Hood County taxpayers are again hearing a familiar concern as county officials work toward the next budget: the county is struggling to fully staff its 911 communications operation.
Hood County Express is examining whether compensation remains the principal cause of the shortage, what evidence county officials are relying on, and whether other recruitment or retention problems are contributing.
The issue has a documented history.
In March 2022, Hood County’s 911 operation was down seven dispatchers. Five dispatchers had left since the beginning of that year, and then-Dispatch Supervisor John Hurley told commissioners that the department’s $15.63-per-hour starting wage was the lowest among the area agencies he compared.
Commissioners responded by approving a $5-per-hour increase, bringing starting pay to $20.63.
Today, Hood County is advertising its Emergency Communications Specialist — 911 operator — position at $24.28 per hour.
That represents an $8.65-per-hour increase from the starting wage at the center of the 2022 staffing crisis.
The staffing issue has nevertheless returned during another county budget season.
Similar concerns have also surfaced repeatedly within the sworn ranks of the Hood County Sheriff’s Office.
During recent budget cycles, Sheriff Roger Deeds and members of his command staff have argued that Hood County compensation trails competing law-enforcement agencies and makes recruiting and retaining deputies more difficult.
In 2025, Deeds said his office was four deputies short and expected soon to be five short. Lt. Gary Roberts presented an HCSO comparison that placed starting deputy salaries at selected North Texas agencies substantially above Hood County.
That comparison was prepared and presented by the Sheriff’s Office. HCE is now attempting to independently examine the basis for those comparisons and determine how they relate to the current staffing situation.
On Saturday, HCE sent written questions to Deeds and Emergency Communications Director Sean McGuire seeking information about current vacancies, hiring and training losses, employee departures, compensation comparisons and other possible causes of the staffing shortage.
HCE also requested interviews with Commissioners Kevin Andrews and Dave Eagle concerning the evidence commissioners have received, how compensation comparisons are being evaluated and what measurable improvement taxpayers should expect if additional personnel spending is approved.
Responses have been requested by 3 p.m. Monday.
One question will be whether Hood County should be compared primarily with Texas counties of similar population or with nearby agencies competing for the same employees.
Those are different measurements.
A larger neighboring agency may be a significant recruiting competitor because an employee can live in Hood County and commute there. A similarly populated county elsewhere in Texas may provide a useful size comparison while having little influence on the local employment market.
For that reason, HCE is examining both groups rather than treating either one as a complete measure of market compensation.
The reporting will also examine whether compensation alone explains the recurring vacancies.
Hood County’s dispatcher starting wage has increased substantially since 2022. If the county remains below the actual recruiting market, current salary data should demonstrate that. If compensation is no longer the primary obstacle, applicant numbers, hiring attrition, training losses, scheduling, workload and employee retention may provide additional explanation.
HCE has not reached a conclusion on that question.
The purpose of the reporting is to establish what the evidence shows before commissioners make another budget decision involving a staffing problem taxpayers have been asked to address before.
Hood County Express will update this report as responses from Deeds, McGuire and county commissioners are received.
