The city of Opelousas held a budget committe meeting tonight to discuss increasing the salary of fire department employees. Currently Opelousas Fire Department employees base pay is $9.50 per hour and they are looking to get a salary increase to $10.90. The final decision at the budget committee meeting was to bring this proposal back up in the next city council meeting. "After the meeting we are told that we can only sustain within our budget of a .90 cent increase which it will be nice but it's nowhere, where we need to be to compete with the other departments in the area, " said Richard Joseph Opelousas Interim Fire Chief. I also spoke to a current fire fighter and he says he is looking forward to the city council meeting and hopes the council votes in the favor of the fire department.