Police agencies compete to reach pay parity From the cover
What you need to know
Montgomery County deputy base pay four-year plan
Years in service FY 2024-25
FY 2025-26 FY 2026-27
FY 2027-28 FY 2028-29
0-3.99
$60,528
$70,928
$81,952
$90,896
$101,296
Zitzmann said the goal is to keep the county competitive against other agencies in the region. He said the number of vacancies in Harris County and Houston—at least 1,400—exceeded the total number of peace officers in Montgomery County, which is about 1,000. “Every single one of us could be recruited to Harris County and they’d still be sitting on [about] 300 vacancies,” Zitzmann said. Turnover in the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Department is only 1%, and as of Sept. 3, there were only 20 vacancies, according to county information. Sheriff Wesley Doolittle told Commissioners Court in May that police contract negotiations in Houston have raised the bar in law enforcement pay for the region. The pay parity plan will cost Montgomery County about $9 million in FY 2025-26, with a tax rate of $0.3779 per $100 valuation bringing in more revenue than the previous year, Budget Officer Amanda Carter said. “Everybody believes this plan will accomplish what we are trying to achieve,” Zitzmann said.
4-5.99
$66,019
$76,336
$87,360
$96,304
$106,704
6-8.99
$70,783
$80,704
$91,728
$100,672
$111,072
9-11.99
$73,756
$84,032
$95,056
$104,000
$114,400
12-15.99
$77,126
$87,568
$98,592
$107,536
$117,936
16+
$82,638
$92,976
$104,000
$112,944
$123,344
Comparing Montgomery County and Houston deputy starting salaries
$125,000 Montgomery County
City of Houston
$100,000 $75,000 $50,000 $25,000 $0
FY 2024-25
FY 2025-26
FY 2026-27
FY 2027-28
FY 2028-29
SOURCES: HOUSTON, MONTGOMERY COUNTY/COMMUNITY IMPACT
Zooming out
The Woodlands
The pay increases will also translate to contracts with Montgomery County law enforcement in The Woodlands Township. This will mean a $2 million increase in the township’s base budget for FY 2026, which runs from January to December, said Monique Sharp, president and CEO of The Woodlands Township. “This will be something that we will need to plan on for the next four years in order to get our law enforcement partners up to parity,” Sharp said. The salary increases mean the township will continue to fund 100 Montgomery County law enforcement contracts in FY 2026, rather than add additional employees this year, according to discussion at an Aug. 21 budget meeting. The township will also add two deputies in Creekside Park, the only portion of The Woodlands in Harris County, in response to the area’s growth. This brings the total number of contracts there to 17, Sharp said. Sharp said Aug. 21 she was told by Harris County that it will not implement its officer pay parity plan immediately, so the contracts with Harris County officers for salary will not change
The Montgomery County pay parity plan came in response to the city of Houston’s decision in May to increase base police pay by more than a third over a five-year period. The increases to Montgomery County base salaries each year exceed those in Houston for the next four years. Community Impact previously reported that Harris County also slated $140 million for law enforcement parity raises, but as of press time, the Harris County budget had not been finalized.
The Woodlands contract costs
Montgomery County
FY 2026 contract increase: $2 million +12.8% over FY 2025 100 law enforcement contracts Same number as FY 2025
Harris County
FY 2026 contract increase: $251,058 +11.2% over FY 2025 17 law enforcement contracts +2 from FY 2025
Police starting base pay raises
Montgomery County
City of Houston
+17.2% +10% +15.5% +8% +10.9% +6% +11.4% +6%
FY 2025-26
SOURCE: THE WOODLANDS TOWNSHIP/COMMUNITY IMPACT
in The Woodlands Township until next year. In an email, Sharp said she expects the township will begin to fund parity increases for Harris County deputies in October 2026, a 12% increase in the budget for those positions from October to December 2026.
FY 2026-27
FY 2027-28
FY 2028-29
SOURCES: HOUSTON, MONTGOMERY COUNTY/COMMUNITY IMPACT
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