Government
Houston hiring freeze to help cut city expenses Mayor John Whitmire implemented a hiring freeze in early March to improve Houston’s efficiency and chip away at a $320 million budget shortfall, Chief of Communications Mary Benton said. Explained Benton said the hiring freeze is an opportunity to cut expenses and make the city more efficient. She said the move comes following Ernest & Young’s citywide efficiency study conducted in late 2024. The report laid out the city’s spending habits and efficiency issues, finding that Houston lags behind peer cities in areas such as average response time for police and fire priority calls. The study also found the city is operating with over 4,000 vacant positions, predominantly in the police, public works and fire departments. Additionally, 40% of supervisors oversee fewer
City controller launches audit plan Houston City Controller Chris Hollins announced during the March 19 City Council meeting that his office is starting a fiscal year 2025 audit plan to help identify cost savings and eliminate waste amid the city’s $320 million budget shortfall. The details Hollins said the audit plan will enhance financial accountability, optimize city resources and maximize taxpayer dollars. The FY 2025 audit plan will focus on: • Efficient city operations
Current situation
$320M budget shortfall
23,000+ total city employees
2,700 retirement- eligible city employees
$54,030 average annual salary
SOURCES: HOUSTON, OPENPAYROLLS/COMMUNITY IMPACT
than four employees. However, Benton said public safety departments such as the fire and police departments won’t be affected by the
hiring freeze. More details
• Financial policies and regulations • Vendor agreements and spending • Preventing fraud, waste and abuse Hollins said the plan also includes follow-up audits.
In mid-March, Whitmire also started offering voluntary retirement incentives to 2,700 retire- ment-eligible city employees. If all 2,700 accept the incentive, that would equate to nearly 9% of city employees.
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