The battle for a Houston Firefighter’s new contract is heating up after City Controller Chris Hollins once again refused to certify the agreement. Certification is a key step in the protracted negotiations, as it allows the item to be placed on the agenda. Hollins, who must approve financial items before they go to the council, did not certify the agreements last week, citing the need for additional time to review them.
This scenario repeated itself during the June 12 council meeting with council members battling over details behind the $1.5 billion deal. Even still, council members voted 14-3 to put it on the agenda.
The deal
The deal aims to end the yearslong legal dispute between the city and firefighters, offering $650 million in backpay for the seven years they worked without a contract. It also provides for 34% raises over the next five years. Hollins has indicated that the city will need to issue a bond to finance the agreement.
“It would be irresponsible and put the City at significant financial risk to move forward without additional clarity,” Hollins said.
With the new fiscal year starting on July 1, if the settlement is not approved by that date, it will return to a judge for further action. The judge could grant an extension, but if not, the city would have to comply with state law, which mandates paying firefighters at a rate equivalent to the private sector. This would also alter the payout structure in other ways.
The mayor’s office warns that this could effectively double the $650 million back pay agreement, raising it to approximately $1.2 billion, not including interest. This means interest would be calculated on the $1.2 billion amount instead of the initial $650 million.
The dance
Hollins sent a letter with more than 30 questions to the mayor asking for more concrete answers to things like how many firefighters will benefit from the agreement and where will the money actually come from. The more than 120-page collective bargaining agreement includes more than $1 billion for firefighters’ pay increases and backpay dating back to 2017.
“To be clear, by not certifying this agreement and allowing City Council to conduct their legislative duty you are risking Fire and EMS operations for all Houstonians as well as jeopardizing the entire negotiated settlement,” Whitmire said in response to Hollins’ statement.
The mayor said the proposed budget has been constructed with the collective bargaining agreement already built into account for its fiscal impact
Whitmire initially placed the agreement on the council agenda a week ago, but members were unable to vote on it because the controller, Houston’s independently elected watchdog, had not certified that the funds were available—a required step before the council can approve any financial commitments by the city. Hollins explained that his office had received the draft less than two days earlier and had not yet completed a financial review.
Hollins has not said whether he is for or against the agreement, only that he wants to do his due diligence and make sure all the questions that constituents may have, are answered.
“I wouldn’t be doing my job as Houston’s taxpayer watchdog if I allowed this important item – one that will ultimately cost the City more than $1 billion – to move forward without answering critical questions that are relevant to the fiscal sustainability of the City and the safety of Houstonians,” Hollins said. “The Mayor’s letter was not responsive to 90% of my questions – most importantly one that has the potential to impact the City’s finances by more than $100 million.”
Mayor Whitmire said not acting on the settlement could result in the city paying twice as much.
“We’re out of time,” he said.
More questions
Councilmember Edward Pollard pressed the mayor on how the settlement amount of $650 million was reached. Whitmire said $400 million was a “ballpark figure” of what the city initially offered.
“We’re voting blind,” Pollard said. “No one is asking what’s our number and how did we get there. If you want my support, it would be great to tell me why there’s such a gap. The City Controller has drastically different numbers.”
Pollard and Councilmember Tiffany D. Thomas introduced amendments that would put the issue to a referendum for voters to decide, but the city attorney said there are timing and legal issues with that idea.
