Department of Agriculture May 4, 2011 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The notice to announce the solicitation of members to the National Agricultural Research, Extension, Education, and Economics Advisory Board. The notice was published in the Federal Register on April 22, 2011. The document left out a phrase in the third paragraph of the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section.

The White Pine-Nye County Resource Advisory Committee will meet in Eureka, Nevada. The committee is authorized under the Secure Rural Schools and Community Self-Determination Act (Pub. L. 110-343) (the Act) and operates in compliance with the Federal Advisory Committee Act. The purpose of the committee is to improve collaborative relationships and to provide advice and recommendations to the Forest Service concerning projects and funding consistent with the title II of the Act. The meeting is open to the public. The purpose of the meeting is to review and recommend funding allocation for proposed projects.

This proposed rule would implement provisions of the Food, Conservation and Energy Act of 2008 (FCEA) affecting the eligibility, benefits, certification, and employment and training (E&T) requirements for applicant or participant households in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). The rule would amend the SNAP regulations to: Exclude military combat pay from the income of SNAP households; raise the minimum standard deduction and the minimum benefit for small households; eliminate the cap on the deduction for dependent care expenses; index resource limits to inflation; exclude retirement and education accounts from countable resources; permit States to expand the use of simplified reporting; permit States to provide transitional benefits to households leaving State-funded cash assistance programs; allow States to establish telephonic signature systems; permit States to use E&T funds to provide post-employment job retention services; and limit the E&T funding cycle to 15 months. These provisions are intended to increase SNAP benefit levels for certain participants, reduce barriers to participation, and promote efficiency in the administration of the program.