DALLAS – This Friday will see several Dallas city offices closed during a furlough day, including all public libraries, as the city attempts to tackle an ongoing budget shortfall.
July 10 Dallas furlough day
What we know:
Dallas has announced several closures for July 10, the first of three scheduled unpaid furlough days the city has scheduled.
Offices and facilities scheduled to be closed on July 10 in Dallas include:
City HallCode Compliance officesDallas Water Utilities lobby at City Hall (customer service lines still open)Dallas Public Libraries (digital resources available online at DallasLibrary.org)Parks & Cultural Admin OfficesCultural Centers (Oak Cliff Cultural Center, Latino Cultural Center, South Dallas Cultural Center) 
Offices and facilities with modified hours on July 10 in Dallas include:
Planning and Development officesCommunity Centers
Offices and facilities scheduled to be open on July 10 in Dallas include:
Dallas Love Field & Executive Airport311 Customer Help LineDallas Emergency Services (Police, Fire-Rescue, EMS)Sanitation ServicesFair Park and FIFA Fan Festival Dallas
Offices and facilities scheduled to be open on July 10 but will observe separate, undetermined furlough days include:
Animal ServicesRecreation and aquatics centersMunicipal Court & Detention ServicesGolf coursesBath House Cultural CenterWIC Clinics 
Dallas budget shortfall
The backstory:
In April, the City of Dallas announced it is facing a shortfall in its General Fund for the 2025-26 fiscal year, with expenses expected to exceed the budget by $16.4 million.
The city blamed the shortfall primarily on police and fire overtime pay, as well as declining sales tax collections and increased medical claims bringing the Employee Health Benefit Fund $13.8 million over budget.
PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Dallas blames police overtime pay for budget shortfall
The City of Dallas is facing a large budget shortfall, and they’re placing much of the blame on overtime pay for police and fire. FOX 4’s David Sentendrey spoke with the president of the Dallas Police Association on why he pushes back against those claims as the force gets ready to deal with an influx of travelers this summer due to the World Cup.
While the city primarily blames police and fire pay and overtime, it also says about 20 percent of the problem is due to declining sales tax collections.
To remedy the situation, the city froze new hires, with an exception for uniformed police and fire personnel. It also restricted overtime and reduced non-critical spending and travel.
The unpaid furlough days were announced in late June. The mandatory furlough days affect employees paid by the city’s General Fund.
Dallas city employees facing furlough days
Dallas employees are going to have to take a significant hit to their budget with three upcoming furlough days. The first day civilian employees will go unpaid is next Friday.
For an employee making about $66,000 a year, those three days will add up to more than $760 in lost pay.
Employees will not be able to take vacation, sick leave, or comp time on those dates.
“Furloughs are not our preferred solution; however, they enable us to reduce expenses, protect jobs and employee health benefits, and continue delivering services to our residents,” said Dallas City Manager Kimberly Bizor Tolbert in a statement. “These steps are necessary to navigate the current financial challenges and to position the City responsibly for the upcoming FY27 and FY28 biennial budget.”
What’s next:
The city council will begin the next round of budget discussions in August. The next furlough days scheduled for the City of Dallas will take place on Friday, Sept. 4 and Monday, Sept. 28.
The Source: Information in this article comes from the City of Dallas and previous FOX 4 reporting.