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 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.

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this notice invites the general public and other interested parties to comment on a proposed information collection. This collection is an extension, without change, of a currently approved collection. This information collection will conduct research in support of FNS' goal of delivering science-based nutrition education to targeted audiences. From development through testing of materials and tools with the target audience, FNS plans to conduct data collections that involve formative research including focus groups, interviews (dyad, triad, telephone, etc.), surveys and Web-based collection tools.

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 of taxpayer identifying numbers from all persons and organizations with which the Agency has a direct payment relationship. This collection is an extension of a currently approved information collection.

Section 141 of the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 provides $10 million to the U.S. Department of Agriculture for research on the causes, characteristics and consequences of childhood hunger and food insecurity. This notice announces a request for public comments to assist the Food and Nutrition Service in determining how best to focus these funds on areas and methods with the greatest research potential to maximize the return on this investment.

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 to a currently approved information collection in the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC) Regulations (7 CFR part 246) for the reporting and recordkeeping burdens associated with the WIC Program regulations.

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. The purpose of the Uniform Grant Application Package for Discretionary Grant Programs is to provide a standardized format for the development of all Requests for Applications for discretionary grant programs released by the Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) Agency and to allow for a more expeditious OMB clearance process.

This notice announces the national average value of donated foods or, where applicable, cash in lieu of donated foods, to be provided in school year 2013 (July 1, 2012 through June 30, 2013) for each lunch served by schools participating in the National School Lunch Program (NSLP), and for each lunch and supper served by institutions participating in the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP).

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 revision of a currently approved collection for determining eligibility for free and reduced price meals and free milk in schools as stated in 7 CFR Part 245. 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. The current approval for the information collection burden associated with 7 CFR Part 245 expires on March 31, 2013. The revisions being requested are from rulemaking and are also from revisions made to a form associated with 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 proposed information collections. This is a new information collection in which Food and Nutrition Service seeks an updated description of Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations (FDPIR) participants and programs, and a better understanding of why FDPIR participation has been declining. This study will provide national estimates of participating households as well as estimates for large subgroups, such as households with elderly participants. For a sample of Indian Tribal Organizations (ITOs) or State-administered FDPIR programs, participating households will be selected for data collection. Data collection will consist of case record reviews (abstracting standard eligibility information for all household members) and, for each selected household, interviews with the person who applied for FDPIR assistance (noted as the Head of Household on some forms) or his/her proxy. Site visits will be conducted to a subset of the ITOs or State-administered programs to obtain qualitative information on program operations and experiences of FDPIR participants and eligible nonparticipants. Site visit data collection will include interviews with Tribal leaders, FDPIR administrators and staff, and other service providers; visits to FDPIR enrollment sites, warehouses, and distribution sites; and discussion groups with FDPIR participants and eligible nonparticipants. Information obtained will provide updated information on FDPIR participants and program operations and will be used by FNS to inform decisions regarding program administration and to identify ways to make the program more beneficial to participants.

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this notice invites the general public and other public agencies to comment on this existing information collection. This collection is a revision of a currently approved collection for reporting school programs data on a monthly basis for the National School Lunch Program, the School Breakfast Program, and the Special Milk Program.

This rule proposes to codify several provisions of the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 affecting the management of the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP). The Department is proposing to require institutions to submit an initial CACFP application to the State agency and, in subsequent years, periodically update the information in lieu of submitting a new application; require sponsoring organizations to vary the timing of reviews of sponsored facilities; require State agencies to develop and provide for the use of a standard permanent agreement between sponsoring organizations and day care centers; allow tier II day care homes to collect household income information and transmit it to the sponsoring organization; modify the method of determining administrative payments to sponsoring organizations of day care homes by basing payments on a formula; and allow sponsoring organizations of day care homes to carry over up to 10 percent of their administrative funding from the previous fiscal year into the next fiscal year. This rule also proposes to incorporate several changes to the application and renewal process which are expected to improve the management of CACFP and to make a number of miscellaneous technical changes.

The Food and Nutrition Service published an interim final rule entitled ``National School Lunch Program: School Food Service Account Revenue Amendments Related to the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010'' on June 17, 2011. The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) cleared the associated information collection requirements (ICR) on February 6, 2012. This document announces approval of the ICR.

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, 2012 through June 30, 2013. 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.