Staffing issues are forcing the Hidalgo County Tax Office to close every Wednesday, according to the county tax-assessor collector.

In a news release, the county said they had 19 vacancies in the tax office. An open records request revealed that, when the county announced its Wednesday closures, the tax office had 129 employees. 

According to Hidalgo County Tax Assessor-Collector Paul Villarreal, the closures are necessary for remaining staff to catch up on a large workload. 

“This is a worldwide situation," Villarreal said, adding that his office has had difficulties to get their staff numbers back up. "My tax manager had five interviews yesterday. Only one person showed up."