Deputy Chief Steven Lopez told the Dallas Public Safety Committee on Nov. 10 that Dallas Fire Rescue met its individual hiring goals for fiscal year 2025 after hiring 195 fire-rescue officer trainees (FROTs).

Lopez said the department's recruiting team processed 1,262 FROT applicants to meet the 195-hire goal, and that six lateral officers and two reappointments were included in the classes that produced the hires. "We had an applicant pool of 1,262," Lopez said. "We hired 195 members, which put our hiring percentage right around 15 and a half percent."

The department reported 110 departures during the fiscal year, a rate Lopez described as roughly 9.1 members per month. He told the committee that retirements slowed beginning in June and that retention initiatives helped: DFR awards and banquets, lifesaving awards, a yearbook, line-of-duty memorials and upcoming promotional exams were among the activities Lopez listed as contributors to improved retention.

Chair Stewart and other council members praised the work and asked about long-term staffing goals. Lopez said DFR is fully staffed and will set future hiring goals on a quarterly basis tied to observed attrition. "Every quarter, we'll meet as a command staff to look at our attrition numbers, and that will set our hiring goal for the next quarter," Lopez said.

Why it matters: The department's ability to replace personnel faster than members leave helps maintain emergency response capacity and avoid prolonged overtime or pulling officers from patrol duties during recruit training. Lopez said the presentation will move from monthly to quarterly because the department has been meeting the goals set for it.

The committee did not take formal action on this briefing; questions focused on continued monitoring of attrition, training capacity and recruitment outreach.