Who does Central Valley Regional Center serve?
CVRC serves families living in Fresno, Kings, Madera, Mariposa, Merced, and Tulare counties — one of the 21 regional center territories created by the Lanterman Act WIC §4500. Services are provided regardless of your income, and you do not need a completed diagnosis to start. Your home address decides which center is yours.
That is a big, mostly agricultural stretch of the state — Fresno and Visalia at one end, Mariposa’s mountain communities at the other — and it is one of the most linguistically diverse territories in California. That matters more here than the map does, and we come back to it below.
Not sure CVRC is your center? Our Regional Center finder answers it from your county in a few seconds.
How do I make a referral to CVRC?
More ways than most centers offer. CVRC’s own eligibility page says referrals “can be made online, by phone, fax or mail,” and that it welcomes referrals in person at one of our offices. There is also an intake email — IntakeReferrals@cvrc.org — listed both by CVRC and by the state’s own regional center directory.
Pick whichever one you will actually finish tonight. A referral by email at 11pm counts exactly as much as one made by phone at 10am, and it has the advantage of time-stamping itself.
You also do not have to be the one who makes it. For children under 3, CVRC says plainly that “anyone can make a referral, including parents, medical care providers, neighbors, family members, foster parents, and day care providers.” If your pediatrician offered to send one, let them — and then send your own anyway, so there is no chance of it sitting in someone else’s inbox.
CVRC’s eligibility and referral page →Which CVRC office will I deal with?
CVRC runs three offices — Fresno, Visalia, and Merced. Fresno is the headquarters; all three take intake, and all three handle Early Start referrals for children under 3. Call the main line at the top of this page if you are not sure which one covers you.
CVRC publishes its three office locations but not a county-to-office map, so this page won’t guess which office covers Kings, Madera, Mariposa, or Tulare — ask on your first call, and write down the answer along with the name of the person who gave it to you.
CVRC lists separate intake numbers for each office. We deliberately publish only the main line at the top of this page: a main line is always answered and can transfer you, while a direct intake line can be voicemail — or the wrong one for your child’s age. If you would rather dial your local office directly, take the number from CVRC’s own contact page, not from a search result.
What happens after I refer — and how fast?
CVRC schedules an interview with you, gathers records, arranges any evaluations it needs, and sends the file to a multidisciplinary team for the eligibility decision. Its own page states the interview happens “within 15 working days” — which is not a courtesy, it is the deadline California law puts on every regional center WIC §4642.
For children 3 and older, the standard is substantial disability: significant functional limits in 3 or more major life areas, from a disability that began before age 18 WIC §4512. Under 3, Early Start is broader — a measured delay, an established risk condition, or a combination of high-risk factors, with no diagnosis required.
Bring what you have and do not wait for a perfect folder: pediatrician notes, any evaluation or diagnostic report, an IEP or preschool observation, and your own written list of what a hard day looks like. When you describe your child, describe the hard days. Assessors are measuring function, not parenting.
Interview / initial intake: 15 working days from your request WIC §4642. Assessment: 120 days from intake — 60 days if delay would put your child at risk WIC §4643. Under 3: 45 days from referral to evaluation and the first plan. IPP: 60 days after the assessment is complete WIC §4646.
Can I do all of this in my own language?
Yes — and it is a right, not a favor. California law requires the regional center to communicate with you in your preferred language and to give you the plan itself in that language WIC §4646. CVRC publishes its family guides in twelve languages, including Hmong, Armenian, Farsi, and both written forms of Chinese.
The full list on CVRC’s eligibility page is English, Spanish, Hmong, Korean, Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese, Tagalog, Vietnamese, Arabic, Armenian, Farsi, and Russian. Ask for an interpreter when you make the referral, not when you arrive — it is easier to schedule than to improvise. And do not let a bilingual older child interpret a meeting about their sibling’s disability. That is not their job, and the law does not ask it of them.
What is the same everywhere, and what is local?
| Same at every regional center | Local to CVRC |
|---|---|
| The 3-of-7 substantial disability standard WIC §4512 | Five referral routes, including in person at an office |
| The intake, assessment, and IPP clocks WIC §4642 WIC §4643 WIC §4646 | Three offices — Fresno, Visalia, Merced — each taking intake |
| A denial must arrive as a written Notice of Action | Family materials published in twelve languages |
| Free to your family at any income | Local provider supply and purchase-of-service patterns — DDS publishes this annually; ask your service coordinator for current local numbers |
What if CVRC says no?
Ask for the written Notice of Action. A “no” said on the phone is not a decision and starts no clock. From the date you receive the notice you have 60 days to request an informal meeting, mediation, or a fair hearing WIC §4710.5. If a service your child already gets is being cut and you want it to continue while you appeal, that request must go in within 30 days of receiving the notice WIC §4715.
Write both dates on the notice itself the day it arrives. Then get free help: the Office of Clients’ Rights Advocacy (OCRA), run by Disability Rights California, has advocates who handle Lanterman Act appeals for families at no cost, in multiple languages.
How to appeal a Regional Center denial, step by step →