Tag Archives: HFD

The fire department’s needs

Posted on October 12, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

This is a conversation we need to have, but it’s one we need to dig into and work all the way through. Fire Chief Sam Pena gave City Council a bleak assessment Tuesday of his department’s readiness to respond to … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Endorsement watch: The bonds

Posted on October 11, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Endorsement season has officially begun. The key referendum, Proposition A, is a solution to Houston’s potentially disastrous pension problem. A complex deal ushered through the Texas Legislature by Mayor Sylvester Turner would reduce the $8.2 billion unfunded pension burden now … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2017 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

HFD and disaster preparedness

Posted on October 4, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

There’s a lot here to think about, and to do something about. The Houston Fire Department’s limitations quickly became clear as Harvey’s floodwaters rose. Just one high-water rescue vehicle. Decades-old evacuation boats. Sparse training for swift-water rescues. And limited staffing … Continue reading →

Posted in Hurricane Katrina | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on HFD and disaster preparedness

Mayor seeks one-year tax hike for Harvey cleanup

Posted on September 13, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

This stuff isn’t going to pay for itself, you know. Mayor Sylvester Turner will ask City Council to approve an 8.9 percent hike in the city’s tax rate this fall to help Houston recover from Tropical Storm Harvey, in what … Continue reading →

Posted in Hurricane Katrina, Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 15 Comments

No charter amendments on the fall ballot

Posted on August 22, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Just bonds, school board and HCC races, and the mostly boring constitutional amendments. Oh, and Heights Alcohol 2.0, if you live there. Houston voters will face $1.5 billion in city bonds and nine community college or school board races this … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2017 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Firefighters complain about petition counting process

Posted on August 5, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Oh, good Lord. Houston firefighters are accusing Mayor Sylvester Turner of standing between them and a voter-approved pay raise by failing to ensure a petition they submitted last month is certified in time to appear on the November ballot. Turner … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 10 Comments

More on the firefighters’ pay parity proposal

Posted on July 19, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s that full Chron story I mentioned yesterday: Houston firefighters delivered over 32,000 signatures to City Hall on Monday in support of asking voters in November to mandate parity in pay between firefighter and police officer ranks, a maneuver that … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 21 Comments

Firefighters turn in their petitions

Posted on July 18, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Good for them, but boy is this thing a train wreck. Houston firefighters delivered over 32,000 signatures to City Hall Monday in support of putting a ballot initiative on the November election mandating parity in pay between firefighter and police-officer … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 7 Comments

Firefighters petition for a raise

Posted on July 10, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Whatever. Houston firefighters are launching a campaign to place on item on the November ballot asking voters to mandate parity in pay between corresponding firefighter and police-officer ranks. The petition drive to amend the city charter, slated to launch Saturday … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2017 | Tagged , , , , , , , | 37 Comments

Firefighters’ lawsuit over pension reform law tossed

Posted on July 3, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

There it goes. A state district judge on Friday dismissed Houston firefighters’ lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of the city’s pension reform package, removing a potential barrier to the city’s efforts to solve a 16-year fiscal crisis. State District Judge Patricia … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters, Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Firefighters sue city over contract negotiations

Posted on June 30, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

These are busy days for the HPFFA. Houston’s fire union sued the city Wednesday alleging Mayor Sylvester Turner’s administration failed to act in good faith during contract negotiations, exacerbating tensions between firefighters and City Hall. The lawsuit filed in state … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters, Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

We need better fire inspections

Posted on June 17, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Not good. The Houston Fire Department division responsible for ensuring building safety keeps inadequate records, does not examine buildings on a regular schedule and inflated its inspection numbers, all while exceeding its overtime budget, according to an audit released by … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on We need better fire inspections

Year Two for Mayor Turner

Posted on December 27, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Year One was busy, but a lot of what was done this year depends on what happens next year. Tasked last year with distinguishing himself from a crowded field of mayoral candidates, Sylvester Turner styled himself as a progressive with … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 12 Comments

Acevedo and Pena confirmed by Council

Posted on December 2, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

They’re officially official now. City Council unanimously confirmed Art Acevedo and Samuel Peña as Houston’s new police and fire chiefs Wednesday, clearing the way for the mayoral appointees to take office. Acevedo, Austin’s former police chief, is poised to take … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on Acevedo and Pena confirmed by Council

Mayor Turner picks Austin PD Chief for HPD

Posted on November 18, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: In a sweeping announcement, Mayor Sylvester Turner named four new department directors and a reappointment Thursday. Pending City Council confirmation, Art Acevedo of Austin will assume the position of police chief and El Paso’s Samuel Pena will … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

City loses in appeal against firefighters’ pension statute

Posted on September 14, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s a pension fund-related litigation update for you. Houston can’t overhaul a state-governed firefighter pension system that the mayor claims is pushing the city towards insolvency, a Texas appeals court ruled. Houston sued the Houston Firefighters’ Relief and Retirement Fund … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on City loses in appeal against firefighters’ pension statute

What do we want of a Fire Department study?

Posted on August 31, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Whatever it is, this wasn’t it. A much-anticipated analysis of fire department operations essentially was dead on arrival Friday after it failed to identify cost savings and called for a multitude of investments, including three new fire stations. Mayor Sylvester … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

Pension reform update

Posted on August 18, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Things are happening. Longtime firefighters pension fund chairman Todd Clark has retired from the department and resigned his post, a move City Hall observers interpret as perhaps the clearest sign yet that Mayor Sylvester Turner’s push for pension reform may … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Where are the chiefs?

Posted on August 11, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

People are beginning to wonder. Six months after Houston’s top cop retired and 10 months after Houston’s fire chief resigned to take another job, both departments remain without permanent chiefs, prompting concerns that public safety could suffer during the transition … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Ambulances and ERs

Posted on June 29, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Very interesting story about the overuse of ambulances in Houston and how the city is trying to deal with it. But in truth little works in a system that has been broken for years. Over the past generation, patients began … Continue reading →

Posted in Technology, science, and math | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on Ambulances and ERs

The Memphis pension cutting experience

Posted on March 23, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

In discussions about Houston’s pension liabilities, the city of Detroit is often trotted out as an analogy and cautionary tale. There’s another city that may be a more accurate comparison, and it’s offering an illustration right now of what might … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics, National news | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 9 Comments

Police officers’ pension fund speaks up

Posted on March 22, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

The firefighters’ pension fund is the one that gets all the attention, but it’s not the only one the city is responsible for. The Houston Police Officers Pension System (HPOPS) has sent a letter to the city reminding it that … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Council’s pension meeting

Posted on March 15, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

It was about what you’d expect. Many City Council members who attended a special meeting Friday to discuss Mayor Annise Parker’s controversial deal with the city’s firefighters pension called the gathering a success, despite two members walking out and breaking … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Council meeting called to discuss firefighter pension deal

Posted on March 11, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Some Council members are determined to discuss the deal Mayor Parker made with the firefighters’ pension fund. Four City Council members have taken advantage of a rarely used provision in city law to call a special meeting Friday to discuss … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

King makes his official entry

Posted on March 3, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Add Bill King to the “made his official announcement” list. In the middle of a noisy, torn-up west Houston street that he said epitomized Houston’s crumbling roads, Bill King launched his campaign for mayor Monday morning, pledging to return the … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2015 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 12 Comments

2015 Mayoral manifesto: Public safety

Posted on February 5, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Preliminaries Transportation When I first started thinking about this series a couple of months ago, this section was all going to be about the budget. We’ve covered this ground before – public safety is about 65% of the total city … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2015 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 7 Comments

Appeals court reverses ruling about pension retiree information

Posted on January 30, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

So much for that. A state district court’s 2013 ruling that Houston’s fire pension board must turn over detailed information on its retirees to help city officials better project future pension bills has been overturned on appeal. Justices with the … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Don’t look for a meet-and-confer bill in the Lege this year

Posted on January 26, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Buried in this story about the city and the county preparing to play defense during the legislative session is this update on the state of relations between the city and the firefighters. In her first two sessions, Houston Mayor Annise … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Don’t look for a meet-and-confer bill in the Lege this year

Firefighter pension board makes an offer to the city

Posted on September 26, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

This was unexpected. The trustees of Houston’s firefighter pension, who for years have fought the mere mention of changes to benefits as Houston’s enormous pension burden has continued to grow, now are shopping a compromise proposal. Fire pension leaders say … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Parker proposes new firefighter pension plan

Posted on August 22, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

We’ll see about this. With the city of Houston facing huge and rising pension costs, Mayor Annise Parker on Thursday unveiled a proposal to put new firefighters in a separate, less generous plan that would do away with expensive automatic … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 10 Comments

At an impasse

Posted on August 3, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Doesn’t look like there will be any new collective bargaining agreement between the city and the firefighters this year. Houston’s firefighters union declared an impasse with the city over a new labor contract, which a union negotiator called a “slap … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Back to the drawing board for the city and the firefighters’ union

Posted on July 5, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Don’t expect much at this point. Negotiators for the city of Houston and its firefighters union will return to the bargaining table to discuss a new labor contract weeks after union members soundly defeated the last proposed deal, Mayor Annise … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Back to the drawing board for the city and the firefighters’ union

City exploring new pension for new firefighters?

Posted on June 28, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Maybe. Long concerned about the cost of Houston’s pensions and stymied in her attempts at reform, Mayor Annise Parker is considering a dramatic step to place new firefighters into a separate, less generous pension plan, sources with knowledge of the … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

Firefighters union rejects contract deal

Posted on June 19, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Oops. The contract rejected Tuesday by 93 percent of the roughly 2,900 firefighters voting would have taken a similar approach, granting a pay raise in exchange for concessions on members’ ability to take leave. With the no vote, as of … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment