Community-Based Care Texas: How the CBC System Works in 2026

If you've tried to figure out where to apply to become a foster parent in Texas and ended up more confused after an hour on the DFPS website than before you started, there's a structural reason for that. The Texas child welfare system is in the middle of the most significant organizational restructuring in its history — and as of 2026, the agency you need to contact depends not on what you want to do, but on which county you live in.

What Community-Based Care Actually Is

Community-Based Care (CBC) is the Texas model for devolving foster care management from the state (DFPS) to regional private organizations. Under CBC, specific geographic areas called "catchment areas" are assigned to a Single Source Continuum Contractor (SSCC) — a private nonprofit that takes over responsibility for the full continuum of foster care services in that region.

This means that in a CBC region, the organization you apply to, train with, and report to is not the state. It's the SSCC.

The rationale is that local organizations know their communities better than a centralized state bureaucracy. A regional nonprofit in San Antonio understands the Spanish-speaking faith community, the military installation population at JBSA, and the specific agencies and services in Bexar County in a way that DFPS's Austin headquarters cannot. In theory, this produces better matches, faster placement stability, and more children remaining close to their home communities.

In practice, the rollout has been uneven, and one region is currently in crisis.

The Current SSCC Map (2026)

Regions not listed — including most of Central Texas, the Rio Grande Valley, and West Texas outside Midland/Odessa — remain under direct DFPS management as "legacy" regions. In those areas, you apply through DFPS or through a private CPA that interfaces directly with the state.

What This Means If You're Applying Right Now

If you live in a legacy region: Contact DFPS or search for a licensed CPA in your county. The CPA handles verification under DFPS oversight.

If you live in a CBC region: Contact the SSCC directly. Do not start by calling DFPS — in most CBC regions, DFPS will refer you to the SSCC anyway, which adds four to six weeks while your file is manually transferred.

If you live in the Dallas area (Region 3E): The situation is more complicated.

The EMPOWER Receivership

In March 2026, the state placed EMPOWER — the SSCC for Region 3E, covering Dallas, Collin, and Rockwall counties — under receivership. This followed a period of operational failures and safety concerns, including the deaths of two infants in foster care placements managed by EMPOWER. The state appointed a receiver, George Cannata, to stabilize operations and ensure continuity of service.

For prospective foster parents in the Dallas area, this creates a trust gap. The organization you're being asked to partner with is currently under state supervision because it failed to adequately protect children. That's a legitimate concern.

What it doesn't mean is that the entire Dallas-area foster care system has collapsed. The receiver's mandate is to maintain operations and improve safety protocols. Private CPAs in the region that were already operating alongside EMPOWER — agencies like Arrow Child and Family Ministries and ACH Child and Family Services — continue to operate and are an alternative entry point that doesn't require routing through EMPOWER directly.

If you're in Region 3E, ask your CPA contact specifically about their relationship with the current receivership structure and how they're navigating it operationally.

The Three Stages of CBC and What They Mean for Foster Parents

The CBC model has three implementation stages:

Stage I: The SSCC handles placement services — matching children to homes, managing the foster home network. Case management (the legal work, family services plan, reunification services) remains with DFPS.

Stage II: The SSCC takes over case management in addition to placement. Foster parents report to SSCC caseworkers for their day-to-day contacts, not DFPS staff.

Stage III: The SSCC takes on performance accountability and incentive structures. The state monitors outcomes (permanency rates, safety incidents) and the SSCC is held contractually responsible. More intensive oversight of individual homes.

For most foster parents, the practical difference between stages is who your caseworker works for. In Stage III regions, you have a more established system — the SSCC has been operating long enough to have refined its processes. In Stage I regions like Houston (go-live May 2026), you may experience more adjustment-period friction as the organization stands up its placement operations.

The M.D. v. Abbott Lawsuit and What It Actually Means for Families

Texas's foster care system has been under a federal court order since 2015, when a judge found that the state violated the constitutional rights of children in foster care. The class-action lawsuit, M.D. v. Abbott (originally filed in 2011), produced ongoing scrutiny of Texas's foster placement practices, caseworker caseloads, and institutional care.

In late 2024, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals vacated the contempt orders and daily fines against the state, and removed the presiding judge. The Supreme Court denied certiorari in October 2025, returning the case to district level oversight. As of 2026, the state argues it is in substantial compliance with remedial orders; monitors' reports continue to note deficiencies.

What this means for prospective foster parents is not that you should avoid the system. The lawsuit exists precisely because children are in the system and need safe placements. The shortage of licensed Resource Families — particularly in urban CBC regions — is part of what the lawsuit documents as a systemic failure. Becoming a verified Resource Family is a direct contribution to addressing that shortage.

What you should take from the litigation history is that the system is under pressure to improve, that oversight structures exist, and that your rights as a foster parent are more clearly codified than they were a decade ago.

If You're Not Sure Which System Applies to You

The fastest way to determine your entry point: go to the DFPS Community Areas page (dfps.texas.gov/CBC/community-areas/) and look up your county. If your county is in a listed CBC area, contact the SSCC. If it's not listed, use the DFPS regional directory to find your local office or search for CPAs licensed in your county.

The Texas Foster Care Licensing Guide includes a county-by-county directory of the correct first contact for each region, including the specific SSCC contact information for CBC areas and DFPS regional contacts for legacy areas. It's the navigation tool the DFPS website doesn't provide.

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