LAS VEGAS --
Clark County Commissioner Steve Sisolak said he has taken more heat than one would normally expect after questioning whether firefighters should perform charitable duties during work hours.
Ive gotten some very, very nasty e-mails and phone calls, Sisolak told FOX5
. Threatening phone calls, from some individual, individuals, who claim theyre firefighters or related to firefighters.
They havent quite crossed that line in terms of physical harm, but threats about your house burning down and sort of stuff, he added.
The criticism began, Sisolak said, after he took a controversial stance on the annual Fill the Boot drive, which involves firefighters collecting donations in boots.
All of the money goes to the Muscular Dystrophy Foundation. A total of $200,000 was collected in 2009.
For all these years, quite frankly, I thought it was done on volunteer time, Sisolak said, adding that taxpayer dollars shouldnt be spent on something that can be done off the clock.
Clark County Fire Department spokesperson Scott Allison said firefighters arent neglecting their duties and can respond to emergencies faster because they are out in the public with their trucks.
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