Food and Nutrition Service 2023 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this notice invites the general public and other public agencies to comment on this proposed information collection. This collection is a new collection that combines the School Nutrition and Meal Cost Study-II (SNMCS-II), School Food Purchase Study-IV (SFPS-IV), and a second Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program Evaluation (FFVP-II) into one coordinated effort named the 2024-2025 National School Foods Study. The purpose of this combined effort is to reduce overall burden for respondents across the three studies and provide a comprehensive picture of the school- based child nutrition (CN) programs in the 2024-2025 school year.

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.

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this notice invites the general public and other public agencies to comment on this proposed revision to the currently approved information collection for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) form FNS-889, ``SNAP Education (SNAP-Ed) Connection Resource Sharing Form.'' This revision to the information collection will improve the submission process by clarifying the information requested for certain fields, thus providing data that is accurate and beneficial to stakeholders using the resource. These updates will also align with the new SNAP-Ed National Program Evaluation and Reporting System (N-PEARS) (OMB Control #0584-0683, expiration 4/30/2026), to ensure consistency with SNAP-Ed specific terms. With this update to form FNS-889, FNS has determined that nutrition and physical activity interventions (i.e., educational materials, curricula, etc.), will no longer be accepted through this information collection.

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this notice invites the general public and other public agencies to comment on this proposed information collection. This collection is an extension of a currently approved collection. This information collection addresses the recordkeeping burden associated with forms FNS-292A (Report of Commodity Distribution for Disaster Relief) and FNS-292B (Report of Disaster Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Benefit Issuance).

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this notice invites the general public and other public agencies to comment on this proposed information collection. This collection is a revision of a currently approved collection to conduct short, quick-turnaround surveys of State and local agencies providing food, education, and other services in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, Child Nutrition Programs, and Supplemental Nutrition and Safety Programs administered at the federal level by the Food and Nutrition Service (FNS). These programs include the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC); National School Lunch Program (NSLP); School Breakfast Program (SBP); Special Milk Program (SMP); Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program (FFVP); Summer Food Service Program (SFSP); Summer EBT (SEBT); Team Nutrition; the Patrick Leahy Farm to School Program; the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP); USDA Foods in Schools; Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations (FDPIR); The Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP); and the Commodity Supplemental Food Program (CSFP).

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this notice invites the general public and other public agencies to comment on this proposed information collection. This collection is a revision of a currently approved collection. FNS seeks OMB approval for the burden associated with SNAP application forms and other document requests that are necessary to effectively administer a large population of retailers, varied in type and scope, and ensure that these retailers remain in compliance with program requirements.

This final rule amends the Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) regulations by lowering the minimum identified student percentage (ISP) from 40 percent to 25 percent. Lowering the minimum ISP will give States and schools greater flexibility to offer meals to all enrolled students at no cost when financially viable. As a result of this rule, more schools are eligible to participate in CEP and experience the associated benefits, such as increasing students' access to healthy, no-cost school meals; eliminating unpaid meal charges; reducing stigma; and streamlining Program administration and meal service operations.

The Food and Nutrition Service is correcting a final rule that appeared in the Federal Register on August 23, 2023. The document implements statutory requirements and policy improvements to strengthen administrative oversight and operational performance of the Child Nutrition Programs.

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this notice invites the general public and other public agencies to comment on this proposed information collection. This collection is a revision of the currently approved collection for the applications, periodic reporting, and notices burden calculations for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).

This action implements statutory requirements and policy improvements to strengthen administrative oversight and operational performance of the Child Nutrition Programs.

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this notice invites the general public and other public agencies to comment on this proposed information collection for the revision of a currently approved collection for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) Employment and Training (E&T) Program Activity Report (form FNS- 583) and State requests for additional funding. The Employment and Training Opportunities in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program final rule modified the regulations to introduce priorities for reallocation of 100 percent funds and to specify that State agencies requesting additional funds should submit the requests for the upcoming fiscal year with the E&T State Plans. Requests and recordkeeping for these activities are currently approved under OMB No. 0584-0339, expiration date 03/31/2024. The burden estimate is 49.51 hours. The burden estimate is not impacted by these changes. FNS is not seeking comment on the reporting burden for the FNS-583 because that is under FNS' web-based Food Program Reporting System, OMB Control No: 0584- 0594, expiration date 7/31/2023 (currently under review).

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this notice invites the general public and other public agencies to comment on this proposed information collection. This collection is an extension, without change, of a previously approved collection for which approval will expire on September 30, 2023, for recognizing program sponsors' nutrition efforts in the Summer Food Service Program (SFSP) or the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) Seamless Summer Option (SSO).

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this notice invites the general public and other public agencies to comment on this proposed information collection. This collection is a NEW information collection. This study informs the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) about the reasons behind under-redemption of the cash-value benefit (CVB) issued to participants in the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC).

This notice announces the annual adjustments to the national average payment rates for meals and snacks served in child care centers, outside-school-hours care centers, at-risk afterschool care centers, and adult day care centers; the food service payment rates for meals and snacks served in day care homes; and the administrative reimbursement rates for sponsoring organizations of day care homes, to reflect changes in the Consumer Price Index. Further adjustments are made to these rates to reflect the higher costs of providing meals in Alaska, Guam, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, and Virgin Islands. The adjustments contained in this notice are made on an annual basis each July, as required by the laws and regulations governing the Child and Adult Care Food Program.

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this notice invites the general public and other public agencies to comment on this proposed information collection. This is a new collection for the contract Assessment of Mobile Technologies for Using Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) Benefits (Mobile Payment Pilot evaluation). The purpose of the Mobile Payment Pilot evaluation is to assess the effects of five pilot projects that will allow SNAP participants to use mobile payments to purchase food as an alternate option to a physical electronic benefit transfer (EBT) card.

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this notice invites the general public and other public agencies to comment on a proposed information collection. This collection is a new information collection for the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) and WIC Farmers' Market Nutrition Program (FMNP) which contains the reporting burden associated with requesting waivers of WIC and WIC FMNP Program requirements as authorized under the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 and the American Baby Formula Act of 2022. In order to receive waivers authorized by these statutes, WIC and WIC FMNP State agencies must submit a request that establishes that they have met the requirements for a waiver.

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this notice invites the general public and other public agencies to comment on this proposed information collection. This collection is a revision of a currently approved collection that FNS employs to determine public participation in the National School Lunch Program and to obtain, account for, and record information from State and program operators that is necessary to effectively manage the NSLP and ensure compliance with statutory and regulatory Program requirements.

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this notice invites the general public and other public agencies to comment on this proposed information collection. This collection is a revision of a currently approved collection for determining eligibility for free and reduced price meals and free milk as stated in FNS regulations. These Federal requirements affect eligibility under the National School Lunch Program, School Breakfast Program, and the Special Milk Program and are also applicable to the Child and Adult Care Food Program and the Summer Food Service Program when individual eligibility must be established.

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this notice invites the general public and other public agencies to comment on this proposed information collection. This collection is a revision of a currently approved collection for awarding local agencies for excellence in WIC breastfeeding services and support.

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this notice invites the general public and other public agencies to comment on the proposed collection of information for the Understanding States' SNAP Customer Service Strategies study. This is a NEW information collection. This study seeks to describe the key characteristics of State Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) agencies' customer service strategies through in-depth case studies in up to 9 States, review the current literature on customer service, particularly in government social safety net programs, and identify promising practices in improving, measuring, and monitoring customer service in SNAP.

The Department of Agriculture (USDA) is adopting the interim final rule on non-discretionary quality control provisions of Title IV of the Agricultural Improvement Act of 2018, and its correction, as final. In this final rule, USDA is also removing one obsolete paragraph from the interim final rule due to the Office of Management and Budget's (OMB) subsequent approval of information collection activities associated with the rule.

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this notice invites the general public and other public agencies to comment on this proposed information collection. This collection is a new collection for (1) identifying and describing relevant federal statutory, regulatory, and operational barriers and facilitators that have considerable impact on coordination between the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and Medicaid agencies; (2) identifying and describing relevant State statutory, regulator, and operational barriers and facilitators that have considerable impact on coordination between SNAP and Medicaid agencies; (3) identifying and describing systems used by States to determine eligibility and manage SNAP and Medicaid application and recertification information; (4) identifying and describing similarities and differences in State SNAP and Medicaid applications; and (5) using information collected from Objectives 1-4 to develop a Best Practices Guide that explains how States can better improve coordination between SNAP and Medicaid.

This notice announces the surplus and purchased foods that the Department expects to make available for donation to States for use in providing nutrition assistance to the needy under The Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP) in Fiscal Year (FY) 2023. The foods made available under this notice must, at the discretion of the State, be distributed to eligible recipient agencies (ERAs) for use in preparing meals and/or for distribution to households for home consumption.

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this notice invites the general public and other public agencies to comment on this information collection. This is a revision of a currently approved collection that consists of several components of State agency reporting and/or recordkeeping: State Plan of Operations, Puerto Rico Plan of Operations, Territory Memorandums of Understanding (MOUs), a budget projection statement, a program activity report, waiver requests submitted via the Waiver Information Management System (WIMS), card skimming reporting, and other plans and submissions such as advance planning documents for information systems and for electronic benefit transfer (EBT) systems. This collection also merges the activities under the Annual State Report on Verification of SNAP participation, OMB Control Number 0584-0605, expiration date 06/30/2025 into this collection which ensures that no person who is deceased, or who has been permanently disqualified from SNAP, improperly received SNAP benefits for the fiscal year preceding the report submission. Section 4032 of the Agriculture Act of 2014 is the basis for this collection. The Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) considers an email from each State agency to their corresponding FNS Regional SNAP Program Director verifying their compliance with Section 4032 of the Agriculture Act of 2014 as the mechanism for compliance. FNS intends to discontinue the Annual State Report of Verification of SNAP Participants, OMB Control Number 0584-0605 expiration date 06/30/2025 following OMB approval of this information collection request.

The Food and Nutrition Service, USDA (the Department), proposes to remove barriers to online ordering and internet-based transactions in the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) through this rulemaking. This is expected to improve the WIC shopping experience while increasing equity and access to nutritious foods for WIC participants, thus positively impacting nutrition security. The proposed rule also complements the Program's near-complete transition to electronic benefit transfer (EBT) by streamlining and modernizing certain WIC food delivery regulations to support current technology and future innovation, and by introducing measures intended to meet the needs of a modern, data-driven program that uses these technologies for food delivery.