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The Texas Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS) has released its 2026 Annual Plan, outlining the agency’s priorities for protecting children and vulnerable adults while improving the state’s child welfare system.
The strategic plan, titled Empowering, Strengthening, and Supporting Families, describes how DFPS intends to guide operations and policy implementation in the coming years. The document highlights initiatives related to foster care reform, prevention services, technology modernization, and workforce development.
According to the plan, DFPS has organized its work around three primary goals, which include strengthening families through engagement and support services, refining case management systems within the child protection process, and transforming the agency’s workforce and infrastructure to improve outcomes for Texans served by the department.
Together, these priorities provide a framework for how the agency intends to address ongoing challenges within the child protection and foster care systems.
DFPS Family Engagement and Prevention Efforts
The first goal of the DFPS 2026 Annual Plan focuses on strengthening families through engagement, services, and support.
DFPS describes prevention and early intervention as a central part of the state’s child welfare strategy. Texas serves one of the largest child populations in the nation while maintaining relatively low foster care entry rates compared to other states. The agency states that early engagement with families and access to community services are intended to address safety concerns before removal becomes necessary.
Several initiatives are associated with this goal.
One initiative focuses on expanding kinship placements. DFPS reports that placing children with relatives when removal occurs can reduce trauma and improve permanency outcomes. The agency plans to continue identifying and engaging relatives earlier in the investigation process while expanding support services for kinship caregivers.
Another initiative involves expanding the Alternative Response model used in child abuse and neglect cases. Under this model, certain cases are handled through collaborative engagement with families rather than traditional investigations. These cases do not involve an alleged perpetrator or a formal finding of abuse or neglect. According to DFPS, approximately twenty percent of investigation cases currently follow the Alternative Response pathway.
The plan also describes the state’s continued implementation of the federal Family First Prevention Services Act (FFPSA). This law allows states to receive federal reimbursement for prevention services such as mental health treatment, substance use programs, and parenting support for families whose children are at risk of entering foster care.
In addition, DFPS plans to implement a statewide Baby Moses Hotline and public awareness campaign. The program relates to Texas’s Safe Haven law, which allows parents to surrender infants at designated locations without facing prosecution if the child shows no signs of abuse or neglect.
Community-Based Care Expansion in the Texas Foster Care System
A significant portion of the DFPS Annual Plan addresses the continued expansion of Community-Based Care within Texas.
Community-Based Care was created by the Texas Legislature in 2017 through Senate Bill 11 (SB 11), authored by State Sen. Charles Schwertner (R-Georgetown). The system transitions management of foster care services from a centralized state model to regional nonprofit contractors known as Single Source Continuum Contractors.
Under this system, local organizations coordinate services such as foster placements, adoption services, and case management within their assigned regions. The intent is to create community-driven networks that can provide services closer to home while improving permanency outcomes for children in foster care.
The plan reports that Community-Based Care expansion is ongoing across Texas. Several legislative changes enacted during the 89th Legislative Session (2025) also strengthened DFPS’s authority to intervene when regional contractors experience operational challenges. These changes allow the agency to require quality improvement plans, implement financial interventions, and, in certain situations, reclaim case management responsibilities.
DFPS is also evaluating the financial structure of the Community-Based Care system and exploring potential funding models for rural regions of the state.
Texas Child Centered Care Foster Care Reform
Another major initiative discussed in the plan is the continued rollout of Texas Child Centered Care, commonly referred to as T3C.
This model represents a modernization of the foster care service system. It incorporates the Child and Adolescent Needs and Strengths assessment tool to evaluate children entering foster care and match them with services tailored to their needs. The system also introduces defined service packages and updated reimbursement structures designed to align payments with the level of care required by foster care providers.
According to the DFPS plan, more than two thousand children had transitioned to services under the T3C model by the end of fiscal year 2025. This represented approximately 30% of children receiving paid foster care services in Texas.
The agency plans to continue expanding implementation of the model statewide while refining credentialing and oversight for participating providers.
Addressing Foster Care Placement Capacity in Texas
The plan also discusses ongoing efforts to address placement capacity within the Texas foster care system.
Children without placement situations have historically occurred when the state lacks available foster homes or specialized residential placements that meet a child’s needs. DFPS reports that recent efforts have focused on expanding placement capacity across several areas of the foster care continuum. These efforts include reducing reliance on congregate care facilities, expanding family-based placements, and increasing specialized placements for youth with behavioral health needs.
The agency has also increased attention to programs that help older foster youth transition to adulthood. These include supervised independent living and transitional living programs. DFPS reports that 14 new transitional living providers entered contracts with the agency during 2025, adding 63 beds to the system.
DFPS Technology Modernization and Case Management Systems
The 2026 plan outlines several initiatives related to modernizing DFPS technology systems.
The agency currently relies on the IMPACT case management system, which has been in operation for many years. With funding approved during the 89th Legislative Session, DFPS has begun development of a new case management platform designed to replace IMPACT.
The new system will follow federal Comprehensive Child Welfare Information System standards and is expected to improve data sharing, documentation processes, and reporting capabilities.
The plan also discusses the agency’s exploration of artificial intelligence tools that could assist with administrative tasks and data management. DFPS established an internal Artificial Intelligence Center of Excellence to evaluate potential applications across agency operations.
Other technology initiatives include the development of a multi-agency background screening system known as SEMARC and a new contracts and grants management system to improve oversight of service providers.
DFPS Workforce and Employee Wellness Initiatives
The final goal outlined in the plan focuses on workforce development and employee support.
Child welfare work can involve high-stress environments and complex case situations. The DFPS plan states that improving employee wellness, safety, and professional development is necessary to maintain a stable workforce.
The agency has implemented a wellness initiative called Stronger Together that focuses on trauma support, workplace safety, and work-life balance for employees. DFPS also reports that it is expanding recruitment partnerships with universities and workforce programs while developing new training opportunities for staff.
Texas Policy Research Perspective on the DFPS 2026 Annual Plan
The DFPS Annual Plan primarily functions as an operational roadmap for agency priorities rather than a legislative proposal. Nevertheless, several initiatives outlined in the plan intersect with broader public policy questions that are often evaluated through the liberty principles used by Texas Policy Research (TPR).
Programs that emphasize family preservation and kinship placements align with principles that prioritize family autonomy and local support networks rather than reliance on institutional systems. Policies that strengthen community-based solutions may also reduce long term dependence on centralized government services.
At the same time, several initiatives described in the plan involve expanded government infrastructure, new technology systems, and additional oversight frameworks. From a limited government perspective, policymakers may wish to evaluate how these programs are implemented, the costs associated with modernization efforts, and whether reforms achieve measurable improvements in outcomes for children and families.
As Texas continues implementing Community-Based Care and Texas Child Centered Care, ongoing legislative oversight will likely play an important role in determining whether these structural reforms deliver the intended results.
The 2026 DFPS Annual Plan provides insight into how the agency intends to approach these challenges while continuing to evolve the state’s child protection system.
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