The officers' union has been working without a contract since July 1, the beginning of the new fiscal year.

Sgt. Pat Freer, a union representative, said Thursday that talks with the town have not been antagonistic, but the two sides have failed to reach agreement after 10 meetings. "We're just at an impasse. We just didn't see eye to eye," he said. "We have filed [for arbitration], but we're going to have another meeting to try to get an agreement. We're hopeful we can resolve this without a state decision."

Freer and union attorney Robert Murray declined to give details on where negotiations went sour, but Freer indicated pay raises and insurance fees are sticking points.

Compensation continues under terms of the last contract until a new one is approved, Freer said. "Everything is status quo," he said. "When a new [contract] is approved, everything is retroactive to July 1."

The last three-year contract between the town and police union was unanimously approved by the Town Council in October 2003. The pact had raises ranging from 2.7 to 3 percent. The most experienced officers are paid about $52,000 annually.

That retroactive pact was adopted following more than a year of acrimonious negotiations between police union and town officials. Under the previous contract, officers agreed to pay a capped percentage of their health insurance costs. Union givebacks were proposed by several councilmen during this spring's debate over the 2005-06 town budget. The council eventually passed a $154.3 million overall spending plan.

Both Fire Chief Ronald Nattrass and Police Chief Michael A. Imbro said they've had to cut services as a result of the budget. Murray said Thursday the state usually steps in to try to forge an agreement 30 days after a contract ends. "Generally the state will impose contract arbitration, but they didn't here," he said.

Murray said he is also hopeful the union and town can reach a settlement. "Just because you file [for arbitration] doesn't mean you can't continue negotiations," he said. "At the moment we don't have any meetings scheduled" with town negotiators.