Harris County commissioners voted 3–2 Tuesday to approve pay raises for the county’s eight elected constables, setting up a heated budget battle in the weeks ahead.
Commissioners Lesley Briones, Adrian Garcia and Tom Ramsey voted in favor of the raises, while County Judge Lina Hidalgo and Commissioner Rodney Ellis voted against them. Final approval will come when commissioners adopt the county’s new budget.
The discussion quickly became the flashpoint in a meeting already overshadowed by the county’s projected $200 million budget deficit. Supporters argued that the pay increases are necessary to keep deputies from leaving for higher-paying jobs at other law enforcement agencies. Opponents questioned whether the county can afford the move.
“With the City of Houston raising law enforcement officers’ pay 36.5%, we are losing our officers because they can get paid more in another agency,” Briones said. “Not on our watch, because it’s affecting all of our safety.”
Hidalgo said she supports higher pay for law enforcement but warned that the county does not have the funds to cover it.
“Our hands are tied because colleagues decided not to go to the voters on this $108 million increase for law enforcement that we could not afford,” she said. “If we can’t afford it, we can’t afford it.”
Public speakers weighed in on both sides of the debate, with some urging the court to invest more in community programs instead of law enforcement, and others thanking commissioners for moving toward pay parity with Houston Police Department salaries.
All eight constables attended the meeting, including Precinct 4 Constable Mark Herman, who praised the commissioners who voted in favor.
“Commissioner Briones, Commissioner Ramsey, Commissioner Garcia, the three of you will go down in history as saving Harris County law enforcement,” Herman said. “Everyone was fixing to vacate Harris County and go work for John Whitmire and the union down there.”
The final budget vote is expected later this year.