Several community members and representatives of the firefighters’ union urged Bethlehem City Council on Nov. 20 to increase fire‑department staffing and to consider funding hires in the 2026 budget.
“This is incompetence,” said Michael Liberto, who identified himself as “the Bethlehem Brawler,” criticizing city leadership for allowing the fire department to operate “nearly half its staff.” Liberto said the city was “12 firefighters” short and urged accountability from the mayor and administration. Lou Jimenez, president of Local 7 35, told council the staffing problem has been chronic for 15 years and asked council to amend the 2026 budget to hire four additional firefighters as a first step. “Adding 4 firefighters and amending the budget is not extravagant,” Jimenez said.
Other commenters, including Mike O’Hare, raised related budget and transparency points and said the department was “8 people down,” asking whether one‑time funds or unspent salary dollars could be redirected toward retention and recruitment. Jimenez and union speakers cited SAFER grants as a tool municipalities use to offset hiring costs and urged the city to pursue such funding.
Council did not take formal action on the floor during the meeting. The mayor and council announced a special meeting to review proposed budget amendments at 6 p.m. on Thursday, Dec. 4; the council will take the second reading and enactment vote on the 2026 budget at its Dec. 16 meeting. Union leaders and members of the public said they expect staffing proposals to be part of that amendment process.
The meeting included multiple requests for more detailed operational numbers; Deputy Chief Mike Solis was present for some public‑safety questions but said certain incident updates were not available that evening. Councilmembers asked staff and the solicitors to prepare information for the Dec. 4 budget amendment session.
The next procedural step recorded on the agenda is the Dec. 4 budget‑amendment meeting; council may consider amendments that, if adopted, would be advertised prior to the Dec. 16 second reading and enactment vote.