A state district court judge ruled against Houston firefighters as the controversy over Prop B continues.
That judge ruling Prop B, which voters in Houston approved this past November, unconstitutional. Marty Lancton with the Houston Professional Firefighters Association told KTRH the fight is far from over.
“We are clearly disappointed in today’s ruling. However, there is one judge that has ruled that it was constitutional. Now you have another judge ruling it unconstitutional. We will be appealing,” Marty Lancton with the HPFFA said.
This is just the latest in the controversy which has led to Mayor Sylvester Turner laying off more than 200 Houston firefighters.
“This Mayor continues his attack on firefighter families and the will of 300,000 voters,” Lancton explained. “Remember, this is the Mayor that has pushed this.
For his part, Turner now says the layoffs are unnecessary.
"There won't be any need for that. So no layoffs for any of our employees," Turner said following the ruling.
Mayoral hopeful Tony Buzbee reacted to the ruling in a statement.
“The smugness with which the Mayor announced the court’s ruling further reinforced my belief that he has a personal vendetta against Houston’s firefighters. He thinks he has won the battle; but the truth is he has lost the war.” Proposition B was approved by 298,000 voters in the last election. Buzbee further stated “the firefighters will ultimately get the raise we all voted for, one way or the other. We will not allow this mayor to use taxpayer money to pay his former law firm to use legal tricks to defy the will of the voters. If you are a politician in this town and you are supporting this mayor, you best jump ship. Your photo ops will be used against you very soon. If you are a donor, you might want to invest in someone else. If you do business with the city and you are a Turner campaign donor, get ready to be turned out. Change is coming!”
Mayoral candidate Bill King also reacted. You can see his Tweet below.