T3C is a complete reset that replaces Texas’ outdated regulations for child-placing agencies. These 24 service packages replace outdated regulations with requirements focused on keeping children safe and in permanent homes.
This guide will show you how to turn T3C compliance into a chance to build better systems for children and foster families.
What Is T3C?
T3C, which stands for Texas Child-Centered Care, is the new set of regulations that completely change how children and family services agencies and residential operations work in Texas. T3C will work alongside the existing Texas Title 26, Chapter 745, regulations to center children and focus on successful outcomes. You’ve probably heard it called the T3C blueprint because it rewrites all the rules of how child welfare services are run across the state.
Instead of traditional regulatory subchapters, T3C is built around 24 distinct service packages organized into tiers, as well as three add-on services that can be layered on top:
- Nine packages for child placing agencies and foster family home settings
- Nine packages for General Residential Operation (GRO) Tier I facilities
- Six packages for GRO Tier II operations
What makes T3C especially challenging is its timeline. Texas is in the middle of a complex 32-month transition period from January 2025 through August 2027. During this time, agencies will simultaneously work under four different funding structures, before everything gets unified under the new system by fiscal year 2028.
T3C is part of a broader initiative to put children’s needs at the center of all decisions. The regulations include the framework for implementing child-centered practices instead of just talking about them, almost like the operational manual for making the values of Texas Child-Centered Care work in real life.
For agencies that are already struggling with paperwork and staff shortages, T3C adds another layer of requirements to deal with in the short term. But it also creates an opportunity for organizations that get ahead of the changes to use them to improve their operations.
Why T3C Matters for Texas Providers
Texas child welfare has been broken for years, and everyone knows it. The state has operated under federal oversight for more than 10 years, after a federal judge noted in 2015 that foster children leave the system more damaged than when they entered. More than a policy failure, that’s a human tragedy that happens to real kids every day.
The numbers clearly show that there’s a crisis. About 28,000 children currently live in Texas foster care, with more than 1,000 aging out of the system each year. Meanwhile, up to 60% of foster parents quit each year, which creates a revolving door that leaves children without stable parents. Something has to change.
T3C replaces outdated frameworks that focus on compliance over outcomes with modern requirements that measure whether the children are getting better. Instead of checking boxes for paperwork completion, agencies now track individualized assessments and take real accountability for the results.
These new regulations came from stakeholder collaboration between the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS), the Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC), and care providers who understand what happens on the ground.
Organizations that are willing to embrace these changes can access more funds. Agencies are eligible for up to $150,000 in T3C funds through fiscal year 2025 to help with their implementation costs.
What’s Changing With T3C? Key Service Packages and What They Cover
T3C changes everything for Texas child welfare. Instead of generic programs that try to help everyone all at once, you’ll choose from specific service packages that are designed for different situations. Each package targets specific challenges while building toward a community transition and long-term stability.
Texas faces many of the same challenges as other states managing massive foster care systems, and T3C seeks to make things easier for everyone. More than 343,000 children live in foster care across the country, and Texas is responsible for almost 10% of them. That’s why Texas needs service packages that can address complicated needs without losing focus on getting children back to safe, permanent homes.
This is how the three main service packages will change the way you deliver care:
- Foster Family Home Services: Provide comprehensive support for traditional foster home child welfare placements, including basic foster family support, substance use services, mental health support, and specialized care for children with complex medical needs or trauma histories. Add-on services like transition support and kinship caregiver assistance let you customize care based on what each family needs.
- GRO Tier 1 Primary Settings: Focus on a community transition for children who need more intensive support than traditional foster care can provide. Services include basic childcare operations, specialized treatment for sexual aggression and substance use issues, emergency emotional support, and comprehensive medical care. Everything aims at preparing children to move to less restrictive community settings.
- GRO Tier II Primary Settings: Designed for children requiring the highest level of specialized care before they can transition into community placements, packages address sexual offender treatment, complex mental health and medical needs, human trafficking recovery, and aggressive or defiant behaviors. The goal remains community transition, but with intensive stabilization services first.
Each package comes with specific requirements and outcomes you’ll need to track. You can’t mix and match services from different packages or add services that aren’t included in your chosen package. This establishes clearer expectations but gives you less flexibility than the current arrangements.
The Impact of New Service Packages on Daily Operations
Instead of trying to be everything to everyone, you’ll specialize in specific types of cases that match your package designation. Some children who might have stayed in your program before will need different placements that better match their needs.
The foster care social worker role now requires documentation that will focus on the specific outcomes each package is designed to achieve. Foster family home services track different metrics than GRO Tier II programs, for example, because they serve different populations with different goals.
Funding follows the service packages, which means your revenue depends on delivering the specific services included in your package rather than just maintaining placements. Success is measured by how well children progress toward a community transition, not just how long they stay in your program.
Why Compliance Is Harder Without the Right Systems
If you’re planning to manage your T3C compliance with spreadsheets and generic software programs that weren’t built for child welfare, you’re going to have a hard time. You might get the job done, but everything will take longer, and the risk of mistakes will go up.
Current system failures show up in the data. More than a third of children experience three or more placements each year, and only 55% stay in their home county. Poor documentation and coordination lead to the instability that T3C aims to fix through better oversight.
Your outdated systems can create expensive headaches. You might spend hours building workarounds to meet the T3C documentation standards because your current software can’t generate the reports you actually need. When incidents happen, you’ll scramble to compile information from multiple systems instead of having everything in one place. These delays put you at a higher risk of penalties under T3C’s stricter reporting requirements.
Generic customer management systems can’t handle all of this. They can’t track the specialized data points T3C requires or create reports that prove your compliance with the service package standards. You’ll end up paying for software that makes your job harder instead of easier. To prevent this, you need the right system, one that’s built specifically for human services.
Turn Compliance Into a Catalyst for Better Care
T3C gives you a chance to build systems that help children as they deserve. The new requirements will push you toward family social work strategies and practices that improve long-term outcomes, but only if you’re ready for them.
Better documentation means better care for families. Once your staff can access complete case histories and track their progress in one place, children under your care will face fewer disruptions. Everyone will better understand their needs and trauma history. That’s why compliance work is an investment in stability and not just extra paperwork.
Choosing the Right Software for T3C Compliance
Finding foster care and adoption software that can handle the T3C foster care requirements may not seem easy. Your systems need to manage the specific details of each service package while connecting with your DFPS childcare search and other state databases.
Ask these questions when evaluating your options:
- Can it handle all of the T3C service package requirements and track credentialing workflows for different staff roles?
- Will it survive audits with complete logs and version control?
- Can your staff customize forms and workflows without calling IT support?
- Does it connect smoothly with DFPS systems and electronic health records?
- Is it already approved under Administration for Children and Families (ACF) guidelines?
Casebook and T3C: Compliance Without the Headaches
Casebook can help you handle your T3C requirements with features designed specifically for child welfare. We have an ACF-approved product, so you’ll skip the procurement delays that could otherwise mess up your transition timeline. Your staff can adjust their workflows when the T3C requirements change, without waiting for tech support, and our automated logs and compliance alerts will keep you ready for audits.
See how Casebook’s child welfare software can fit into your T3C transition by scheduling a demo today.