Commissioners approve application for state funding to expand mental-health diversion program

The Tarrant County Commissioners Court voted to approve a resolution to submit a fiscal-year 2026 State Criminal Justice Planning Fund grant application to the Office of the Governor's Criminal Justice Division for the county’s mental-health diversion program (agenda item C4).

Commissioner Court approved the motion and second; the transcript records the motion, second, and a unanimous vote to approve the grant application. The resolution would allow the county to seek state funds to support a diversion program that connects eligible defendants with treatment instead of jail.

Speakers in favor of the grant during the public-comment period said the county jail is not an appropriate place for many people with severe mental illness and urged the court to secure funds that would expand alternatives to incarceration. At the meeting, a speaker identified the requested amount for additional staffing as $86,000 for one case manager; that figure was presented during public comment as the current request linked to program expansion.

Commissioners asked staff to include performance and renewal reporting information in future grant backup materials so the court can see how departments are meeting grant deliverables. The transcript records that staff agreed to begin adding renewal performance data to agenda backups where available.

Why it matters: Grant funding can expand the county’s capacity to divert eligible people away from jail and connect them to treatment. Public commenters and at least one county representative characterized diversion as a long-standing program that has spared jail time for many defendants over the years and urged the court to request sufficient funding to broaden access.