Lehighton Borough Council has accepted the Civil Service Commission’s list of candidates for patrol officer.

Councilman Joe Flickinger noted the borough police department currently has 11 full-time officers.

Flickinger said Palmerton Borough Police Department, Jim Thorpe Police Department, and Kidder Township Police Department all have 10 full-time officers.

“I believe we really don’t need to be hiring any more,” Flickinger said. “We are pretty much where other municipalities of our size are.”

Borough Manager Dane DeWire then addressed the situation.

“We can’t continue relying on our overtime budget,” DeWire said. “Per the contract, we have to budget for it.”

After the meeting, borough police Chief Troy Abelovsky said both he and Mayor Ryan Saunders will look to conduct interviews and do background checks on the top three candidates.

Abelovsky said they hope to bring a suggestion to borough council within the next coming weeks.

He said three available full-time police officer positions are budgeted currently.

Abelovsky said that one officer has been out on a medical, on the job injury, since July of 2024 with an unknown timetable for return.

In addition, he said two officers have been injured in a recent incident.