Houston’s
Council is a 38 member volunteer planning group comprised of
community members who have been appointed by the CEO
(Harris
County Judge Ed
Emmett) to serve a
two-year term. The CEO is the person who officially receives the Ryan
White Program Part
A funds and the appointment of the Planning Council is a requirement in order to receive
that funding.
Council members, in collaboration with consumers, service providers, and other experts
determine what services are most needed by people living with HIV/AIDS in the Houston EMA.
The Council then
prioritizes those services and decides the best way to allocate Houston’s
Part A grant
award to fund the service categories according to the approved priorities.
The Council is also responsible for determining the Standards of Care for each of the
funded service categories and for developing a plan to provide those services (within the Comprehensive Plan).
The Council does not directly fund or contract with agencies to provide
client services. The Administrative Agent (Ryan
White Grant Administration,
a department of
Harris County Public Health & Environmental Services) is responsible for contracting with agencies according to the descriptions,
priorities, & allocations determined by the Council in order to acquire services for
people living with HIV/AIDS in the Houston area. The Council also evaluates how well the Administrative Agent performs in contracting the
provision of services.