Dozens of Port Chester residents protested in front of Village Hall Wednesday to ask village leaders to bring back the firefighters who serve and protect them.

On Monday, the village of Port Chester's Board of Trustees adopted a budget for next year that did not fund the village's eight paid firefighter positions.

Village leaders say the move will save them around $800,000 a year. They argue that keeping paid firefighters in the budget would not be fair to taxpayers, as the village would be required to exceed the state's tax cap.

News 12 has been told that volunteer firefighters will be operating the department as they have been for 200 years.

However, many Port Chester taxpayers, firefighters and even firefighters from surrounding towns say the move still isn't fair.