Focusing on community mental health centers (CMHCs), governance within the Texas mental health service delivery system and how representation on boards and advisory councils relates to services for Mexican Americans are addressed by reviewing existing conceptual analyses of the governance function in community mental health and the citizens' role in governance; surveying federal and state statutes; and compiling rosters of board and council members at the Texas Department of Mental Health and Mental Retardation (TDMHMR) and CMHCs. Tabular data on the ethnicity, sex, and occupation of 1981 board members demonstrate the historical lack of Mexican American and Black representation on the TDMHMR Board of Trustees and CMHC boards. The monograph includes discussions on the role of boards and councils in the TDMHMR: the federal intent and public law; the context mental health in Texas; specific cases of citizen representation on mental health boards and councils; the issue of "representation vs. representativeness" for Mexican American communities; and recommendations for expanded citizen participation in the governance of mental health programs. Appendices include a model board of citizen governance; an annotated chronology of federal and state mental health activity; and rosters of 1979 and 1981 state boards, advisory groups, and CMHC boards. (Author/NQA)