Texas Department of Health, Bureau of Nutrition Services:

An Inventory of Records at the Texas State Archives, 1975-2001

Agency History

During the time period of these records, the Texas Department of Health administered the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children program (WIC) and the Farmers' Market Nutrition Program (FMNP) through its Bureau of Nutrition Services. In 2004, state health agencies were reorganized under the new Texas State Health and Human Services Commission (House Bill 2292, 78th Legislature, Regular Session, 2003). One of the Commission's divisions, the Texas Department of State Health Services, now oversees the Nutrition Services Section, which administers WIC and FMNP.

The Texas Department of Health was created in 1879 as the Texas Quarantine Department, charged primarily with isolating and preventing epidemic diseases such as smallpox, cholera, and typhoid fever. Over the next century, the department became the state's primary agency for public health planning, services, and regulation. It assumed the name Texas Department of Health in 1978. The agency was headed by a commissioner of health, who oversaw an assistant commissioner, an executive deputy commissioner, and four deputy commissioners. The deputy commissioners were in charge of numerous bureaus that were involved with community health and prevention, health care financing, public health sciences and quality, and administration. The Deputy Commissioner for Community Health and Prevention administered the Associateship for Community Health and Resources Development, which included the Bureau of Nutrition Services among its three bureaus.

The Bureau of Nutrition Services, like its successor the Nutrition Services Section, directed and was responsible for policy development and enforcement for WIC and FMNP. The Bureau served as the state liaison to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and managed all special initiatives such as electronic benefits transfer. Within the Bureau, the Nutrition Education/Clinic Services Unit established standards and policies for WIC clinical services, developed targeted WIC nutrition education and breastfeeding promotion, and oversaw WIC infant and cereal rebate contracts. The unit established WIC-allowable foods in accordance with federal regulations, including oversight and approval of infant formula issuance. The Food Issuance and Redemption Services Unit established standards and policies for WIC-authorized grocers and maintained provider base for grocers and farmers' market associations. The unit also processed WIC food vouchers to pay grocers and managed claims adjudications and reconsiderations. The former Bureau of Nutrition Services also included the management of the Public Health Nutrition Program (PHN), which in 2004 was moved to the new Prevention and Preparedness Division, Disease Prevention and Intervention Section, Health Promotion Unit, Chronic Disease Prevention Branch.

The Special Supplemental Food Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC) is a federally-funded program under the authority of the Child Nutrition Act of 1966, Section 17. The program is designed to provide food supplements, health care, and consumer education to eligible women and children who face nutritional risk. It is administered by the USDA - Food and Nutrition Service (FNS), through regional offices and state agencies. The WIC program was initiated by the State of Texas in 1974, the year WIC became a permanent federal program.

The Farmers' Market Nutrition Program (FMNP) was established by Congress in 1992 to allow WIC recipients the opportunity to obtain fresh, locally grown produce through farmers' markets and to increase community participation in farmers' markets. The FMNP is administered through a Federal/State partnership in which FNS provides cash grants to State agencies, such as state health departments, which develop plans to operate the programs that are approved by FNS and administer the FMNP. The State of Texas received funding from the USDA to join the FMNP demonstration project in 1989 (Texas Agriculture Code, Chapter 15, 71st Legislature, 1989) and sustained its participation when the FMNP was made an official federal program in 1992.

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Scope and Contents of the Records

Records comprise state plans of operations and their supporting documentation, racial/ethnic group participation reports, and general administrative files for the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC); and state plans of operations with supporting documentation for the associated Farmers' Market Nutrition Program (FMNP). State plans of operations for WIC encompass fiscal years 1992-2000 while other WIC records cover 1975-2001. State plans of operations for FMNP are present only for fiscal years 1996, 1998-2000 with supporting documention dating fiscal years 1994-1996. The title of each state plan of operation is the fiscal year (running from the previous September through the August of the stated year) for which it was written, and the date span following the title is the time period in which it was written. Similarly, the title of each supporting documentation folder is the fiscal year span (running from the previous September through the August of the stated year) of the state plans to which the supporting documentation relates, and the date span following the title is the time period in which the supporting documentation was written. WIC is a federally-funded program designed to provide food supplements, health care, and consumer education to eligible women and children who face nutritional risk. FMNP allows WIC recipients the opportunity to obtain fresh, locally grown produce through farmers' markets and to increase community participation in farmers' markets. Both programs are administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) - Food and Nutrition Service (FNS). Both programs were administered and managed by the Bureau of Nutrition Services within the Texas Department of Health during the time span of these records.

Created to administer WIC and FMNP, the state plans include summaries of the general administration of the program, its goals and objectives, funding, certification, management, monitoring and audits, and nutrition education and services. State programs for WIC and FMNP are required to submit a new state plan to FNS for its approval in order to continue program operations for the next fiscal year. WIC state plan supporting documentation illustrates the approval process through FNS requests for changes to submitted state plans and subsequent revisions made by Texas WIC. Statistics of the race and ethnicity of WIC clients are contained in reports submitted on an at least yearly basis to the Texas Bureau of Nutrition by local health agencies providing WIC services and are summarized in state-wide racial and ethnic participation reports submitted by the Bureau of Nutrition to FNS. General administrative files comprise WIC-related correspondence and signed documents of the Commissioner and Deputy Commissioner for Administration of the Texas Department of Health; subject files on issues affecting WIC, primarily from a variety of government sources; and the Bureau's responses to correspondence received from individuals, legislators, and WIC vendors inquiring about WIC policy.

To prepare this inventory, the described materials were cursorily reviewed to delineate series, to confirm the accuracy of contents lists, to provide an estimate of dates covered, and to determine record types.

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Restrictions

Restrictions on Access

None.

Restrictions on Use

Most records created by Texas state agencies are not copyrighted and may be freely used in any way. State records also include materials received by, not created by, state agencies. Copyright remains with the creator. The researcher is responsible for complying with U.S. Copyright Law (Title 17 U.S.C.).

Technical Requirements

None.

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Related Material

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Administrative Information

Preferred Citation

(Identify the item and cite the series), Records, Bureau of Nutrition Services, Texas Department of Health. Archives and Information Services Division, Texas State Library and Archives Commission.

Accession Information

Accession number: 2005/015

These records were transferred to the Archives and Information Services Division of the Texas State Library and Archives Commission by the Texas Department of Health on September 4, 2004 and on January 6, 2005.

Processing Information

Rebecca Romanchuk, January 2005

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Detailed Description of the Records

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