Photo: FRANCOIS PICARD / AFP / Getty Images
Harris County Commissioners and Constables are asking Judge Lina Hidalgo to approve pay raises for Deputy Constables across Harris County.
Republican Commissioner Tom Ramsey and Democrat Lesley Briones appeared with all eight elected Constables Thursday morning to call for those raises, a day after Houston City Council approved a new contract that will give HPD officers a 36 percent raise over the lifetime of their new five year deal.
"We do have the dollars to do this," Ramsey said. "If we don't pas pay parity today, this time next year there will be 1,200 law enforcement openings in the county.
Briones, who narrowly defeated a Republican for her seat on the court years ago, stood side by side with Ramsey.
"I feel a tremendous sense of urgency around this topic. I am deeply committed to a pathway forward," she said.
Judge Hidalgo has yet to approve the raises, which have come up before Commissioners Court in the past. But she will ask taxpayers to approve a $23,000 trip to Paris for herself and staffers next month, calling it an economic mission.