Background

“We need to put the human back in human services… whether it’s mental health, or physical health, or medical resources, or benefits… people are feeling dehumanized.”
– Community Partner in Travis County, Community Voices on Health and Well-Being, 2025

We have heard from individuals and organizations across our community that many of the systems designed to help people who are struggling financially are difficult to navigate and often leave people feeling dehumanized, demoralized, and frustrated. Public benefits are a critical part of the local safety net, yet many of these resources remain underutilized because enrollment processes can be complex and a challenge to access. As a result of these barriers, resources intended to support individuals and families often do not reach those with the greatest needs. Local organizations play an essential role in guiding people to and through these systems, reducing or removing enrollment barriers so individuals and families can access supports that improve economic stability.

Public benefits are a powerful multiplier. When more eligible community members successfully access supports like SNAP, WIC, Medicaid, or the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC), it generates additional federal and state resources for the region, helping households meet basic needs while reducing strain on other local systems. Yet hundreds of thousands of Central Texans who are eligible for these benefits do not receive them. Nearly half of Texans eligible for SNAP do not receive it, an estimated 1 in 5 Texans eligible for the EITC do not claim it, and many uninsured Texans are eligible for coverage through ACA subsidies, Medicaid, or CHIP but remain without coverage.

Open Call Funding Opportunity

The goals of this funding opportunity are to:

• Increase the number of Central Texans enrolled in public benefits for which they are eligible.
• Strengthen community hubs and culturally responsive practices that address the fears, administrative burdens, and other barriers that impede enrollment, particularly for historically marginalized populations.
• Increase co-location and coordination among service providers that reduce barriers for community members to access benefits and economic supports.

Through We All Benefit 2.0: Building Economic Stability, the Foundation seeks to invest in local, community-informed organizations providing core economic stability services (income supports, food security, and healthcare access) to the communities with the greatest health needs in Central Texas—communities that have faced systematic barriers to resources, opportunity, and representation due to race, ethnicity, income level, immigration status, language, geography, sexual orientation, gender, or other factors. The focus of this funding opportunity is to strengthen the local infrastructure that helps people enroll in public benefits that foster economic stability, specifically:

• Income Supports: Earned Income Tax Credit, Child Tax Credit, SSI, and SSDI
• Food Security: SNAP and WIC
• Healthcare Access: Medicaid, CHIP, and Marketplace

The Foundation expects to award up to $35 million in grants for this three-year funding opportunity, roughly $12 million per year. We expect to award 15-25 grants reaching all five counties. There is not a minimum or maximum award size.

Eligibility

To be eligible, organizations must:

• Be tax-exempt under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code (with a valid IRS determination letter at the time of LOI submission) or use a fiscal sponsor that is a tax-exempt 501(c)(3) organization. Public or government entities are eligible to apply as part of a collaborative as the lead entity or a collaborative member.
• Provide core safety net services to historically marginalized communities in Bastrop, Caldwell, Hays, Travis, and/or Williamson counties.

Both current and new grantees may apply to support new or existing work. Applicants may apply independently or as part of a strategic collaborative.

How to Apply

The We All Benefit 2.0: Building Economic Stability funding opportunity opens on March 30, 2026, using a Letter of Intent (LOI) process. The LOI is a short eligibility screening on the criteria and focus listed above and a high-level summary of the applicant’s proposed project. LOIs will not be accepted after April 27, 2026 at 5:00 P.M. CT. Proposals that strongly align with the goals of the funding opportunity will be invited to submit a full application after the LOI stage. Organizations will be notified by May 15, 2026, if they are invited to submit a full application. The invited applications will be due by June 18, 2026, at 5:00 P.M. CT.

Applicants may submit multiple LOIs, but each LOI must represent a unique project and/or scope. If applying as part of a collaborative, the group must identify one lead organization to submit the application on behalf of the group. We define a collaborative as two or more organizations formally partnering to deliver coordinated services that support economic stability. The lead organization should be the only organization to submit an application for the scope of work. If a grant is awarded to the collaborative, the grant agreement will be issued to the lead organization, which will be responsible for reporting to the Foundation and distributing funds to the rest of the collaborative as agreed to by all participating organizations.

All LOIs must be submitted through the Foundation’s online Grants Portal. Paper copies and emailed submissions will not be accepted.

Contact Information

For programmatic questions, please email [email protected].

For technical questions, please email [email protected].

Connect with a Program Officer
Foundation staff will offer one-on-one support through informal office hours during the LOI period. These sessions provide brief opportunities to discuss your ideas for and understanding of this funding opportunity. You are encouraged to use these office hours to explore fit and develop your ideas. You can sign up for one of those sessions here.