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 which concerns the appropriation and use of State funds for the National School Lunch, School Breakfast and Special Milk Programs. This collection is a revision of a currently approved collection.

This rulemaking establishes requirements to simplify and improve the administration of and expand access to the Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations and the Food Distribution Program for Indian Households in Oklahoma, both of which are referred to as ``FDPIR'' in this rulemaking. The rulemaking amends FDPIR regulations to promote conformity with the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). First, the final rule revises FDPIR regulations to eliminate household resources from consideration when determining FDPIR eligibility. Second, the final rule will expand the current FDPIR income deduction for Medicare Part B Medical Insurance and Part D Prescription Drug Coverage premiums to include other monthly medical expenses in excess of $35 for households with elderly and/or disabled members. Third, the final rule will establish an income deduction for shelter and utility expenses. Finally, the final rule will provide new verification requirements related to the new income deductions, and provide revisions to the household reporting requirements that will more closely align FDPIR and SNAP regulations.

The Food and Nutrition Service is correcting this notice, which invites the general public and other public agencies to comment on this proposed information collection. This notice was published in the Federal Register on July 26, 2013. This notice corrects where and to whom the comments are to be sent.

The Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) is issuing this affirmation of a final rule, without change, of an interim rule that amended Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) regulations at Sec. 272.1, to permit SNAP State agencies to share information with local educational agencies (LEAs) administering the National School Lunch Program established under the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act or the School Breakfast Program established under the Child Nutrition Act of 1966, in order to directly certify the eligibility of school-age children for receipt of free school lunches and breakfasts based on their receipt of SNAP benefits.

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 Enhancing Completion Rates for SNAP Quality Control Reviews.

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 the States of Alaska and Hawaii. 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 the proposed collection. This is a revision of the currently approved burden for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP): State Agency Options information collection.

The Food and Nutrition Service published a final rule entitled ``Nutrition Standards in the National School Lunch and School Breakfast Programs'' on January 26, 2012. The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) cleared the associated information collection requirements (ICR) on February 1, 2013. This document announces approval of the ICR.

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 collection for State agency Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), administrative matters. FNS plans to develop and launch an electronic workflow system, SNAP Workflow Information Management (SWIM), to streamline FNS waiver processing, the current waiver request form will be transposed to an online waiver request form. The online version of the request form does not modify the currently approved burden hours in any way, but changes the method of collection for this information.

The Food and Nutrition Service published an interim final rule entitled ``Certification of Compliance with Meal Requirements for the National School Lunch Program under the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010'' on April 27, 2012. The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) cleared the associated information collection requirements (ICR) on June 20, 2012. This document announces approval of the ICR.

Pursuant to the Federal Advisory Committee Act, 5 U.S.C. APP., this notice announces a meeting of the National Advisory Council on Maternal, Infant and Fetal Nutrition.

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this notice invites the general public and other public agencies to comment on the Agency's proposed information collection for the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP). This collection is a revision of a currently approved information collection.

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. The proposed collection is an extension, without change, of a currently approved collection. The purpose of the Education and Administrative Reporting System (EARS) form is to collect uniform and standard information on nutrition education activities (SNAP-Ed) funded by SNAP. The data collected will inform management decisions, support policy initiatives and provide documentation for legislative, budget and other requests that support planning within the agency.

This rule amends Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) regulations to implement Section 28 of the Food and Nutrition Act (``FNA'' or the ``Act'') of 2008, as added by Section 241 of the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids (HHFK) Act of 2010, to award grants to States for provision of nutrition education and obesity prevention programs. These programs will provide services for eligible individuals that promote healthy food choices consistent with the current Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGAs). This rule provides State agencies with requirements for implementing Section 28 including the grant award process and describes the process for allocating the 100 percent Federal grant funding authorized under the Act to carry out nutrition education and obesity prevention services each fiscal year.

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 awarding local agencies for excellence in WIC breastfeeding services and support. Section 231 of the Healthy, Hunger- Free Kids Act of 2010, Public Law 111-296, requires that the Department of Agriculture (USDA) establish a program to recognize WIC local agencies and clinics that demonstrate exemplary breastfeeding promotion and support activities.

This proposed rule would revise regulations governing the WIC Program, incorporating the provisions set forth in the Healthy, Hunger- Free Kids Act of 2010 (HHFKA) related to Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) for the WIC Program. The HHFKA was signed into law by President Obama on December 13, 2010.

This rule amends the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) regulations to incorporate provisions of the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 designed to encourage States to improve direct certification efforts with the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). The provisions require State agencies to meet certain direct certification performance benchmarks and to develop and implement continuous improvement plans if they fail to do so. This rule also amends NSLP and SNAP regulations to provide for the collection of data elements needed to compute each State's direct certification performance rate to compare with the new benchmarks. Improved direct certification efforts would help increase program accuracy, reduce paperwork for States and households, and increase eligible children's access to school meals.

The Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) is changing the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP or Program) regulations pertaining to SNAP client benefit use, participation of retail food stores and wholesale food concerns in SNAP, and SNAP client participation in the Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations (FDPIR). These changes to SNAP regulations address mandatory provisions of the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008, Public Law 110-246 (hereinafter referred to as ``the 2008 Farm Bill'') to allow for the disqualification of a SNAP client who intentionally obtains cash by purchasing, with SNAP benefits, products that have container deposits, subsequently discarding the product, and returning the container(s) in exchange for cash refund of deposit(s); or who intentionally resells or exchanges products purchased with SNAP benefits for purposes of obtaining cash and/or other non-eligible items. Through existing authority under the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008, FNS is also stipulating penalties for certain Program abuses committed by retailers. These abuses include stealing of SNAP benefits, by retailers, without client complicity, and other forms of trafficking through complicit arrangements between the retailer and the SNAP client. Examples of the latter would be the purchase, by retailers, of products originally purchased by clients with SNAP benefits and re-sold to stores in exchange for cash or other non-eligible items; or retailers taking possession of SNAP client cards and PINs, using the SNAP benefits to purchase stock for the store, and subsequently returning the card and PIN to the client with cash or other non- eligible items provided in exchange for having used the SNAP benefit. FNS is also addressing the mandatory 2008 Farm Bill provisions requiring disqualification in SNAP when an individual is disqualified from FDPIR, and under existing authority, clarifying the prohibition against dual participation in SNAP and FDPIR.

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) is publishing for public comment a summary of a proposed information collection. The proposed collection is a revision of a currently approved collection for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) for the form FNS-388, State Issuance and Participation Estimates, and FNS-388A, Project Area Data Format.

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) 2013. 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 informs the public of the annual adjustments to the reimbursement rates for meals served in the Summer Food Service Program for Children. These adjustments address changes in the Consumer Price Index, as required under the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act. The 2013 reimbursement rates are presented as a combined set of rates to highlight simplified cost accounting procedures. The 2013 rates are also presented individually, as separate operating and administrative rates of reimbursement, to show the effect of the Consumer Price Index adjustment on each rate.

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 collection under OMB 0584-0010, which is due to expire April 30, 2013.

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act, this notice invites the public and other public agencies to comment on a proposed information collection burden for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), Employment and Training (E&T) Program, currently approved under OMB No. 0584-0339. This is a revision of a currently approved collection, which proposes to decrease the currently approved burden of 26,083 hours by 4,194. The adjusted burden is 21,889 hours. This decrease is due to greater efficiencies in tracking and reporting E&T component placements. In prior collections, FNS estimated that State agencies used one minute per component placement to compile and record this data. This estimate is now reduced to 10 seconds per component placement, which is the same amount of time allotted for States to compile and record work registrant data.

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this Notice invites the general public and other public agencies to comment on proposed information collections. This Notice of Proposed Information Collection announces the intent of the Food and Nutrition Service to revise and extend the information collection requirements associated with initiating and conducting Federal collection actions against households with delinquent Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) recipient debts.