H79FG001521

Cooperative agreements for states and territories to improve local 988 capacity in Texas - the Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC) proposes the Texas 988 State and Territory Local Capacity Building Project to strengthen and expand Texas' statewide 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline (988) system.

If awarded, HHSC plans to increase the capacity of Texas-based 988 centers to answer calls, chats, and texts in-state; strengthen workforce recruitment, retention, and training; improve coordination with behavioral health, tribal, and emergency response partners; and enhance data collection, quality assurance, and follow-up care.

Because Texas 988 centers are embedded in the state’s local mental and behavioral health authorities, addressing the needs of the 988 workforce will also improve access to crisis intervention services for Texans experiencing mental health, substance use, and suicidal crises, with a particular focus on populations at elevated risk for suicide.

Through system-wide capacity-building and quality-improvement efforts, HHSC will work to ensure timely, high-quality crisis response and connection to care across Texas.

The geographic area served by this project is the entire state of Texas, including all 254 counties.

The primary population of focus includes Texans experiencing mental health, substance use, and suicidal crises who may contact 988 for assistance.

Capacity-building activities will benefit Texans affected by suicide, including those with a higher risk: males, veterans, young adults ages 18-24, rural residents, and tribal populations.

Texas currently operates five 988 centers that provide statewide 24/7 primary and backup coverage for 988 calls, but in-state capacity remains insufficient to meet increasing demand.

While Texas-based 988 centers answered over 201,000 calls in fiscal year 2025, call volume continues to rise, and the in-state answer rate declined from 82 percent in May 2025 to 71 percent in May 2026.

Texas also receives approximately 11,700 chats and texts each month but currently has limited in-state capacity for chat and text responses.

To address workforce gaps and increase statewide crisis response capacity, HHSC will implement several improvement strategies.

These include expanding recruitment, hiring, training, and retention initiatives for 988 crisis staff; increasing staffing and infrastructure to support statewide call, chat, and text response; developing workforce well-being and retention policies; strengthening partnerships among 988 centers, local mental and behavioral health authorities, 911 public safety answering points, tribal partners, and community-based providers; enhancing coordination with outreach, screening, assessment, and referral providers; improving data collection and reporting systems; aligning statewide data definitions; strengthening quality assurance processes; enhancing referral tracking and follow-up care; supporting cybersecurity and operational resilience; and developing a sustainability plan for long-term system growth.

Texas Health And Human Services Commission

<P>SAMHSA AIMS TO ENHANCE THE ROBUST CRISIS RESPONSE SYSTEM ACROSS THE COUNTRY THAT LINKS PEOPLE WHO CALL, TEXT, OR CHAT TO COMMUNITY-BASED PROVIDERS WHO CAN DELIVER A FULL RANGE OF CRISIS CARE SERVICES, TO PROVIDE SUPPORT FOR MENTAL HEALTH, SUBSTANCE USE, AND SUICIDE PREVENTION FOR ALL HELP-SEEKERS.</P>

93.00R

Division of Grants Management [HHS - SAMHSA]

Austin, Texas 787513146 United States

Single Zip Code

Cooperative Agreements for States and Territories to Improve Local 988 Capacity (FG-26-002)