DALLAS– More than 4,000 Dallas city employees are expected to take mandatory unpaid furlough days this fiscal year as city leaders work to close an estimated $25 million budget shortfall brought on by slowing revenue growth, rising operational costs and new financial obligations.

During a meeting with Dallas Weekly and other local media at City Hall last week, City Manager Kimberly Tolbert defended the decision, saying the furloughs are intended to avoid layoffs while preserving essential city services. She also addressed questions surrounding consultant spending, homelessness funding, Proposition U, communication with City Council and the city’s long-term financial outlook.

“We are trying to balance the budget without laying people off,” Tolbert said. “That has always been our priority.”

“We are trying to balance the budget without laying people off,” Tolbert said. “That has always been our priority.”

Why furloughs?

According to Tolbert, the city faced limited options after revenue projections fell short of expectations while expenditures continued to climb.

She said mandatory furloughs offered an alternative to workforce reductions that would have permanently eliminated positions and disrupted city services.

Rather than asking a smaller group of employees to absorb layoffs, Tolbert said city leadership believed spreading the impact across eligible employees would preserve staffing levels and allow departments to continue operating.

“This is not something we wanted to do,” she said. “But we also wanted to avoid layoffs.”

Tolbert emphasized that essential public safety personnel, including police officers and firefighters, are exempt from the furlough plan because of staffing requirements established under Proposition U and existing public safety needs.

She acknowledged that the timing has been difficult for employees, many of whom had already planned vacations or other personal obligations.

“We understand this affects families,” Tolbert said, adding that city leaders attempted to provide as much notice and scheduling flexibility as possible.

She also stressed that residents should not expect widespread disruptions to city services, including permitting and other public-facing operations, because departments have been instructed to stagger furlough schedules.

Revenue growth slows as expenses increase

Tolbert attributed much of the budget pressure to slowing sales tax growth, one of the city’s largest revenue sources.

Following years of unusually strong post-pandemic collections, she said Dallas has returned to more modest revenue growth while continuing to experience inflationary pressures and rising operational costs.

At the same time, the city has absorbed new financial obligations, including public safety staffing requirements approved by voters through Proposition U.

Tolbert said city officials regularly update revenue forecasts throughout the year but acknowledged that economic conditions have shifted more quickly than anticipated.

“The economy is changing,” she said. “Sales tax is not growing at the pace that it had been.”

She said city leaders continue monitoring economic indicators while identifying additional savings to balance the budget without reducing core services.

Questions over consultant spending

Another point of criticism has centered on consultant contracts, particularly reports that approximately $3 million has been spent studying the future of Dallas City Hall.

Tolbert said that figure reflects years of work involving multiple firms conducting engineering, environmental, architectural and financial analyses rather than a single consulting agreement.

She argued those studies were necessary because of the age and condition of the current City Hall building and to evaluate multiple long-term options before recommending a course of action.

“You have to do the due diligence,” Tolbert said, explaining that large capital decisions require extensive professional analysis before taxpayer dollars are committed.

She added that outside consultants are commonly used on projects requiring specialized expertise that city staff do not maintain in-house.

Whether the city ultimately renovates, replaces or relocates City Hall remains under discussion, but Tolbert said gathering accurate information upfront helps avoid more costly mistakes later.

Homelessness funding shifts toward community partners

Questions have also emerged over changes to homelessness and housing funding after residents noticed adjustments within the proposed budget.

Tolbert said the city is not abandoning homelessness programs but is instead directing more resources through nonprofit organizations that already provide services on the ground.

Organizations such as The Stewpot and Austin Street Center have long worked directly with people experiencing homelessness, she said, making them well positioned to deliver services efficiently.

Rather than expanding city-run programs, Dallas plans to continue investing in organizations with established infrastructure and community relationships.

Tolbert said funding decisions are based on established procurement and evaluation processes designed to measure an organization’s capacity, performance and ability to meet specific service goals.

She said contracts include accountability measures intended to ensure taxpayer dollars are used effectively.

“The city doesn’t do homelessness alone,” Tolbert said. “We work with community partners.”

Addressing concerns over City Council communication