PHOENIX (AP) — A subcommittee of city council members has decided that Phoenix won't remove fluoride from the city's water supply.

After nearly two hours of heated testimony Tuesday, council members agreed without taking a vote to keep adding fluoride to the drinking water of 1.4 million residents. They could have sent the issue to the full council.

The Arizona Republic (http://bit.ly/THLlrB) says Phoenix spends about $582,000 per year on fluoride.

Phoenix has been re-evaluating the issue this year for the first time since the city council voted for fluoridation in 1989.

Councilwoman Thelda Williams says the medical community has provided sufficient evidence to show that fluoridating water has a public-health benefit.

Williams dismissed claims that it lowers IQ levels in children.

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Information from: The Arizona Republic, http://www.azcentral.com