After almost two years of fruitless negotiations, Butler and city firefighters may have a new contract this summer.

The firefighters have been operating under the terms of their last contract, which expired on Dec. 31, 2011.

However, representatives from the city and from the International Association of Firefighters, Local 114, met with an independent arbitrator in February.

Jim Kaufman, president of the city firefighters union, said the fire department requested arbitration last year, but “we have postponed it three times because we thought we had a tentative deal (with the city).”

Kaufman said the prospective deal was shot down each time by Michael Palombo, who represents the city in its union negotiations.

City Councilwoman Kathy Kline said, “I was hoping we had a tentative agreement with the IAFF, most recently in the early part of this year (before the arbitration hearing), and it was at the advice of Mr. Palombo that we not accept it.”

Palombo represented the city at the arbitration hearing while Rick Paulson represented IAFF Local 114.

Now whatever decision is made by arbitrator Michael Zobrak will be binding.

Kaufman said, “I’m not looking forward to any decision until July or August, at least. And, I wouldn’t be surprised if it was an offer we had given (the city) a while ago.

“Once it gets to this point, it’s out of our hands.”

There is no set timeline for when the arbitrator must render a decision.

When an agreement is presented by the arbitrator, it will make IAFF Local 114 the second of three unions representing city employees to renew its expired contract.

In December, city council ratified a three-year contract with the Fraternal Order of Police, Lodge 32, the union representing city police officers. That previous contract expired Dec. 31, 2011.

The contract is retroactive to Jan. 1, 2012, and runs through Dec. 31, 2014. It covers 22 police officers, including the city police chief.

Arbitration led to police contributing more for their health insurance, receiving smaller pay raises and being afforded less opportunity to “sell back” sick days upon retirement, conditions presumably created when the three-member arbitration board took Butler’s financial state into consideration.

The board was composed of impartial arbitrator Robert Gifford; Thomas Kohn, who represented police, and Palombo, who represented the city.

Police officers’ contributions to their pension fund remained unchanged under the new contract, staying at 5 percent of their earnings.

The city has yet to reach an accord with the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, the union representing its nonuniformed employees. Like the previous agreements with police and firefighters, their contract expired on Dec. 31, 2011.

City officials last met with AFSCME representatives in December, but that union has not decided whether to continue negotiations or opt for arbitration.