The Strategic Plan first sets the context for the Council's deliberations and decision-making by identifying QRIS trends, findings, and questions, and most importantly, by identifying suggested first-order strategic questions needing Council members' consideration. It then delves into design questions and offers proposals for creating a Texas QRIS. Proposals for the design of a Texas QRIS respond directly to questions posed in the Council's Working Paper (2011) and QRIS RFP (2012) and are informed by (1) phone interviews with 23 stakeholders and three statewide electronic surveys; (2) a literature review examining relationships between the Council's suggested program quality indicators and child outcomes; (3) suggested guiding principles; (4) a review of QRIS-related documents, including QRIS practices across the country; and (5) an "aspirational" logic model. Also, while recognizing that Texas chose not to participate in the federal government's Race to the Top -- Early Learning Challenge, the broad response from states suggests that the application's criteria and the implementation plans of winning states offer insight into the future of QRIS. As a result, examples and perceptions gained from study of these applications often are referenced. Finally, a cost analysis based on the system's proposed design is provided. (author abstract)