Henderson’s firefighters are in line for the biggest raise in years.
A new pay plan from Fire Chief Sonny Ybarra was on the City Council’s October 20, 2026 agenda. It raises starting pay from $52,010 to $60,208 and builds, for the first time, a step ladder that pays firefighters more for each year they stay with the department.
Why the chief asked
At the council’s September 17, 2026 meeting, Ybarra laid out the problem: firefighters train in Henderson and then leave within two to three years. He walked the council through the cost of that turnover, pay at surrounding departments, benefits comparisons, and the safety risk of running a department with a constant stream of new, less experienced firefighters.
The staff memo for the October item says the goal is to “better align the Henderson Fire Department with other regional agencies” and to help with recruitment and retention.
What the plan pays
| Rank | Current | Proposed | Raise |
|---|---|---|---|
| Firefighter (entry) | $52,010.42 | $60,208.57 | +15.8% |
| Lieutenant 1 | $60,208.56 | $73,818.94 | +22.6% |
| Captain 1 | $69,698.94 | $84,719.50 | +21.6% |
| Assistant Chief 1 | $84,719.49 | $93,403.25 | +10.3% |
Under the new ladder, a firefighter would earn $68,120 at five years and $73,358 at nine years. Lieutenants, captains and assistant chiefs would each get three more steps, one every two years, topping out at $78,811 for a lieutenant, $91,234 for a captain and $100,585 for an assistant chief. Today none of those steps exist.
The cost is the next piece
The packet does not yet include the total annual cost of the plan or which fund will cover it, and a few steps on the schedule (years 8, 15 and 25) are still blank. The memo says the council “approved salary adjustments” on September 17, 2026. The minutes from that meeting, which were also up for approval on October 20, 2026, record the chief’s presentation but not a vote on pay.
Those are paperwork questions, not doubts about the raise. Keeping trained firefighters in Henderson protects every family in town, and a clear price tag makes the case stronger. We are requesting the plan’s annual cost from the city and will update this story with the council’s action.
About the sources
City Council agenda item 11 and attached pay schedule, and City Council minutes of September 17, 2026, published in the City of Henderson’s October 20, 2026 City Council packet, pages 8 and 51 to 52.