Dallas requiring city employees to take furlough days to help with budget issues
The city of Dallas announced Tuesday that General Fund employees will be required to take at least three furlough days to address the 2026 budget shortfall. This comes after an April hiring freeze and implementation of overtime restrictions.
The furlough days will be July 10, Sept. 4 and Sept. 28, the city said. On those days, non-uniform employees funded by the city General Fund will be required to participate, resulting in the days being marked as leave without pay.
In addition to the three mandatory days, all General Fund and Internal Service Fund non-uniform executives at or above the assistant director level are required to take an additional two floating furlough days before Sept. 16, the city said.
"Furloughs are not our preferred solution; however, they enable us to reduce expenses, protect jobs and employee health benefits, and continue delivering services to our residents," Dallas City Manager Kimberly Bizor Tolbert said in a statement. "These steps are necessary to navigate the current financial challenges and to position the City responsibly for the upcoming FY27 and FY28 biennial budget."
Why is this happening?
In April, the city said current data showed its expenses would exceed the budget by $16.4 million due to police and fire pay and overtime, as well as declining sales tax collections, resulting in reduced revenue. Officials said the city's self-funded employee health benefit fund is also projected to exceed budget by $13.8 million due to an increase in medical and pharmacy claims.
Despite taking cost-saving actions, including a selective hiring freeze for non-uniformed positions, overtime restrictions, spending reductions, and travel suspensions, General Fund expenses still outpace revenue.
Who's exempt from the furlough days?
Police officers, firefighters, paramedics and 911 employees are exempt, the city noted. Also, enterprise departments, including Dallas water utilities, aviation, convention and event services and sanitation will not be required to take furlough days.
The city said some employees of fleet services and IT services will be exempt based on operational needs.
Bizor Tolbert sent a statement to CBS News Texas to further explain the decision concerning furloughs:
"Today's measure is an operational decision designed to address the current year budget concerns while avoiding significant impacts on city services and employees. Over the past several months, the City Council has participated in numerous budget discussions as recent as April, May and June, including receiving detailed briefings outlining current budget constraints and projected fiscal pressures.
We have been transparent and proactive regarding the financial challenges we face, including revenue shortfalls and rising operating costs. On April 24, we notified the City Council regarding the implementation of a hiring freeze and travel restrictions. In that correspondence, we stated, 'The City will continue monitoring revenues and expenditures closely. Additional cost containment measures may be implemented as needed.'
Nearly two weeks ago, we provided a detailed briefing and communicated through a memorandum outlining the budget development process and the fiscal environment facing the City.
Again, we clearly stated that staff would continue to monitor revenues and expenditures. As City Manager, it is my responsibility to ensure that we address the current year General Fund shortfall through immediate and responsible corrective action and to deliver a balanced budget for FY 2026-27."
