The 81st Texas Legislature (2009) created the Office of the Independent Ombudsman for State Supported Living Centers (OIO) to provide oversight, advocacy and protection for residents of state supported living centers. Our mission is to serve as an independent, impartial and confidential resource, assisting residents, their families and the public with services and related complaints and issues, which deal with the 13 State Supported Living Centers across the state of Texas. Each state supported living center has an Assistant Independent Ombudsman onsite to independently investigate and monitor concerns. The responsibilities of the Office of the Independent Ombudsman are to: • Utilize person-centered practices to advocate for residents and their families • Investigate complaints and respond to inquiries • Monitor abuse, neglect, and exploitation investigations • Evaluate the SSLC investigation process • Conduct legislatively mandated audits (Program Review) • Make recommendations to the Governor, Legislature, HHS and SSLCs • Refer complaints outside our scope of practice