Councilman Wants Outside Expert On Fire Dept. Budget Cuts

City Councilman Frank DiCicco is calling on Mayor Nutter to hire an independent consultant to study plans to trim the Philadelphia Fire Department's budget by eliminating equipment at some stations.  DiCicco, in a letter to Nutter on Friday, noted that this is not the first time he's made such a request.  He asked then-Mayor Street's administration to hire a consultant in 2004 when Fire Department cuts were being considered.

"I believed then as I do now that it would be irresponsible for me to simply accept the word of any Administration that their plan maintained the health and welfare of my constituents," DiCicco wrote, adding that he knows the city is facing a dire financial crisis. "I do not and will not question the need for serious service reductions."

Read DiCicco's letter here.