Department of Agriculture December 14, 2023 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

Rural Business Development Grant (RBDG) Regulation: Tribes and Tribal Business References To Provide Equitable Access
Document Number: 2023-27504
Type: Rule
Date: 2023-12-14
Agency: Department of Agriculture, Rural Business-Cooperative Service, Rural Utilities Service
The Rural Business Development Grant (RBDG) program is intended for governmental entities and non-profits that foster economic development, job creation and business creation in rural and Tribal communities. Eligible applicants for RBDG assistance include rural towns, communities, State agencies, authorities, nonprofit corporations, institutions of higher education, Federally recognized Tribes (https://www.bia.gov/service/tribal-leaders-directory) and cooperatives (if organized as a private nonprofit corporation). United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) intends to improve Tribal Government participation in the program. This final rule seeks to increase Tribal Government participation with programmatic amendments. This final rule responds to all comments received on the proposed rule.
Guaranteed Loanmaking and Servicing Regulations
Document Number: 2023-26751
Type: Rule
Date: 2023-12-14
Agency: Department of Agriculture, Rural Business-Cooperative Service
The Rural Business- Cooperative Service (RB-CS or Agency), a Rural Development (RD) agency of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), is publishing a stay of effective date for the final rule published in the Federal Register on November 24, 2023. The stay of the effective date for 60-days as provided in this notification will bring the final rule into compliance with the Congressional Review Act. This notification also corrects the reference to Executive Order 12866, Regulatory Planning and Review, which the final rule was determined to be significant.
Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC): Implementation of the Access to Baby Formula Act of 2022 and Related Provisions
Document Number: 2023-26641
Type: Rule
Date: 2023-12-14
Agency: Department of Agriculture, Food and Nutrition Service
This rulemaking serves to amend the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) Program regulations by incorporating provisions of the Access to Baby Formula Act of 2022 and making related amendments. ABFA establishes waiver authority for the Secretary of Agriculture to address certain emergencies, disasters, and supply chain disruptions impacting WIC, and adds requirements to State agency infant formula cost containment contracts to protect against disruptions to the Program in the event of a recall. The provisions focus on improving State agencies' ability to ensure continuity of Program operations during emergency periods (i.e., emergencies, disasters, and public health emergencies) and supply chain disruptions, while ensuring access to Program benefits among low-income pregnant and postpartum participants, infants, and children up to 5 years of age who are at nutritional risk.
Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program: Revision of Civil Rights Data Collection Methods
Document Number: 2023-27351
Type: Rule
Date: 2023-12-14
Agency: Department of Agriculture, Food and Nutrition Service
This rule finalizes provisions of a proposed rule published on June 27, 2022. With this final rule, the Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) is revising Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) regulations that cover collecting and reporting race and ethnicity data by State agencies on persons receiving benefits from SNAP. This rule removes regulatory language that provides an example that State agencies might collect race and ethnicity data by observation (also referred to as ``visual observation'') when participants do not voluntarily provide the information on the application form. In addition, based on feedback from the commenters, this rule prohibits using visual observation as a data collection method for race and ethnicity. Through this rulemaking, FNS intends to improve the quality of data collected for purposes of Federal civil rights law and policy including title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. USDA's Food and Nutrition Service is committed to promoting equity and inclusion through its Federal nutrition assistance programs. This regulatory change is consistent with this Administration's priorities and furthers FNS' commitment to building equitable and inclusive systems for nutrition access.
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