Food and Nutrition Service – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

Section 5(a) of the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008, as amended, provides that households in which each member receives benefits under a State program funded under part A of Title IV of the Social Security Act (SSA) (also known as Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) block grants \1\) shall be categorically eligible for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). Currently, SNAP regulations broadly interpret ``benefits'' to mean cash assistance and non-cash or in-kind benefits or services from any TANF-funded program.\2\ In operation, this has allowed categorical eligibility for SNAP to be conferred on households based on receipt of minimal benefits issued by TANF-funded programs which may not conduct a robust eligibility determination and do not meaningfully move families toward self-sufficiency. The Food and Nutrition Act has clear parameters regarding the income and resource limits that SNAP households must meet, and categorical eligibility is intended to apply only when the conferring program has properly determined eligibility. Extending categorical eligibility to participants who have not been screened for eligibility compromises program integrity and reduces public confidence that benefits are being provided to eligible 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 for the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) Nutrition Assessment and Tailoring Study. This new information collection will provide the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) with a comprehensive, detailed description of the WIC nutrition risk assessment process and the ways in which WIC clinics tailor participant benefits to address the results of the assessment. This collection will also identify specific practices or features of the nutrition services process associated with high levels of participant and staff satisfaction, reduced staff burden, and improved Program efficiency.

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 a reinstatement, with change, of a previously approved collection for which approval has expired. The previously approved collection is associated with State agencies notifying FNS of and thereafter reporting on Major Changes in their operation of SNAP. The final rule entitled Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program: Review of Major Changes in Program Design and Management Evaluation Systems was published on January 19, 2016. The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) cleared the associated information collection requirements (ICR) on March 10, 2016.

This action proposes to delay, from October 1, 2019 until October 1, 2021, the implementation date of the ``ounce equivalents'' requirement for crediting grains served in the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP). The final rule, Child and Adult Care Food Program: Meal Pattern Revisions Related to the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010, published at 81 FR 24347 on April 25, 2016, specified that meal planners must use ounce equivalents to determine the amount of creditable grain served as part of a reimbursable meal or snack. The new implementation date would allow more time for FNS to develop additional technical assistance materials and for State agencies and sponsoring organizations to provide training and technical assistance to make compliance easier for meal planners nationwide.

This document contains technical corrections to the Paperwork Reduction Act section of final rule entitled ``Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program: Student Eligibility, Convicted Felons, Lottery and Gambling, and State Verification Provisions of the Agricultural Act of 2014,'' published in the Federal Register on April 15, 2019.

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.

The Food and Nutrition Service (FNS, or the Agency) proposed to make changes to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) regulations pertaining to the eligibility of certain SNAP retail food stores in a document published on April 5, 2019. FNS inadvertently excluded from publication two supporting documents to the proposed rule, the Regulatory Impact Analysis and the Regulatory Flexibility Analysis. These have now been published as part of the docket for the proposed rule. The agency is extending the comment period to provide the public an opportunity to review and provide comment on these documents as part of the rulemaking record. This document reopens the comment period until June 20, 2019.

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 for annual outcome data for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) Employment and Training (E&T) programs, as mandated by Section 16(h)(5) of the Food and Nutrition Act (FNA) and as amended by section 4022 of the Agricultural Act of 2014.

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.

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 collect qualitative customer and stakeholder feedback in an efficient and timely manner. The Food and Nutrition Service created this generic information collection in 2016 as part of a Federal Government-wide effort to streamline the process for seeking feedback from the public on service delivery.

This final rule implements four sections of the Agricultural Act of 2014 (2014 Farm Bill), affecting eligibility, benefits, and program administration requirements for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). Section 4007 clarifies that participants in a SNAP Employment & Training (E&T) program are eligible for benefits if they enroll or participate in specific programs that will assist SNAP recipients in obtaining the skills needed for the current job market. Section 4008 prohibits anyone convicted of Federal aggravated sexual abuse, murder, sexual exploitation and abuse of children, sexual assault, or similar State laws, and who are also not in compliance with the terms of their sentence or parole, or are a fleeing felon, from receiving SNAP benefits. Section 4009 prohibits individuals with substantial lottery and gambling winnings from receiving SNAP benefits. Section 4015 requires all State agencies to have a system in place to verify income, eligibility, and immigration status.

This proposed rule seeks to amend the regulatory standards by which the U.S. Department of Agriculture evaluates State Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) agency requests to waive the time limit and to end the unlimited carryover of able-bodied adults without dependents (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 original comment period for this proposed rule ended on April 2, 2019. FNS seeks to reopen the comment period on April 8, 2019, for a period of 3 days ending April 10, 2019.

The Food and Nutrition Service (FNS, or the Agency) proposes to make changes to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) regulations pertaining to the eligibility of certain SNAP retail food stores. These proposed changes are in response to the Consolidated Appropriations Acts of 2017 and 2018, which prohibited the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) from implementing two retailer stocking provisions (the ``Breadth of Stock'' provision and the ``Definition of `Variety' '' provision) of the 2016 final rule titled, ``Enhancing Retailer Standards in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)'', until such a time as regulatory modifications to the definition of ``variety'' are made that would increase the number of food items that count as acceptable staple food varieties for purposes of SNAP retailer eligibility. Using existing authority in the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008, the Agency proposes to modify the definition of the term ``variety'' as it pertains to the stocking requirements for SNAP authorized retail food stores. These proposed changes would provide retailers with more flexibility in meeting the enhanced stocking requirements of the 2016 final rule which were mandated by the Agricultural Act of 2014 (the 2014 Farm Bill), and align SNAP regulations with the requirements expressed in the Consolidated Appropriations Acts of 2017 and 2018. This proposed rule does not modify any other provisions or components of the 2016 final rule, ``Enhancing Retailer Standards in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).''

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.