Annual Update of the HHS Poverty Guidelines, 4036-4037 [2016-01450]

Download as PDF 4036 Federal Register / Vol. 81, No. 15 / Monday, January 25, 2016 / Notices are working to improve language accessibility within their states; and • Recommendations for state-specific capacity building for the 20 states intended to enhance statewide language access, which will include the development of language access plans. An objective review of was conducted that assessed the grantee’s application using criteria related to the project’s approach, the organization’s capacity, and the development of costs for the project’s budget. Statutory Authority: Section 310 of the Family Violence Prevention and Services Act, as amended by Section 201 of the CAPTA Reauthorization Act of 2010, Pub. L. 111–320. Christopher Beach, Senior Grants Policy Specialist, Division of Grants Policy, Office of Administration. [FR Doc. 2016–01329 Filed 1–22–16; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 4184–32–P DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES Office of the Secretary Annual Update of the HHS Poverty Guidelines Evaluation, Room 422F.5, Humphrey Building, Department of Health and Human Services, Washington, DC 20201—telephone: (202) 690–7507—or visit https://aspe.hhs.gov/poverty/. For information about the percentage multiple of the poverty guidelines to be used on immigration forms such as USCIS Form I–864, Affidavit of Support, contact U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services at 1–800–375– 5283. For information about the Hill-Burton Uncompensated Services Program (free or reduced-fee health care services at certain hospitals and other facilities for persons meeting eligibility criteria involving the poverty guidelines), contact the Health Resources and Services Administration Information Center at 1–800–275–4772. You also may visit https://www.hrsa.gov/ gethealthcare/affordable/hillburton/. For information about the number of people in poverty, visit the Poverty section of the Census Bureau’s Web site at https://www.census.gov/hhes/www/ poverty/poverty.html or contact the Census Bureau’s Customer Service Center at 1–800–923–8282 (toll-free) and https://ask.census.gov for further information. Department of Health and Human Services. ACTION: Notice. This notice provides an update of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) poverty guidelines to account for last calendar year’s increase in prices as measured by the Consumer Price Index. DATES: Effective Date: January 25, 2016, unless an office administering a program using the guidelines specifies a different effective date for that particular program. ADDRESSES: Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation, Room 404E, Humphrey Building, Department of Health and Human Services, Washington, DC 20201. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For information about how the guidelines are used or how income is defined in a particular program, contact the Federal, state, or local office that is responsible for that program. For information about poverty figures for immigration forms, the Hill-Burton Uncompensated Services Program, and the number of people in poverty, use the specific telephone numbers and addresses given below. For general questions about the poverty guidelines themselves, contact Kendall Swenson, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and AGENCY: SUMMARY: asabaliauskas on DSK5VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES 2016 POVERTY GUIDELINES FOR THE 48 CONTIGUOUS STATES AND THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA Background Section 673(2) of the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (OBRA) of 1981 (42 U.S.C. 9902(2)) requires the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services to update the poverty guidelines at least annually, adjusting them on the basis of the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI–U). The poverty guidelines are used as an eligibility criterion by the Community Services Block Grant program and a number of other Federal programs. The poverty guidelines issued here are a simplified version of the poverty thresholds that the Census Bureau uses to prepare its estimates of the number of individuals and families in poverty. As required by law, this update is accomplished by increasing the latest published Census Bureau poverty thresholds by the relevant percentage change in the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI–U). The guidelines in this 2016 notice reflect the 0.1 percent price increase between calendar years 2014 and 2015. After this inflation adjustment, the guidelines are rounded and adjusted to standardize the differences between family sizes. In rare circumstances, the rounding and standardizing adjustments in the formula result in small decreases in the poverty guidelines for some household sizes even when the inflation factor is not negative. In order to prevent a reduction in the guidelines in these rare circumstances, a minor adjustment was implemented to the formula beginning this year. In cases where the year-to-year change in inflation is not negative and the rounding and standardizing adjustments in the formula result in reductions to the guidelines from the previous year for some household sizes, the guidelines for the affected household sizes are fixed at the prior year’s guidelines. As in prior years, these 2016 guidelines are roughly equal to the poverty thresholds for calendar year 2015 which the Census Bureau expects to publish in final form in September 2016. The poverty guidelines continue to be derived from the Census Bureau’s current official poverty thresholds; they are not derived from the Census Bureau’s new Supplemental Poverty Measure (SPM). The following guideline figures represent annual income. VerDate Sep<11>2014 13:09 Jan 22, 2016 Jkt 238001 SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: PO 00000 Frm 00021 Persons in family/household Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 .................................................. .................................................. .................................................. .................................................. .................................................. .................................................. .................................................. .................................................. Poverty guideline $11,880 16,020 20,160 24,300 28,440 32,580 36,730 40,890 For families/households with more than 8 persons, add $4,160 for each additional person. 2016 POVERTY GUIDELINES FOR ALASKA Persons in family/household 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 .................................................. .................................................. .................................................. .................................................. .................................................. .................................................. .................................................. .................................................. Poverty guideline $14,840 20,020 25,200 30,380 35,560 40,740 45,920 51,120 For families/households with more than 8 persons, add $5,200 for each additional person. E:\FR\FM\25JAN1.SGM 25JAN1 Federal Register / Vol. 81, No. 15 / Monday, January 25, 2016 / Notices 2016 POVERTY GUIDELINES FOR HAWAII Poverty guideline Persons in family/household 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 .................................................. .................................................. .................................................. .................................................. .................................................. .................................................. .................................................. .................................................. $13,670 18,430 23,190 27,950 32,710 37,470 42,230 47,010 asabaliauskas on DSK5VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES For families/households with more than 8 persons, add $4,780 for each additional person. Separate poverty guideline figures for Alaska and Hawaii reflect Office of Economic Opportunity administrative practice beginning in the 1966–1970 period. (Note that the Census Bureau poverty thresholds—the version of the poverty measure used for statistical purposes—have never had separate figures for Alaska and Hawaii.) The poverty guidelines are not defined for Puerto Rico or other outlying jurisdictions. In cases in which a Federal program using the poverty guidelines serves any of those jurisdictions, the Federal office that administers the program is generally responsible for deciding whether to use the contiguous-states-and-DC guidelines for those jurisdictions or to follow some other procedure. Due to confusing legislative language dating back to 1972, the poverty guidelines sometimes have been mistakenly referred to as the ‘‘OMB’’ (Office of Management and Budget) poverty guidelines or poverty line. In fact, OMB has never issued the guidelines; the guidelines are issued each year by the Department of Health and Human Services. The poverty guidelines may be formally referenced as ‘‘the poverty guidelines updated periodically in the Federal Register by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services under the authority of 42 U.S.C. 9902(2).’’ Some federal programs use a percentage multiple of the guidelines (for example, 125 percent or 185 percent of the guidelines), as noted in relevant authorizing legislation or program regulations. Non-Federal organizations that use the poverty guidelines under their own authority in non-Federallyfunded activities also may choose to use a percentage multiple of the guidelines. The poverty guidelines do not make a distinction between farm and non-farm families, or between aged and non-aged units. (Only the Census Bureau poverty thresholds have separate figures for aged VerDate Sep<11>2014 13:09 Jan 22, 2016 Jkt 238001 and non-aged one-person and twoperson units.) Note that this notice does not provide definitions of such terms as ‘‘income’’ or ‘‘family,’’ because there is considerable variation in defining these terms among the different programs that use the guidelines. These variations are traceable to the different laws and regulations that govern the various programs. This means that questions such as ‘‘Is income counted before or after taxes?’’, ‘‘Should a particular type of income be counted?’’, and ‘‘Should a particular person be counted as a member of the family/household?’’ are actually questions about how a specific program applies the poverty guidelines. All such questions about how a specific program applies the guidelines should be directed to the entity that administers or funds the program, since that entity has the responsibility for defining such terms as ‘‘income’’ or ‘‘family,’’ to the extent that these terms are not already defined for the program in legislation or regulations. Dated: January 21, 2016. Sylvia M. Burwell, Secretary of Health and Human Services. [FR Doc. 2016–01450 Filed 1–22–16; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 4150–05–P DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES 4037 Place: The Ritz-Carlton Hotel, Plaza II, 1150 22nd Street NW., Washington, DC 20037. Contact Person: Frank S. De Silva, Ph.D., Scientific Review Officer, Scientific Review Program, Division of Extramural Activities, Room #3E72A, National Institutes of Health/ NIAID, 5601 Fishers Lane, MSC 9834, Bethesda, MD 20892934, (240) 669–5023, fdesilva@niaid.nih.gov. Name of Committee: National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases Special Emphasis Panel; ‘‘Comprehensive Resources for HIV Microbicides and Biomedical Prevention (N01)’’. Date: February 18, 2016. Time: 10:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Agenda: To review and evaluate contract proposals. Place: National Institutes of Health Room 3F100, 5601 Fishers Lane, Rockville, MD 20892 (Telephone Conference Call). Contact Person: Jay R. Radke, Ph.D., AIDS Review Branch, Scientific Review Program, Division of Extramural Activities, Room #3G11B, National Institutes of Health, NIAID, 5601 Fishers Lane, MSC–9823, Bethesda, MD 20892–9823, (240) 669–5046, jay.radke@ nih.gov. (Catalogue of Federal Domestic Assistance Program Nos. 93.855, Allergy, Immunology, and Transplantation Research; 93.856, Microbiology and Infectious Diseases Research, National Institutes of Health, HHS) Dated: January 19, 2016. Natasha M. Copeland, Program Analyst, Office of Federal Advisory Committee Policy. [FR Doc. 2016–01313 Filed 1–22–16; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 4140–01–P National Institutes of Health National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases; Notice of Closed Meetings DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES Pursuant to section 10(d) of the Federal Advisory Committee Act, as amended (5 U.S.C. App.), notice is hereby given of the following meetings. The meetings will be closed to the public in accordance with the provisions set forth in sections 552b(c)(4) and 552b(c)(6), title 5 U.S.C., as amended. The grant applications and the discussions could disclose confidential trade secrets or commercial property such as patentable material, and personal information concerning individuals associated with the grant applications, the disclosure of which would constitute a clearly unwarranted invasion of personal privacy. Submission for OMB Review; 30-Day Comment Request; Media-Smart Youth Leaders Program Name of Committee: Microbiology, Infectious Diseases and AIDS Initial Review Group; Microbiology and Infectious Diseases Research Committee. Date: February 18–19, 2016. Time: 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Agenda: To review and evaluate grant applications. PO 00000 Frm 00022 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 National Institutes of Health Under the provisions of section 3507(a)(1)(D) of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, National Institutes of Health (NIH) has submitted to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) a request for review and approval of the information collection listed below. This proposed information collection was previously published in the Federal Register on October 16, 2015, pages 62541–62542, and allowed 60 days for public comment. One public comment was received. The purpose of this notice is to allow an additional 30 days for public comment. The Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, National Institutes of Health, may not conduct or SUMMARY: E:\FR\FM\25JAN1.SGM 25JAN1

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[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 15 (Monday, January 25, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 4036-4037]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-01450]

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Office of the Secretary

Annual Update of the HHS Poverty Guidelines

AGENCY: Department of Health and Human Services.

ACTION: Notice.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: This notice provides an update of the Department of Health and
Human Services (HHS) poverty guidelines to account for last calendar
year's increase in prices as measured by the Consumer Price Index.

DATES: Effective Date: January 25, 2016, unless an office administering
a program using the guidelines specifies a different effective date for
that particular program.

ADDRESSES: Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and
Evaluation, Room 404E, Humphrey Building, Department of Health and
Human Services, Washington, DC 20201.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For information about how the
guidelines are used or how income is defined in a particular program,
contact the Federal, state, or local office that is responsible for
that program. For information about poverty figures for immigration
forms, the Hill-Burton Uncompensated Services Program, and the number
of people in poverty, use the specific telephone numbers and addresses
given below.
For general questions about the poverty guidelines themselves,
contact Kendall Swenson, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning
and Evaluation, Room 422F.5, Humphrey Building, Department of Health
and Human Services, Washington, DC 20201--telephone: (202) 690-7507--or
visit https://aspe.hhs.gov/poverty/.
For information about the percentage multiple of the poverty
guidelines to be used on immigration forms such as USCIS Form I-864,
Affidavit of Support, contact U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services
at 1-800-375-5283.
For information about the Hill-Burton Uncompensated Services
Program (free or reduced-fee health care services at certain hospitals
and other facilities for persons meeting eligibility criteria involving
the poverty guidelines), contact the Health Resources and Services
Administration Information Center at 1-800-275-4772. You also may visit
https://www.hrsa.gov/gethealthcare/affordable/hillburton/.
For information about the number of people in poverty, visit the
Poverty section of the Census Bureau's Web site at https://www.census.gov/hhes/www/poverty/poverty.html or contact the Census
Bureau's Customer Service Center at 1-800-923-8282 (toll-free) and
https://ask.census.gov for further information.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

Section 673(2) of the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (OBRA) of
1981 (42 U.S.C. 9902(2)) requires the Secretary of the Department of
Health and Human Services to update the poverty guidelines at least
annually, adjusting them on the basis of the Consumer Price Index for
All Urban Consumers (CPI-U). The poverty guidelines are used as an
eligibility criterion by the Community Services Block Grant program and
a number of other Federal programs. The poverty guidelines issued here
are a simplified version of the poverty thresholds that the Census
Bureau uses to prepare its estimates of the number of individuals and
families in poverty.
As required by law, this update is accomplished by increasing the
latest published Census Bureau poverty thresholds by the relevant
percentage change in the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers
(CPI-U). The guidelines in this 2016 notice reflect the 0.1 percent
price increase between calendar years 2014 and 2015. After this
inflation adjustment, the guidelines are rounded and adjusted to
standardize the differences between family sizes. In rare
circumstances, the rounding and standardizing adjustments in the
formula result in small decreases in the poverty guidelines for some
household sizes even when the inflation factor is not negative. In
order to prevent a reduction in the guidelines in these rare
circumstances, a minor adjustment was implemented to the formula
beginning this year. In cases where the year-to-year change in
inflation is not negative and the rounding and standardizing
adjustments in the formula result in reductions to the guidelines from
the previous year for some household sizes, the guidelines for the
affected household sizes are fixed at the prior year's guidelines. As
in prior years, these 2016 guidelines are roughly equal to the poverty
thresholds for calendar year 2015 which the Census Bureau expects to
publish in final form in September 2016.
The poverty guidelines continue to be derived from the Census
Bureau's current official poverty thresholds; they are not derived from
the Census Bureau's new Supplemental Poverty Measure (SPM).
The following guideline figures represent annual income.

2016 Poverty Guidelines for the 48 Contiguous States and the District of
Columbia
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Poverty
Persons in family/household guideline
------------------------------------------------------------------------
1........................................................... $11,880
2........................................................... 16,020
3........................................................... 20,160
4........................................................... 24,300
5........................................................... 28,440
6........................................................... 32,580
7........................................................... 36,730
8........................................................... 40,890
------------------------------------------------------------------------
For families/households with more than 8 persons, add $4,160 for each
additional person.

2016 Poverty Guidelines for Alaska
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Poverty
Persons in family/household guideline
------------------------------------------------------------------------
1........................................................... $14,840
2........................................................... 20,020
3........................................................... 25,200
4........................................................... 30,380
5........................................................... 35,560
6........................................................... 40,740
7........................................................... 45,920
8........................................................... 51,120
------------------------------------------------------------------------
For families/households with more than 8 persons, add $5,200 for each
additional person.

[[Page 4037]]

2016 Poverty Guidelines for Hawaii
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Poverty
Persons in family/household guideline
------------------------------------------------------------------------
1........................................................... $13,670
2........................................................... 18,430
3........................................................... 23,190
4........................................................... 27,950
5........................................................... 32,710
6........................................................... 37,470
7........................................................... 42,230
8........................................................... 47,010
------------------------------------------------------------------------
For families/households with more than 8 persons, add $4,780 for each
additional person.

Separate poverty guideline figures for Alaska and Hawaii reflect
Office of Economic Opportunity administrative practice beginning in the
1966-1970 period. (Note that the Census Bureau poverty thresholds--the
version of the poverty measure used for statistical purposes--have
never had separate figures for Alaska and Hawaii.) The poverty
guidelines are not defined for Puerto Rico or other outlying
jurisdictions. In cases in which a Federal program using the poverty
guidelines serves any of those jurisdictions, the Federal office that
administers the program is generally responsible for deciding whether
to use the contiguous-states-and-DC guidelines for those jurisdictions
or to follow some other procedure.
Due to confusing legislative language dating back to 1972, the
poverty guidelines sometimes have been mistakenly referred to as the
``OMB'' (Office of Management and Budget) poverty guidelines or poverty
line. In fact, OMB has never issued the guidelines; the guidelines are
issued each year by the Department of Health and Human Services. The
poverty guidelines may be formally referenced as ``the poverty
guidelines updated periodically in the Federal Register by the U.S.
Department of Health and Human Services under the authority of 42
U.S.C. 9902(2).''
Some federal programs use a percentage multiple of the guidelines
(for example, 125 percent or 185 percent of the guidelines), as noted
in relevant authorizing legislation or program regulations. Non-Federal
organizations that use the poverty guidelines under their own authority
in non-Federally-funded activities also may choose to use a percentage
multiple of the guidelines.
The poverty guidelines do not make a distinction between farm and
non-farm families, or between aged and non-aged units. (Only the Census
Bureau poverty thresholds have separate figures for aged and non-aged
one-person and two-person units.)
Note that this notice does not provide definitions of such terms as
``income'' or ``family,'' because there is considerable variation in
defining these terms among the different programs that use the
guidelines. These variations are traceable to the different laws and
regulations that govern the various programs. This means that questions
such as ``Is income counted before or after taxes?'', ``Should a
particular type of income be counted?'', and ``Should a particular
person be counted as a member of the family/household?'' are actually
questions about how a specific program applies the poverty guidelines.
All such questions about how a specific program applies the guidelines
should be directed to the entity that administers or funds the program,
since that entity has the responsibility for defining such terms as
``income'' or ``family,'' to the extent that these terms are not
already defined for the program in legislation or regulations.

Dated: January 21, 2016.
Sylvia M. Burwell,
Secretary of Health and Human Services.
[FR Doc. 2016-01450 Filed 1-22-16; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4150-05-P

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