Staffordshire fire staff salaries made public
Pay details of fire service staff in Staffordshire who earn more than £50,000 have been made public.
It follows a government push for local authorities to become more transparent, said Councillor Len Bloomer from the Fire and Rescue Authority.
There are 31 officers who earn more than £50,000 - whose salaries and benefits total almost £2m - figures on the service's website reveal.
Staffordshire's chief fire officer earns £148,653 a year.
In June, Communities Secretary Eric Pickles urged councils to publish details of spending above £500 as part of a move towards greater transparency.
The service has already made public all invoices over that amount and plans to publish the salaries of all staff in the future, a spokesman said.
The service could not confirm whether it was the first to make the figures public.
Mr Bloomer said: "The decision to publish this information is part of a wider pay programme of making the service more transparent.
"Our openness has already received backing from Fire Minister Bob Neill, as this supports the government's bid to make local authorities more transparent.
"Our next step will involve publishing salary details for all staff members.
"The number of top earners equates to approximately 3% of our total number of staff, so they form just a small proportion."
Mr Neill said the information helped people understand how money is being spent.
"This kind of action gets local authority business out in the open, revolutionising local government.
"I commend Staffordshire Fire and Rescue Service for their continuing effort to support our transparency drive."