Afraid of losing input, Fairfield city council members denied a request by Fairfield Emergency Medical Service to amend its bylaws.

At present any amendment or repeal to the organization's bylaws approved by the board of directors must also be approved by the members of the city council.

FEMS has considered reducing the number of directors for the organization by two, for a total of five, and determined that any change to the bylaws requires approval from the city council.

Permission from the city for FEMS to change its bylaws, take city approval out of the loop, would give the ambulance service additional independence in its operations.

"We are dealing with public money and we have got to account for it," said council member Joe Kirgan.

The city budgeted $80,000 in fiscal year 2008-09 to FEMS which provides ambulance service to the Fairfield area.

Jo Zickuhr agreed with Kirgan saying, "We want input not control."

Mayor Roy Hill suggested to council members that XTO Energy was "operating in the spirit of cooperation" as he hinted at the company's plan to revise three of the four natural gas well locations.

Hill reported that it was not yet official but through his recent conversations with XTO representatives the mayor said, "I am real encouraged."

No date has been set for the company's response to the questions raised by citizens during a recent community forum.

The whole process may be repeated if XTO submits a new proposal to the city of Fairfield.

The city's purchase of a belt press for operation in Mim's Creek has been tabled pending additional information as well as the purchase of bio-augmentation chemicals for the wastewater treatment plant.

In other business, council members voted to accept the resignation of Fairfield patrolman Lonnie Bostick who was hired in November of last year.

To fill the vacancy, Stephen Teiner was hired after receiving council's approval.

He began work with FPD last week.