Houston Police to Get Nearly $1.5B in Salary Raises over Next 5 Years

Houston police officers are set to receive 36.5% in raises over the next five years, in addition to a host of other new benefits, Mayor John Whitmire announced Friday, less than 24 hours after 1,000 employees filled out their final retirement paperwork.

The new proposed contract, which will cost the city a total of around $67 million this year and $832 million over five years, is the second major labor agreement Whitmire has reached since taking over as mayor in 2024. The city signed a deal last year with the Houston firefighters, ending a two-year-long contract dispute, that will cost Houston around $1.5 billion and see firefighters receive $650 million in backpay and up to 34% in salary increases over five years.

Houston Mayor John Whitmire said Houstonians "ought to be excited" about the contract, and that residents are applauding it. With the Republican National Convention and The World Cup coming up — and a population of 2.3 million, on top of an estimated 700,000 who come to work in the city each day, Whitmire said a well-staffed police department is vital to public safety.

"[President of the Houston Police Officer's Union Doug Griffith] knew I had another responsibility to be fair to the taxpayers of Houston," Whitmire said. "I've listened to them. They are applauding today because we are putting their tax dollars where they would put them as well."

With two cadets standing next to him, Houston Police Chief J. Noe Diaz said the contract is "generational" for the Houston Police Department and "has truly been a herculean effort" to make it a reality.

"This contract will make the community safer and be poised for the next decade with a well-staffed department," he said.

Whitmire said the contract, which he believes will help with recruiting and retention, will make Houston police officers the highest-earning law enforcement officers of major departments in Texas. Austin had recently become the highest-paid after their recent contract agreement, Whitmire said, but those salary increases haven't yet led to a noticeable increase in recruiting efforts.

He said he thinks retention and recruiting is a more complicated effort than just salaries, it requires a good culture and strong plan on what to do with additional staff. Whitmire estimated the department would need to bolster its officer ranks by as many as 1,200 more officers.

Griffith, who led the union in negotiating the contract for months, said officers have been "working far too long shortstaffed and underpaid."

"The Mayor has stepped up and stopped kicking the can down the road," Griffith said.

As Whitmire works to fulfill a campaign promise to focus on public safety and improve working conditions for police, the city is staring down the barrel of a $330 million budget deficit in the next fiscal year.

Whitmire didn't say exactly how the city would pay for the new contract, but vowed the new proposed budget would be balanced and that the voluntary retirement package and other savings he's realized in recent months would pay dividends.

City Finance Director Melissa Dubowski said they were set to unveil a proposed 2026 budget Tuesday that would be balanced and account for the new police contract. Steven David, deputy chief of staff for Whitmire, said the voluntary retirement package would help the city see between $40 million to $50 million in savings in the general fund in the upcoming fiscal year. Officials estimate around 1,057 took the voluntary retirement offer, their final day coming Thursday as they filed into the city hall basement to fill out retirement paperwork and turn in their city-issued technology.

The police union's proposed contract is a stark increase compared to any in recent memory. The current contract, which was set to expire June 30, gave officers 10.5% in raises over three years — 4%, 3% and 3.5% over the contract. It was roughly in line with previous deals. Officers received 7% raises over two years before that, and 2% in 2021 when that deal expired.

Under the proposed deal, officers will receive 10% raises in July, and then 8% raises in 2026, 6% raises in both 2027 and 2028 and 6.5% raises in 2029, according to documents shown to the Chronicle.

In addition to the salary increases, the new contract also includes extra pay for patrol work and shift differences, which means a first-year officer receiving shift and weekend differential would make around $81,600 starting July 1, officials estimate.

The tentative agreement will also give officers the opportunity to reduce any suspensions of three days or less down to discipline without a suspension and give those suspended five days or less the opportunity to use up to 10 days. Officers will only be orally interrogated by internal affairs if criminal activity is suspected, records show.

Officers who are called to court will also receive a minimum four hours of overtime, compared to the existing two-hour minimum, records show.

Now that the city and union have reached a tentative agreement, officers will vote on the proposal starting Monday and continuing through Friday, according to Ray Hunt, executive director of the union. The matter will then go before council for final approval.

_______________

Visit www.chron.com.

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.