Marian D. Moskowitz
Board vice chair since 2024, Chester County appointee, since 2022
Marian Moskowitz is a real estate developer who was elected as a Chester County Commissioner in 2020. She has been on the boards of the Delaware River Port Authority, the Chester County Economic Development Council, the Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission and the Board of Governors of the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education.
610-344-6691 cccommissioners@chesco.org
John F. Cordisco
Bucks County appointee, since 2020
John Cordisco is a personal injury lawyer, former PA House representative, and chair of the Bucks County Democratic Party from 2002 to 2022. He runs Cordisco Saile LLC a personal injury lawfirm. Cordisco has sat on the SEPTA Board since 2020.
Robert J. Harvie, Jr.
Bucks County appointee, since 2024
Bob Harvie is a Bucks County Democrat and vice chair of the Bucks County Commissioners. He was elected to the Bucks County Board of Commissioners in November 2019 and re-elected November 2023.
Kevin L. Johnson
Chester County appointee, since 2008
Kevin Johnson is co-founder and President of Traffic Planning and Design, Inc., an engineering firm founded in 1989 and headquartered in Pottstown, PA. He is also a Board member for the Associated Pennsylvania Constructors.
Mark H. Dambly
Delaware County appointee, since 2018
Mark Dambly is a real estate developer and CEO of Pennrose, a Philadelphia based real estate development firm. He was appointed to the Penn State Board of Trustees by Ed Rendell in 2010 and stepped down in 2020.
Daniel R. Muroff
Delaware County appointee, since 2021
Dan Muroff is a lawyer and owns a Mission Government Relations, a (you guessed it) government relations firm. He was previously a congressional staffer, ward leader of Philly's Democratic 9th Ward and ran for elected office several times.
Robert D. Fox
Montgomery County appointee, since 2015
Robb Fox is an environment lawyer dealing in the waste, chemical manufacturing and development industries. His lawfirm Manko, Gold, Katcher & Fox is a member of the Marcellus Shale Coalition.
Michael A. Carroll
Philadelphia County appointee, since 2017
Michael Carroll is a city planner and serves as Deputy Managing Director for Transportation under Mayor Cherelle Parker. He held this position in the previous mayoral administration.
Richard R. Harris, Esq
Philadelphia County appointee, since 2024
Richard Harris is a Philadelphia area lawyer appointed to the SEPTA board in 2024.
Scott C. Freda
Pennsylvania Governor's appointee, since 2023
Scott Freda owns SCF Consulting, a public relations firm and has worked as a director at the law firms of Berger & Montague and Barrack, Rodos & Bacine. He's been a finance director for Michael Nutter's campaigns for Mayor of Philadelphia, Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign in 2008, and the Democratic National Committee. He ran for Horsham Township Council in 2013.
Thomas J. Ellis
PA Senate Majority Leader Appointee, since 2021
Tom Jay Ellis is an attorney and Republican politician who lives in suburban Philadelphia. He has previously been elected to the Cheltenham Township Board of Commissioners and the Montgomery County Commissioners. He ran for Pennsylvania Treasurer and lost in 2008. He seems to have a history of abuse and harrassment allegations: in 2008 a former fiancee filed and later withdrew a protection from abuse order; in 2010 he was accused of workplace harassment after a co-worker broke off a romantic relationship with him.
Tom has been on the SEPTA board on three different occasions: First as a Montgomery County appointee from 2001 to 2011, when he resigned in the wake of charges of workplace harassment. Second as an appointee of Republican governor Tom Corbett from 2011 to 2015. He began his third stint when he was appointed to the board by the Republican PA Senate Majority Leader in 2021.
William J. Leonard
PA Senate Minority Leader Appointee, since 2015
Bill Leonard is an attorney at Obermayer, Rebmann, Maxwell, and Hippell. He has served on the board of the Pennsylvania Intergovernmental Cooperation Authority and the Montgomery County Development Corporation. He has served on the board of the Defender Association of Philadelphia since 2016 and on SEPTA's board since 2015.
Martina White
PA House Majority Leader Appointee, since 2021
Martina White is a Republican politician, elected to represent the 170th District in the PA House of Representatives in 2015. She is one of several Republican representatives who wrote to the US Congress to oppose the January 6th electoral vote certification. She was appointed to the SEPTA board in 2021, shortly after right-wing supporters of Donald Trump attempted an overthrow of the US government in 2021.
Esteban Vera, Jr.
PA House Minority Leader Appointee, since 2021
Esteban Vera is business manager of Laborers' International Union of North America (LIUNA) Local Union #57, a position he has held since 2016. He grew up in the Fairhill neighborhood of North Philly, joined the military and was deployed to Bosnia in the mid-1990s. He worked construction and was later hired as an organizer by Local 57. He was appointed to the SEPTA board in March 2021
Who appoints the SEPTA Board?
Elsewhere, some transit agencies' board members are actually elected by the public; elected board members campaign by talking to riders about their needs out on public transit. Not ours. The SEPTA Board is instead appointed by a complicated web of elected officials from across the state of Pennsylvania, even though 90% of the riders live in Philadelphia.
Here we'll list the individuals who appoint the members of the SEPTA Board; the people who, in theory, have oversight of the SEPTA Board through their powers of appointment.
If you are unhappy with your representatives on the SEPTA board, these are the people that, in theory, are their bosses. You should tell them if you are unhappy.
Philadelphia (appoints 2 members)
Two members are appointed; one by City Council President and one by the Mayor of Philadelphia, with City Council approval. These two board members can veto any item that is approved by the full SEPTA board because the city represents more than two-thirds of SEPTA's local subsidy, fare revenue, and ridership.
- Mayor: Cherelle Parker
Delaware County (appoints 2 members)
Two members are appointed by the 5-member Delaware County Council
Montgomery County (appoints 2 members)
Two members are appointed by the three-member board of Montgomery County Commissioners
Chester County (appoints 2 members)
Two members are appointed by the three-member board of Chester County Commissioners
Bucks County (appoints 2 members)
Two members are appointed by the three-member board of Bucks County Commissioners.
PA Senate: Majority and Minority Party
Senate president pro tempore (majority party leader) appoints one member and the minority party appoints one member.
PA House Majority and Minority Party
House speaker (majority party leader) appoints one member and the minority party leader appoints one member.
PA Governor (appoints 1 member)
The Governor of Pennsylvania appoints one member.
- Josh Shapiro (717-787-2500)
Former SEPTA board members
To understand where an organization like SEPTA is going, you'll need to know where it's been.
Pasquale T. Deon, Sr.
Board chair, Bucks County appointee, 1995-2024
Pat Deon is a Bucks County Republican who has sat on the SEPTA Board since 1995 and was board chair from 1999 to 2024. Deon has also been a Pennsylvania Turnpike Commissioner since 2002. His political action committee "Building Together" is funded in part by companies that have obtained contracts from SEPTA. For instance, Conduent, who has milked its "SEPTA Key" contract for a decade and counting has contributed to Deon's PAC.
Deborah Mahler
Philadelphia County appointee, 2020-2024
Debbie Mahler serves as Deputy Mayor for Intergovernmental Affairs under Mayor Jim Kenney.