Chicago has more firefighters per capita than every U.S. city except Houston, according to a study conducted by the Chicago News Cooperative.

The study, released Friday, concluded that Chicago has one firefighter for every 637 residents. The average for the ten largest U.S. cities was one firefighter for every 922 residentsresidents.

According to the 2010 census, Evanston has one firefighter for every 690 residents ­- more per capita than all but two of the 10 largest cities. Public safety spending, including spending on fire and police departments, makes up 39 percent of Evanston’s budget and is expected to come up for debate in reducing the city’s deficit as cities around the country contemplate similar budget-crunching measures.

The number of fire deaths and calls to put out fires in Chicago has fallen in the past decade, while the number of firefighters has remained about the same. There were about 4,700 structure fires in 2000, and only about 2,500 in 2008, according to CNC. Meanwhile, the number of firefighters has remained between 5,100 and 5,200 since 2006.

With budget deficits exceeding $500 million annually, Mayor Rahm Emanuel, who was inaugurated Monday, made no mention of reducing firehouse staffing during his campaign speeches.

“We have serious fiscal issues ahead of us, but we also understand how critical the dedicated firefighters in Chicago are to ensuring the safety of our city,” spokeswoman Chris Mather said in a statement.

Fire and police personnel make up a large portion of the city’s payroll.

Almost two-thirds of the city’s full-time workers work in public safety fields, according to CNC.