With summer fast approaching, many families in Texas are looking to secure a spot at one of the 330 youth sleepaway camps located throughout the state. In previous years this was an easier task to accomplish, but given that only nine of those camps have active licenses currently, it’s been more of an uphill battle in 2026.
Chron reported on Tuesday that the Department of State Health Services has only approved nine summer camps for operation this year, with 240 applications still listed as “pending.” The active camps are:
- Camp OTX in Bandera
- Hidden Falls Ranch in Wayside
- Camp Fern Legacy, Inc. in Marshall
- Camp Buckner in Burnet
- Camp Sweeney in Whitesboro
- Camp Thurman in Pantego
- Frontier Camp in Grapeland
- Pine Springs Baptist Camp in Laneville
- Ceta Canyon Methodist Camp and Retreat in Happy
Youth camps cannot be operated in Texas without a license, and all applications were due by March 31. So, what’s the holdup in terms of approving the remaining 240 requests? Well, for some camps it’s the inability to install fiber optic internet, which is now a state requirement for application approval. It’s one of several safety regulations that were adopted in the wake of last year’s tragedy at Camp Mystic, where 25 campers and two counselors died, along with the camp’s owner Dick Eastland, who perished trying to save them.
Camp Longhorn in Burnet is one of the businesses struggling to meet the fiber internet threshold. When notifying parents about the delay, the camp said that it was experiencing an “unresolved issue” that would “prohibit ~100,000 campers from being able to attend summer camp.” The notice went on to say, “Our intention moving forward is clear: to fully embrace and enact every safety provision outlined in the newly enacted laws.”
Camps are working to meet stricter standards following last year’s tragedy at Camp Mystic
Camp Longhorn, along with the other summer camps with pending applications, are working to meet new safety guidelines to be granted approval before upcoming sessions are scheduled to begin. In addition to installing fiber internet infrastructure, all camps are required to provide campers with mandatory safety training, install public address and emergency warning systems, and provide families with detailed emergency plans. In some cases, the camps must either rebuild or relocate certain cabins that are currently located within a designated flood zone for added security.
Once those tasks are completed, the camps will then need to undergo pre-licensing inspections that will take a closer look at everything from staff to food service to water systems, in addition to emergency preparations. The Department of State Health Services website states, “All new and existing youth camps will be required to complete a pre-licensing inspection prior to a youth camp license being issued. Inspection of a youth camp is required to verify that the operation meets applicable health and safety regulations, rules and standards.”
Camp Mystic was one of the businesses that submitted an application for the 2026 season prior to the March 31 deadline. However, it announced on April 30 that it would be withdrawing its application after numerous people argued it was too soon to reopen given that it hasn’t even been a year since the deadly flooding.
In a statement, Camp Mystic wrote, “No administrative process or summer season should move forward while families continue to grieve, while investigations continue and while so many Texans still carry the pain of last July’s tragedy.” The camp went on to say, “This decision is intended to remove any doubt that Camp Mystic has heard the concerns expressed by grieving families, members of the Texas House and Senate investigating committees and citizens across our state.”
Finally, the statement concluded, “Respect for those voices requires that we step back now.”
It’s unclear as of writing when, or if, any other summer camps will withdraw applications or when additional approvals will be announced.
This article first appeared on Good Info News Wire and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.
