BELLEVUE, Neb. --
Bellevue's City Council on Monday began action on the hot-button issue of whether or not to pay the city's firefighters.
Bellevue has the largest all-volunteer fire department in the state. Fire officials have been upset with the city over what they perceive to be a lack of communication regarding the possibility of being paid for their work.
Last year, a bill in the state Legislature that would have required the firefighters to be paid was postponed. There's movement now in the Unicameral regarding a similar bill, but it's in the initial stages.
Bellevue council members said they have concerns about the Unicameral telling them what to do, and about the potential cost of having to pay their fire crews.
On Monday night for the first time, the City Council and the firefighters began discussing the issue in public.
The Bellevue City Council called for a committee of elected officials to be formed to meet with fire department managers and discuss their views. The committee will report back in two weeks.
