After approving a pay increase for Lafayette police, the city-parish council is considering increases for the city's fire department and for other public employees that would cost taxpayers another $5.4 million a year. The Lafayette City-Parish Council is scheduled to vote Nov. 19 on a $2.6 million pay increase for the fire department's 278 employees that would push the city's budget deficit closer to $18 million. The Lafayette Fire Department and the Lafayette Professional Firefighters Association are advocating the increase after the police successfully fought for a $3.8 million increase approved Tuesday. The police pay increase pushed the city's deficit up to $15 million, with about $10 million of that coming through annually recurring operating costs. The increase for firefighters threatens to add another $3 million to the deficit.