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Laying the Groundwork for Community-Based Care
Laying the Groundwork for Community-Based Care (2014–2017)
Following Providence’s withdrawal, Texas entered a period of reflection and adjustment. DFPS leadership, including Commissioner John Specia, acknowledged the need to “step back and re-evaluate” how to proceed with foster care reform in areas like West Texas. This pause coincided with increasing scrutiny of the foster system and calls for change. Child welfare advocates urged the state not only to fix funding shortfalls but also to strengthen oversight of any privatization efforts.
During these years, the terminology evolved: what began as Foster Care Redesign would later be renamed Community-Based Care (CBC), emphasizing partnership with local communities. Momentum built in 2017 when the Texas Legislature decisively affirmed the CBC model. In the 85th Legislature, lawmakers passed Senate Bill 11, which broadened the responsibilities of Single Source Continuum Contractors (SSCCs) to include case management and kinship services, and formally established Community-Based Care in statute.
This legislative framework made it clear that Texas was committed to expanding CBC statewide. Under the staged implementation outlined by SB 11, SSCCs in Stage I would manage foster care placements and services, and upon demonstrating readiness, progress to Stage II – taking over case management duties from the state – with performance incentives introduced in Stage III. The stage was set for a new wave of regional community contractors, informed by past trials and explicitly supported by law to ensure stronger accountability and outcomes.
West Texas watched these developments closely. Region 9 (the West Texas area, including the Concho Valley and Permian Basin) remained under DFPS management after 2014, but the promise of CBC had not been forgotten. Local leaders and stakeholders began laying informal groundwork to bring community-based foster care back, determined that West Texas would not be left behind as CBC gained traction elsewhere. The values of community ownership – keeping children near their home communities and leveraging local resources – resonated strongly in this predominantly rural region, even as everyone awaited the right opportunity to restart CBC in West Texas on a stronger footing.
Sources:
Texas DFPS Community-Based Care Overview: https://www.dfps.texas.gov/Child_Protection/Foster_Care/Community-Based_Care/default.asp
Texas CASA CBC Guide (2023): https://texascasa.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/CBC-Guide-2023.pdf
Texas HHS CBC Implementation Progress: https://www.hhs.texas.gov/about/records-statistics/data-statistics/community-based-care-progress
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