NEWTOWN, Pa. (AP) – A proposal to install surveillance cameras in a suburban Philadelphia borough has been rejected on a tie vote.

Mayor Dennis O’Brien declined to break Tuesday’s deadlock on the Newtown Borough Council after Republican and Democratic council members split 3-3 on the issue.

The mayor said after 31/2 hours of debate that he would hold off voting on the plan until there is a specific policy and a full explanation of the system as well as a cost estimate.

Proponents say the cameras would help police and deter crime, but critics say it could impinge on civil liberties and question whether it is needed in the low-crime Bucks County borough.

Officials at the special council meeting on public safety said they plan to bring the issue to a vote at the council’s meeting next month.