Houston Fire Department

How to File a Complaint

The Houston Fire Department has two protocols in which to file a complaint.

1) In order for our office to conduct a formal investigation of your complaint, state law requires you, the complainant, to submit a written, sworn and notarized statement detailing your account of the incident or complaint. Also, our City Legal office asks that you complete the .pdf file found at: www.houstontx.gov/fire/Formal_Complaint_Required_Documents.pdf to ensure that this is not a case of discrimination.

Please return all the original documents to:

Houston Fire Department
Professional Standards Office
500 Jefferson, Ste. 1700
Houston, Texas 77002

If you need assistance with notarizing your statement or completing the necessary documents, we can assist you; if you need assistance in preparing your formal affidavit and would like to meet with one of our Investigators, please contact us at (832) 394-6750 to set up an appointment.

Upon receipt of your formalized statement, an investigation will be completed by an Investigator or the appropriate personnel. Depending on the conclusion results of the investigation, the Fire Chief will issue discipline. A conclusion letter will be sent to you informing you of the conclusion results.

2) If you feel that your case does not merit a formal complaint, but would like to bring an indiscretion to our attention, you may opt to register your complaint through our Policy Awareness Program “PAP.” Please email me the details of the incident; the information will be processed and forwarded to our PAP Representative for an informal investigation. If a violation of HFD Rules and Regulations has occurred, the member(s) will be called in to our administrative offices for a stern counseling and/or additional training.

Please consider filing a formal complaint. If you need additional information, please do not hesitate to contact our office at (832) 394-6750.