Deputy Mayor Says Fire Budget Affected By Potential Wage Increases

Deputy Mayor Stephen Chase explaining why the proposed budget for the fire department is 460-thousand dollars less than last year.

Council had committed to a budget increase of one percent for the fire department.

Chase says firefighters are currently negotiating for a pay increase and the city is estimating they may get a 3 to 4 percent increase.  If that happens, Chase says it is coming out of the fire budget.

He says the department may have to lose firefighters to make ends meet.

The projected fire budget for 2012 is 23.2 million dollars.