Slatington Borough Council is creating an external review committee to assist in finding a new police chief.

Dan Stevens, the borough manager, said Monday the council asked him to contact the people to invite them to be on the committee. These candidates all have experience in law enforcement, he said.

Once he has spoken to the candidates, he will prepare a list of those who are interested in participating in the committee and give the list to the council. From there, the council will select at least five people to be on the committee.

The council already approved creating an internal review committee during a special meeting in January. The internal committee includes council members Ronald Kratzer and Kevin Steckel; council Vice President Bryon Reed; Mayor Jeralyn Schoch and borough manager Dan Stevens. They will review resumes for the police chief position and narrow down the candidates to about 10 people, Stevens said.

From there, the internal committee will give the resumes to the external committee for them to interview the candidates. The external committee is tasked with narrowing down that list to about three candidates for the council to interview.

“It’s what we did in 2006,” Stevens said. That is when the borough hired David Rachman as police chief. He retired in January.

The council will select the members of the external committee at its regular meeting in March.

Resumes for the police chief position should be sent to the borough in care of Dan Stevens by April 1. They can be mailed or dropped off at the borough building.

Anyone interested in applying for the position can contact the borough at 610-767-2131.

The council is also looking to fill the empty seat for tax collector by Feb. 24.

Stevens said Gwyneth Jones had served as tax collector after being appointed to the position. She ran in the election for the position and won in November, but chose to decline the position. Stevens said her full-time work schedule conflicted with her duties as tax collector.

“I think it’s a real good job for someone who is retired with a financial background,” he said. “It’s a good second income.”

The position pays about $15,000 a year.

In order to qualify for the position, candidates have to be residents of Slatington for at least 12 consecutive months. They have to be able to pass a background check and be able to be bonded.

They also have to pass a tax certification course within 60 days of being appointed, Stevens said.

The council appointed Dave Schnaars to the vacancy board, because they are required to have a citizen, not a council member, as the chairperson of the vacancy board.

The vacancy board plans to meet at 6 p.m. Monday in the borough conference room to interview candidates for tax collector.

Anyone interested in being the tax collector should submit a resume to the borough by Friday.

In other business, the council approved the appointment of Jeremy Henry as fire police captain. Henry has been with the Slatington Volunteer Fire Department since 2018.

Stevens said his appointment fills a vacancy that has been open for a while.