1987 -The Texas Legislature enacted S.B. 298, 70th Legislature, Regular Session, 1987, requiring eight public agencies to work together to assist children and youth with complex needs whose needs could not be met by a single agency.

1988 - The CRCG model established interagency service planning at the local county level. This model was piloted in Henderson, Tarrant, Travis, and Val Verde counties in 1988 and 1989

1990 – The State CRCG Team was established to develop the CRCG process and oversee implementation of the MOU.

1991 – Local CRCG training materials were developed and disseminated by the State CRCG team. An outside consultant assisted the State CRCG Team and local Texas counties to establish CRCGs to assist youth and children with complex needs.

1993 – The State CRCG Office was established as a permanent office under HHSC to provide ongoing technical assistance and training for CRCGs.

1995 – Local and state agencies requested assistance from the State CRCG Office to adapt the CRCG model to include adults with complex needs.

1996 – Total statewide coverage for CRCGs serving children and youth was accomplished. A local CRCG to serve children and youth was available to all 254 counties in Texas.

1996 - The Texas Legislature enacted Senate Bill 118, 75th Legislature, Regular Session, 1996 requiring that a local CRCG be notified when children and youth with developmental disabilities were being placed in a nursing facility. The purpose of this requirement was to promote enhanced permanency planning, provide assistance transitioning back into family life, and create long-term housing options.

1998 – Due to interest from local and state agencies, a study was commissioned to examine the possible addition of CRCGs for adults to the existing model. Results showed strong support for a new model that included adults. In addition, support was shown to acquire a specific State CRCG Adult (CRCGA) Coordinator and a Local CRCG Oversight Board to help prevent overburdening of services.

1999 – The University of Texas at Austin, School of Social Work conducted an evaluation of CRCGs for children and youth. The evaluation determined CRCGs were meeting the objectives of the MOU and the intent of CRCG legislation.

2000 – The MOU for adult serving CRCGs was executed in May. Following an evaluation study commissioned by the State CRCGA Team, a pilot program was concluded in November 2000 and a statewide CRCGA development initiative was implemented.

2001 - The Texas Legislature enacted S.B. 1468, 77th Legislature, Regular Session, 2001, codified in Texas Government Code §531.055, requiring the development of an MOU for CRCGs that serve adults.

2001 - The Texas Legislature enacted S.B. 368, 77th Legislature, Regular Session, 2001, requiring a local CRCG to be notified of children and youth with developmental disabilities being placed in an institution in order to promote enhanced permanency planning and create long-term housing options.

2002 - The State CRCG Team and State CRCGA Team developed the MOU for statewide, county-based, interagency CRCG groups. These CRCGs coordinate groups and services for persons of all ages with complex needs.

2003 - The Texas Legislature enacted H.B. 2292, 78th Legislature, Regular Session, 2003, containing Section 2.166 that required child-serving CRCGs to evaluate systems of care for children with severe emotional disturbances who have multi-agency needs. The evaluation was conducted and then provided to the Texas Integrated Funding Initiative (TIFI) Consortium to create a summary of the evaluation, due no later than 2005.

2003 - The TIFI and CRCG State Offices were joined under the HHSC Office of Long-term Care Services and Supports.

2004 - The State CRCG Office created an internal data collection system to gather and analyze information submitted by CRCGs serving all age groups.

2004 - The State CRCG and TIFI Offices were merged with additional programs at HHSC under the Office of Program Coordination for Children and Youth.

2005 - TIFI submits recommendations in its Report to the Governor and 79th Legislature: Systems of Care for Children with Severe Emotional Disturbances and Their Families, based upon the evaluations submitted by local CRCGs, per H.B. 2292, Section 2.166, 78th Legislature, Regular Session, 2003. They offered 18 specific recommendations that provided direct impacts on mental health services for children and youth.

2006 - As a result of H.B. 2292, updates were made to the MOU to reflect changes in agency names and needs, as well as to reflect the abolishment of the State CRCG Team and State CRCGA Team. The State CRCG Office continued to operate.

2011 - Due to budget reductions from the 82nd Legislative Session, state-level CRCG support activities were reduced and transferred from the Office of Program Coordination for Children and Youth to the Office of Family and Community Services within HHSC.

2014 - Health and Human Services hired a CRCG Statewide Coordinator who guided the office in providing statewide support in the areas of communication, training and technical assistance, and data and research.

2015 - The 84th Texas Legislature updated the Texas Government Code §531.055, that formalized the CRCG program, requiring a joint MOU between health and human services agencies, related state agencies, and state-level partners to reflect recent changes in agency names.

2016 - There are approximately 140 distinct CRCG groups covering 236 Texas counties.

2017 - The 85th Texas Legislature updated Texas Government Code §531.055 to include the Texas Education Agency as a member agency in the joint memorandum of understanding. Further, it expanded the responsibilities of the State CRCG Workgroup.

2017 - The Texas Legislature enacted House Bill 1204, 85th Legislature, Regular Session, 2017, establishing a mechanism to allow the Texas Juvenile Justice Department to refer children under 12 years old to CRCGs for service coordination as an alternative to adjudication.

2017 - The Texas Legislature enacted House Bill 928, 85th Legislature, Regular Session, 2017, requiring Department of Family and Protective Services staff to inform local CRCGs about tuition and fee waiver programs that are available to children and youth who have experience in the foster care system or with adoption.

2017 - The State CRCG Office is transferred to the Office of Mental Health Coordination (OMHC) within HHSC because the mission of CRCGs align with OMHC's.

OMHC mission: The Office of Mental Health Coordination (OMHC) collaborates with stakeholders to improve policies, programs, and systems to achieve positive behavioral health outcomes for all people in Texas.

CRCG mission: CRCGs provide a mechanism that enables local public and private Agencies, organizations, and families to work together in collaboration to meet the needs of persons which no one Agency can meet.

2018 – Office of Mental Health Coordination received funding to hire two additional staff to join the State CRCG Office team, creating a team of three full-time staff members.

2019 - The State CRCG Office launched a new data collection system.

2019 - The 86th Texas Legislature updated Government Codes § 531.421 and § 431.422 by repealing the word "consortium" and replacing it with "commission" meaning HHSC.

2020 - As of May 2020, there are 145 distinct CRCGs covering 240 counties in Texas.

In 1987, the Texas Legislature first passed legislation requiring interagency collaboration. Senate Bill 298 required a joint Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) across eight state agencies to serve children with multiple needs that could not be solved by one agency.

The MOU dictated that each agency must clarify financial and statutory responsibilities, including funding, as well as define procedures for cost sharing and eliminating duplication of services. It also required that these agencies come together to create local-level interagency staffing groups to provide all the services children may require.

See the original bill.

In 2001, the Texas Legislature formalized the CRCG program requiring a joint MOU between health and human services agencies, related state agencies, and state-level partners. Senate Bill 1468 also:

• Updated the previous authorizing CRCG legislation for children and youth.
• Added the requirement to implement a system of CRCGs for adults.
• Included the requirement to have a parent or family member as a standing representative on each type of CRCG.
• Required a legislative report every two years to the Governor of Texas and to participating agency heads to report the benefits and barriers of CRCG activities.

A joint MOU was developed and signed by the participating agencies in 2001 and then updated in November 2006. That MOU updated the earlier 2001 version and reflected the consolidation of HHS agencies as required by H.B. 2292, 78th Legislature, Regular Session, 2003.

See the statute §531.055.

In 2001, the Texas Legislature enacted Senate Bill 368, which strengthened permanency planning activities for children with developmental disabilities in Texas. S.B. 368 is related to local CRCGs for the following reasons:

Texas Government Code §531.151 defines permanency planning as a "philosophy and planning process that focuses on the outcome of family support by facilitating a permanent living arrangement with the primary feature of an enduring and nurturing parental relationship." Continuing, section §531.154 then dictates that, "no later than the third day after the date a child is initially placed in an institution, the institution shall notify several entities, including the local CRCG, where the parent or guardian of the child resides."

• An "institution" is defined in S.B. 368 §531.151 as:
  • An Intermediate Care Facility for Individuals with an Intellectual Disability (ICF/IID).
  • A Medicaid waiver group home under the authority of HHSC, a foster group home, or agency foster group home.
  • A nursing facility.
  • An institution for people with an intellectual disability licensed by the Department of Family and Protective Services.
  • A residential arrangement (other than a foster home) that provides care to four or more children who are unrelated to each other.

The CRCG and each entity receiving notice of the initial placement of a child in an institution may contact the child's parent or guardian to ensure that the parent or guardian is aware of services and supports that could provide alternatives to placement of the child in the institution, available placement options, and opportunities for permanency planning.

See the statute §531.151.

See the statute §531.154.

See the original bill.

For additional information on the role of the CRCG in permanency planning, please email the State CRCG Office.

House Bill 2292, enacted in 2003, required each CRCG serving children and youth to evaluate the provision of Systems of Care services in the community that the CRCG serves.

As a result of the assessment required in H.B. 2292, the Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC), in conjunction with the State Texas Integrated Funding Initiative (TIFI) Consortium, developed and implemented an assessment instrument and reporting process for use by local CRCGs to conduct this evaluation.

The assessment and subsequent report addressed the following:

• Services needed by children with severe emotional disturbances in the community and priority of needs.
• Review and assessment of the systems of care services that are available in the community to meet those needs.
• Identify any barriers to the effective provision of systems of care services; and make related recommendations, including:
• Suggested policy and statutory changes at agencies that provide systems of care services.
• Recommendations for overcoming barriers to the provision of systems of care services and improving the integration of those services.

Two years later, in 2005, the TIFI in accordance with Government Code §531.423 delivered a summary report to the Legislature and Governor that included recommendations for policy and statutory changes for each agency involved in CRCGs.

The 18 recommendations presented encompassed five categories:

1. Access and availability
2. Awareness and education
3. Family support and partnerships
4. Funding
5. Collaboration and coordination

Overall, the recommendations from local CRCGs outlined ways to overcome barriers to providing systems of care practices and to improve the integration of services for children with severe emotional disturbances and their families. Most of the recommendations concerned increasing funding, collaboration/coordination, family and community-based support, and training.

See the Report to the Governor and 79th Legislature Systems of Care for Children with Severe Emotional Disturbances and Their Families.

See the statute §531.422.

For additional information, please refer to H.B. 2292, Section 2.166, available through Texas Legislature Online at www.capitol.texas.gov.

In 2015, Senate Bill 219 updated government policies and evaluation requirements for permanency planning which involves CRCGs. Government Code §531.151 reaffirmed the mandate for state and local communities to work together to ensure the basic needs for safety, security, and stability for each child in Texas, as well as the benefits of being a part of a successful permanent family.

Additionally, in Government Code §531.422 the Texas Legislature outlined evaluation requirements for systems of care services in the community in which the CRCG serves. As part of this evaluation, each CRCG must create a report that suggests policy and statutory changes, as well as recommendations for overcoming barriers to the provision of system of care services and improving integration of those services.

Specifically, the CRCG evaluations must:

• Describe and prioritize services needed by children with severe emotional disturbances in the community;
• Review and assess the systems of care services that are available in the community to meet those needs;
• Assess the integration of the provision of those services; and
• Identify any barriers to the effective provision of those services.

CRCGs must:

• Create a report that includes the evaluation in and makes related recommendations, including:
• Suggested policy and statutory changes at agencies that provide systems of care services; and
• Recommendations for overcoming barriers to the provision of systems of care services and improving the integration of those services.
• Submit the report to the consortium. The consortium shall provide a deadline to each group for submitting the reports. The time frame for completing the reports must be coordinated with any regional reviews by the commission of the delivery of related services.

See the statute §531.422.

In 2017, House Bill 2904 directed HHSC to update the joint memorandum of understanding to include the Texas Education Agency as a member agency, along with the Health and Human Services Commission, the Department of Family and Protective Services, the Department of State Health Services, the Texas Correctional Office on Offenders with Medical or Mental Impairments, the Texas Department of Criminal Justice, the Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs, the Texas Workforce Commission, and the Texas Juvenile Justice Department.

Additionally, the legislation expands the responsibilities of the State CRCG Workgroup to include providing:

• Information and guidance to local-level interagency staffing groups regarding:
• The availability of programs and resources in the community; and
• Best practices for addressing the needs of persons with complex needs in the least restrictive setting appropriate.

Finally, this legislation defines "least restrictive setting" and requires that local CRCGs must coordinate services for persons needing multiagency services in the least restrictive setting appropriate.

See the statute §531.055.

In 2017, House Bill 1204 directed the Texas Juvenile Justice Department to refer children under 12 years old for service coordination when:

• There is probable cause to believe the child engaged in delinquent conduct or conduct indicating a need for supervision;
• The child's case does not require referral to the prosecuting attorney;
• The child is eligible for deferred prosecution; and
• The child and the child's family are not currently receiving services and would benefit from receiving the services.

This process will connect children under 12 with needed services in an effort to prevent future delinquent conduct and recidivism in the juvenile justice system.

In 2017, House Bill 928 established a provision for Department of Family and Protective Services staff to inform their local CRCGs about the tuition and fee waiver program for which these children and youth are eligible. More information about the tuition and fee waiver program is available on the Other Resource webpage.

In 2019, Senate Bill 241 updated Government Codes §531.421 and §431.422 by repealing the word "consortium" and replacing it with "commission." Government Code 431.422 requires local CRCGs to submit an evaluation/report to the commission (HHSC/Texas System of Care [TxSOC]) regarding their assessment of system of care services in their communities.