Heart Of Texas Region Mental Health & Mental Retardation Center

Heart Of Texas Region Mental Health & Mental Retardation Center, doing business as Heart Of Texas Behavioral Health Network, is a local government-owned entity that functions as a federal grant recipient, delivering homelessness intervention, behavioral health services, and supportive housing across a six-county region in Central Texas. The organization operates as a prime grant recipient (76% of recent awards) and as a sub-recipient under state and local government entities. As the designated Local Mental Health Authority for the Heart of Texas region, the organization competes primarily under federal grant programs rather than federal contracts, with no presence on federal contract vehicles or competitive procurement awards.

Heart Of Texas Behavioral Health Network's federal footprint concentrates heavily in the Continuum of Care Program (CFDA 14.267), which funds permanent supportive housing, rapid rehousing, transitional housing, supportive services, and homeless management information systems. Recent prime grants include a $389,773 CoC award from HUD's Assistant Secretary for Community Planning and Development (July 1, 2026–June 30, 2027) supporting emergency shelter operations, case management, mental health counseling, substance abuse treatment, and the KLARAS Center for Families' Hope Shelter for youth victims of sex trafficking aged 13–17; a $255,850 Basic Center Program award (CFDA 93.623) from the Administration on Children, Youth and Families (September 30, 2025–September 29, 2028) funding the KLARAS Center's emergency shelter and crisis intervention services for runaway and homeless youth under 18; and multiple CoC grants ranging from $145,048 to $393,883 across fiscal years 2024–2026. The organization also holds a Department of Veterans Affairs per diem grant supporting transitional housing beds for homeless veterans.

Customer concentration is extreme: HUD's Assistant Secretary for Community Planning and Development accounts for 66 of 101 recent awards in the source data, representing roughly 86% of the award footprint by count. Secondary customers include the Department of Health and Human Services Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (9 awards), the Department of Justice Office of Justice Programs Victims of Crime (4 awards), and the Texas Health & Human Services Commission and Texas Governor's Office as sub-award sources. Six awards carry ultimate completion dates within the next twenty-four months, exposing the organization to CoC and Basic Center Program recompete cycles.

Sub-award work flows primarily through the Texas Health & Human Services Commission across substance abuse prevention and treatment, early childhood intervention services, mental health crisis stabilization, and local mental health authority performance agreements. The organization also receives federal pass-through funding from the Texas Governor's Office for the KLARAS Center trafficking victim shelter project and from HUD for tenant-based rental assistance under the HOME Investment Partnerships Program. The combined dollars obligated across all prime and sub awards total $42.2 million, with the organization managing grant operations from its headquarters in Waco, Texas, and subordinate service delivery across Bosque, Falls, Freestone, Hill, Limestone, and McLennan counties.