Burgess: Unequal pay fight drove Harris County District Clerk to not seek re-election

HARRIS COUNTY, Texas (KTRK) — Harris County District Clerk Marilyn Burgess said when she told her staff last month that she wasn’t seeking re-election, it wasn’t a decision she took lightly.

But, she said she felt it was the best decision for the county because she feels like bridges have been burned with other county leaders after asking for a raise and bringing light to pay disparities across the county.

“Do you think it was worth it?” 13 Investigates’ Mycah Hatfield asked Burgess.

“Yes. I think the public needs to know. I want that light shined on it,” she said.

Burgess, who oversees both the criminal and civil courts system for the county, raised eyebrows when she recently asked for a substantial pay raise, but she said it wasn’t what it may have seemed like.

Harris County has a salary grievance committee where elected officials can ask a group of people, in this case, three elected officials and six members of the public, for a raise.

Burgess went before the committee asking for a pay raise, but she also served on the committee and voted in favor of her own raise.

Burgess said she questioned her ability to serve on the committee and file a grievance at the same time and was told it was allowed.

“I understand it’s pretty weird that I’m on the committee and I’m the grievant as well, so I concur with you on that one,” Burgess told the county’s Salary Grievance Committee on September 16.

But, she said she felt compelled to ask for the raise after commissioners voted to raise constables’ salaries for the second year in a row.

“It was never about me,” Burgess said. “I wanted to shine a light on the disparity of the salaries across the county between appointed department heads and elected officials.”

13 Investigates requested salary data for all Harris County employees over the last nine years and found some disparities in pay.

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All eight Harris County constables went from making $133,598 in fiscal year 2024 to $178,505 in fiscal year 2025. Now, for fiscal year 2026, they will make $260,000, according to data from Harris County’s Human Resources & Risk Management.

The current constables’ salaries are almost double what they were making just two years ago.

Burgess asked for her salary to match the constables.

Data shows that when Burgess was elected in 2019, she made $164,299. Her salary did not change at all during her first six years in office.

She just recently received her first pay raise since taking office six years ago. It was a 9 percent pay increase, bringing her salary to $179,420.

Burgess said she is happy with her salary, but comparatively, she feels it’s unfair.

In general, the data shows salaries for elected leaders and appointed department heads in Harris County are inconsistent across departments.

Department size and budget do not seem to play a role, and employees in the same positions in various departments bring home substantially different checks.

For example, the chief of staff for Harris County Commissioner Precinct 1 is one of the highest-paid employees in the county with a base salary of $318,822.

That is 20% more than the salary of Harris County Commissioner Precinct 2’s chief of staff, who is paid a base salary of $$264,514, according to county data.

Meanwhile, the elected commissioners make $199,347 a year.

The chief public defender, who is appointed, makes $315,016, yet the district attorney, an elected position, makes $217,485.

The executive director of Intergovernmental Affairs, an appointed position with a staff of 11 managing a budget of $3.6 million, makes $259,480.

The elected county judge is over the entire county, co-manages a $2.7 billion budget, and makes $208,416.

“We don’t come to government service to get rich. That’s not the point, and we don’t need salaries that are greater than what the president of the United States is making. We need to be adequately paid for what we do, and it needs to be on parity,” Burgess said.

Burgess presented her case to the salary grievance committee, and a pay increase to match the constables at $260,000 was passed with a vote of 6 to 3.

The next step was for the recommendation to be presented to the commissioners’ court for approval, which it did not receive.

“They never discussed the recommendation in any form or fashion. They only use the agenda item to disparage me for having the audacity for asking for a pay raise,” Burgess said.

Burgess said she didn’t expect to get the raise, but was offended by how it was handled, which she says led to her decision to step aside.

“I love my job. I hate the politics and the divisiveness of them, and it’s gotten so ugly recently,” Burgess said. “After what happened with the grievance committee, I thought, I think I’ve burned some bridges with some members of Commissioners Court. I don’t want that to have a negative impact on this office, and so I think it’s time to retire and let a younger voice come in, someone with new eyes and new thoughts about what they can do with the office, and I hope we find someone very qualified to pick up where I’ve left off.”

Burgess said she believes asking for her pay raise will bring awareness and that something will be done next budget season to ensure better pay parity across departments.

She still has about 15 months left in the role, but said she announced she would not seek re-election now since the filing period for candidates opens in November.

“People need time to build up a website, a campaign, and appoint a treasurer. There’s things you have to do before you can announce you’re going to run, so it is important to give them time so we can find some qualified people to run for the position,” she said.

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