Four years after mayor's campaign promise, Harrington has term limits

Anthony Moyer has always believed there should be term limits from top to bottom in local, state and federal government.

The mayor of Harrington is so resolute in his belief, he made the issue one of his campaign promises in 2013 when he was trying to unseat Robert E. "Gene" Price Jr., who was in his 13th year as mayor.

Moyer was successful in his bid and immediately started to work to amend the city's charter with term limits for mayor (two) and City Council members (three) unless no eligible candidate files.

Four years later, after a unanimous vote by both the House and the Senate in the 149th General Assembly, Harrington becomes one of the few Delaware municipalities with term limits.

"I think there needs to be a new influx of ideas," Moyer said during his campaign. He recently reiterated his stance after the passage. "People who stay in too long tend to get apathetic in their job, and I sometimes believe that you can lose sight of why you got into the job in the first place."

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Only three of Delaware's 57 municipalities have term limits for mayor and/or council members, according to town charters. 

In Wilmington, the mayor is limited to three terms. The city charter was changed to reflect the term limit after James M. Baker, the city's first three-term mayor, left office in 2013.

In Ocean View, no mayor or council member can serve more than two consecutive three-year terms. A one-term lapse must occur before seeking re-election to office.

And, in South Bethany, no one can serve more than three consecutive terms as mayor. In some municipalities, term limits are in place limiting the number of years a person can serve as president or treasurer of the council.

In Delaware, adding term limits requires a change in a municipality's charter, which must be approved by the General Assembly.

With the charter change, the mayor in Harrington can now serve up to eight consecutive years, while council members can serve up to nine consecutive years. 

The longtime Harrington resident (29 years), business owner and public servant served two terms on the City Council when the city last had term limits. He also served eight years on the city's Planning Commission.

"I sat on the council back in 1999 when we had term limits, and I felt they were right to have then," Moyer said. "Then somewhere down the line, they got removed. It took us a couple of years (after the election) to get them back, but I believe it was the right thing to do."

On Feb. 22, 2016, by a 4-3 vote where Moyer broke the tie, the resolution to reinstate term limits in Harrington was passed by the City Council.

Pros and cons

While a two-term limit for the office of president was passed by Congress after Franklin D. Roosevelt died in office a few months after starting his fourth term (1933-1945), term limits are rare at the federal level.

On the state level, 36 states and four territories are subject to various term limits, while the governors of 14 states and Puerto Rico and the mayor of Washington may serve an unlimited number of times.  

On the municipal level, some larger cities like Philadelphia, New York and Los Angeles have term limits for mayor and the council, but they are rare in municipalities across the united States.

Moyer believes it would be nice for all Delaware municipalities to follow Harrington's lead in instituting term limits.

"If you talk to the public, it seems to me the vast majority want term limits," Moyer said. 

Many opponents of term limits say getting people to run for office is the biggest reason against having them. Then there is the institutional knowledge that is lost with a "revolving door" of public servants.

Another argument against term limits is that they would ensure local public officials vacating their offices long before they fully understand and appreciate their function.

Sam Cooper has served as mayor of Rehoboth Beach since 1990. He is staunchly against term limits for many reasons and believes consistency in local government matters.

"Having long-standing institutional knowledge is very beneficial in moving a city forward," Cooper said. "The knowledge I've gained in office over time has had a positive impact on Rehoboth."

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Jerome R. Lewis, a University of Delaware professor and director of the Institute for Public Administration, said term limits on the local level are not that common.

Term limits could help keep local government fresh, with new perspectives, but could also thwart institutional memory, Lewis said.

He said there is a simple solution: "Let the voters decide."

Dover Mayor Robin Christiansen agrees.

"I think instead of term limits, the public should pay more attention and be more vigilant and more informed about what public servants are doing on their behalf," said Christiansen, a former councilman who became mayor in 2014. "It should be left up to the voters how long a mayor or council member serves."

Reach Jerry Smith at jsmith17@delawareonline.com. Follow him on Twitter at @JerrySmithTNJ.