Food and Nutrition Service – 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 revision of a currently approved collection. In 2016, an Interim Final Rule titled ``Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program: Requirement for National Directory of New Hires Employment Verification and Annual Program Activity Reporting,'' was published in the Federal Register. This rule codified section 4013 of the Agricultural Act of 2014, requiring State agencies to access employment data through the National Directory of New Hires (NDNH) at the time of certification, including recertification, to determine eligibility status and correct benefit amount for SNAP applicants. The rule also amended regulations to increase the frequency of the requirement for State agency submission of the Program Activity Statement from an annual requirement based on the State fiscal year to a quarterly requirement. The burden hours for the increase in submission frequency for the Program Activity Statement, form FNS-366B, have been merged into the Food Programs Reporting System (FPRS) information collection, OMB# 0584-0594 (expiration 9/30/2019). Therefore, this notice seeks to renew the burden hours associated with the National Directory of New Hires portion of this information collection only and removes burden hours and references for the Program Activity Statement, form FNS-366B.

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) 2019. 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.

This notice announces the Department's annual adjustments to the Income Eligibility Guidelines to be used in determining eligibility for free and reduced price meals and free milk for the period from July 1, 2019 through June 30, 2020. These guidelines are used by schools, institutions, and facilities participating in the National School Lunch Program (and Commodity School Program), School Breakfast Program, Special Milk Program for Children, Child and Adult Care Food Program and Summer Food Service Program. The annual adjustments are required by section 9 of the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act. The guidelines are intended to direct benefits to those children most in need and are revised annually to account for changes in the Consumer Price Index.

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 collection is a revision of a currently approved collection for State administrative expense funds expended in the operation of the Child Nutrition Programs administered under the Child Nutrition Act of 1966.

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. The primary purpose of this study is to provide FNS with information about how the Summer Food Service Program (SFSP) is administered and monitored by State agencies and SFSP sponsors and sites, and identify common SFSP integrity challenges.

This final rule adds four flexibilities to the hiring standards for new school nutrition program directors in small local educational agencies (LEAs) and new State directors of school nutrition programs under the Professional Standards regulations for the National School Lunch Program and School Breakfast Program. First, to address hiring challenges faced by small LEAs, which are those with 2,499 or fewer students, this rule requires relevant food service experience rather than school nutrition program experience for new school nutrition program directors. Second, it provides State agencies with discretion to consider documented volunteer or unpaid work as relevant experience for new school nutrition program directors in LEAs with 2,499 or fewer students. Third, it gives State agencies discretion to accept less than the required years of food service experience when an applicant for a new director position in an LEA with fewer than 500 students has the minimum required education. Lastly, this rule adds flexibility to the hiring standards for State directors of school nutrition programs by allowing State agencies to consider applicants with either a bachelor's or advanced degree in specified fields. These changes are expected to expand the pool of candidates qualified to serve as leaders in the school nutrition programs while continuing to ensure that school nutrition professionals are able to perform their duties effectively and efficiently.

This final rule amends the SNAP regulations to update procedures for accessing SNAP benefits in drug addiction or alcoholic treatment centers (DAA treatment centers) and group living arrangements (GLAs) through electronic benefit transfer (EBT). The final rule implements the changes indicated in the proposed rule, but never finalized, regarding accessing SNAP benefits in these centers, but does not incorporate any of the substantive changes in the interim final rule regarding how benefits are returned to clients departing these centers due to adverse comments received on the interim final rule. This final rule also implements provisions of the Food, Conservation and Energy Act of 2008 regarding nomenclature changes to reflect the electronic issuance of benefits through EBT at these centers. RIN 0584- AE54 is a continuation of the prior rulemakings published under RIN 0584-AD87.

Federal law generally limits the amount of time an able-bodied adult without dependents (ABAWD) can receive Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits to 3 months in a 36-month period, unless the individual meets certain work requirements. On the request of a State SNAP agency, the law also gives the Department of Agriculture (the Department) the authority to temporarily waive the time limit in areas that have an unemployment rate of over 10 percent or a lack of sufficient jobs. The law also provides State agencies with a limited number of percentage exemptions that can be used by States to extend SNAP eligibility for ABAWDs subject to the time limit. The Department proposes to amend the regulatory standards by which the Department evaluates State SNAP agency requests to waive the time limit and to end the unlimited carryover of ABAWD percentage exemptions. The proposed rule would encourage broader application of the statutory ABAWD work requirement, consistent with the Administration's focus on fostering self-sufficiency. The Department seeks comments from the public on the proposed regulations.

This final rule will codify, with some extensions, three menu planning flexibilities temporarily established by the interim final rule of the same title published November 30, 2017. First, it will broaden the milk options in the National School Lunch Program and School Breakfast Program by allowing local operators to permanently offer flavored, low-fat milk. For consistency across nutrition programs, it will also allow flavored, low-fat milk in the Special Milk Program for Children and in the Child and Adult Care Food Program for participants ages 6 and older. Second, this final rule will require that half of the weekly grains in the school lunch and breakfast menu be whole grain-rich, thus ending the need for the exemption process. Third, it will provide schools in the lunch and breakfast programs more time for gradual sodium reduction by retaining Sodium Target 1 through the end of school year (SY) 2023- 2024, continuing to Target 2 in SY 2024-2025, and eliminating the Final Target that would have gone into effect in SY 2022-2023. By codifying these changes, USDA acknowledges the persistent menu planning challenges experienced by some schools, and affirms its commitment to give schools more control over food service decisions and greater ability to offer wholesome and appealing meals that reflect local preferences.

USDA proposes a deregulatory action to simplify the requirement for for-profit child care centers, for-profit adult care centers, and sponsoring organizations of for-profit centers in the Child and Adult Care Food Program to verify that they are eligible to submit claims for reimbursement each month. This rule would exempt for- profit centers from monthly verification if they annually demonstrate that at least 50 percent of children served are eligible for free and reduced-price meals or benefits under title XX of the Social Security Act, or at least 50 percent of adult participants are eligible for benefits under title XIX or title XX of the Social Security Act. Monthly verification represents a small but duplicative paperwork burden. Allowing a less frequent verification cycle would reduce the administrative burden for those centers that consistently serve a high percentage of eligible children or adult participants from low-income households.

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 currently approved collection to conduct various procedures to test questionnaires and survey procedures to improve the quality and usability of information collection instruments.

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 collection is a revision of a currently approved collection which FNS employs to determine public participation in Special Milk Program for Children.

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. This is a revision of a currently approved collection in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program and concerns Retail Store Applications (Forms FNS-252; FNS-252-E; FNS-252- FE; FNS-252-R; FNS-252-2; and FNS-252-C).

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 for the voluntary collection of summer meal site information from State agencies.

This is a request for information from State agencies administering Child Nutrition programs and State distributing agencies to learn about the successes, challenges, and needs for the State Administrative Expense (hereafter referred to as ``SAE'') allocation formula. It is not a request for proposal and does not commit the Government to issue a solicitation, make an award, or pay any costs associated with responding to this announcement. All submitted information shall remain with the Government and will not be returned. All responses will become part of the public record and will not be held confidential. The Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) is seeking information on the SAE allocation formula for the Department's oversight and management of Child Nutrition Programs (CNP), specifically the National School Lunch Program (NSLP), School Breakfast Program (SBP), Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP), Special Milk Program (SMP) and the Food Distribution Program for schools (FDP). To better understand the availability and use of SAE funds, FNS is requesting information from CNP State administering agencies, State distributing agencies, and CNP affiliate associations about SAE allocation, reallocation, fund uses, and fund restrictions at the State level. The objectives of this request for information are to: 1. Identify ways that the formula meets or fails to meet State spending needs. 2. Identify if additional flexibilities in SAE funding levels and rules could improve program administration. FNS will use the comments in response to this Request for Information to inform a larger study on the SAE formula entitled, Assessing the Child Nutrition State Administrative Expense (SAE) Allocation Formula. This study will assess the effectiveness of the current formula used for SAE allocations, identify and examine factors that influence State spending, and develop and test a range of possible alternatives to improve the SAE allocation formula.

This Notice announces the annual adjustments to the national average payments, the amount of money the Federal Government provides States for lunches, afterschool snacks, and breakfasts served to children participating in the National School Lunch and School Breakfast Programs; to the maximum reimbursement rates, the maximum per lunch rate from Federal funds that a State can provide a school food authority for lunches served to children participating in the National School Lunch Program; and to the rate of reimbursement for a half-pint of milk served to non-needy children in a school or institution that participates in the Special Milk Program for Children. The annual payments and rates adjustments for the National School Lunch and School Breakfast Programs reflect changes in the Food Away From Home series of the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers. The annual rate adjustment for the Special Milk Program reflects changes in the Producer Price Index for Fluid Milk Products. Further adjustments are made to these rates to reflect higher costs of providing meals in Alaska, Hawaii and Puerto Rico. The payments and rates are prescribed on an annual basis each July.

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this notice invites the general public and other public agencies to comment on the proposed information collection. This is an update of a currently approved collection. The purpose of this information collection request is to continue the use of the electronic form FNS- 775, titled ``Background Investigation Request for Contractor Employees.'' This form will continue to provide for the collection of Personal Identification Information required in the conduct of a background investigation which is a pre-requisite for the contractor employees to be granted a security clearance for employment at all FNS locations.

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) invites the general public and other public agencies to comment on this proposed information collection. This collection is a new collection for the School Nutrition and Meal Cost Study-II (SNMCS-II). The purpose of SNMCS-II is to provide a comprehensive picture of school food service operations and the nutritional quality, cost, and acceptability of meals served in the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) and School Breakfast Program (SBP).

In order to accurately estimate improper payments in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, the Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) has undertaken significant steps to strengthen its measurement process, the SNAP Quality Control system. Improvements include new training, policy clarifications, procedural improvements, and clarification of existing documentation requirements necessary to substantiate case findings. FNS has also implemented new policies to improve accountability and eliminate the potential for bias in the reporting system. FNS is considering proposals for a regulatory reform of its SNAP's Quality Control system in order to align the regulations with new policy and procedural requirements. FNS's intent is to achieve three objectives from reforming the Quality Control system: (1) Strengthen the integrity and accountability of the Quality Control system, (2) increase transparency in the process, and (3) use technology to improve improper payment estimates. Thus, FNS is issuing this Request for Information in order to obtain State government and other stakeholder perspectives as the Agency considers how to best to proceed with reforming the SNAP Quality Control system.

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 revision of a currently approved information collection from organizations fighting hunger and poverty.

This notice announces the Department's annual adjustments to the Income Eligibility Guidelines to be used in determining eligibility for free and reduced price meals and free milk for the period from July 1, 2018 through June 30, 2019. These guidelines are used by schools, institutions, and facilities participating in the National School Lunch Program (and Commodity School Program), School Breakfast Program, Special Milk Program for Children, Child and Adult Care Food Program and Summer Food Service Program. The annual adjustments are required by section 9 of the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act. The guidelines are intended to direct benefits to those children most in need and are revised annually to account for changes in the Consumer Price Index.

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 Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) Infant and Toddler Feeding Practices 2 Study (ITFPS-2) [OMB Control Number 0584-0580]. The revision is to extend data collection on the original cohort of study participants by an additional year, to their 6th birthdays and therefore one year after the end of their period of eligibility for WIC services. The data will be used to estimate the type and prevalence of various feeding practices among children who received WIC program benefits, after their program eligibility ends. This study will also examine the circumstances and influences that shape caregivers' feeding decisions for their children, and will describe the impact of childhood WIC participation on subsequent dietary and health outcomes.

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 the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), Request for Administrative Review.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (``Department'') announces adjusted income eligibility guidelines to be used by State agencies in determining the income eligibility of persons applying to participate in the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC). These income eligibility guidelines are to be used in conjunction with the WIC Regulations.