The Nueces River Authority created the department of planning in September of 2020. The department is tasked with funneling the organization in unison with the Board of Directors’ strategic plan. Representatives of this department continuously meet with public officials, consultants, and the public regarding land use and facility needs. Using the tools established by the Texas Water Development Board (TWDB) and other state and federal agencies, the department pilots standards for development, facilitates financing prospects, and develops scopes for future improvements to water quality initiatives and infrastructure.

The Nueces River Authority is involved with the TWDB regional water and flood planning programs.
Every five years, these programs consolidate plans collected from sixteen regional groups throughout the state and consolidates them into a State Plan for each water supply and flood prevention.
NRA serves as the administrative agency for the Coastal Bend Regional Water Planning Group (Region N) and the Nueces Regional Flood Planning Group (Region 13) and serves as a voting member of the South-Central Texas Regional Water Planning Group (Region L).