Code of Maine Rules
01 - DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE, CONSERVATION AND FORESTRY
001 - AGRICULTURE - GENERAL
Chapter 3 - TEMPORARY EMERGENCY FOOD ASSISTANCE PROGRAM
Section 001-3-1.3 - ADMINISTRATION
Universal Citation: 01 ME Code Rules ยง 001-3-1.3
Current through 2024-38, September 18, 2024
A. The Division shall have the following duties and responsibilities. The Division shall:
1. Request the commodity foods from the
United States Department of Agriculture promptly as required.
2. Request commodity foods made available to
the State of Maine which can be utilized without waste in the food assistance
program and distribute to the emergency feeding organizations all the commodity
foods which have been delivered to the State; provided, however, that the
Division shall refuse to order or distribute honey and any other commodity
which the Division, after careful consideration of all available facts,
determines to pose a significant real or potential threat to the health, safety
or welfare of the people of the State of Maine.
3. Ensure that no emergency feeding
organization receives commodities in excess of its anticipated use or in excess
of its ability to accept and store such commodities.
4. Be responsible for intrastate handling,
storage, transportation, and the charges associated therewith, required to
place the commodities in the hands of the emergency feeding
organizations.
5. Develop and
provide the application and any other forms required by these rules or the
sub-grant agreement between the Division and the emergency feeding
organizations, or approve any such forms developed by the emergency feeding
organizations and submitted as part of its distribution plan.
6. Monitor emergency feeding organizations
for compliance with the Act, federal and state regulations and their agreements
with the Division in accordance with the Division's Distribution Plan for the
Temporary Emergency Food Assistance Program as approved by the Federal Office
of Food and Nutrition Services.
7.
Provide technical assistance to any emergency feeding organization which is
experiencing difficulties in administering the program.
8. Be responsible for auditing the food
assistance program,
9. Comply with
the provisions of the Act, 7 CFR Part 251 and 7 CFR Part 25O as
applicable.
B. Emergency feeding organizations shall have the following duties and responsibilities. Emergency feeding organizations shall:
1.
Distribute all commodity foods made available to it by the Division, except
that commodities which are determined to be unfit for human consumption because
of spoilage or damage shall be disposed of only in accordance with instructions
from the Division.
1-A On forms
provided by the Division, request commodity food in sufficient quantities to
meet the needs of the eligible households in its service area.
2. Send a flyer to all its HEAP recipients in
sufficient time to provide notification of the date of distribution, which
flyer shall be sent at least seven calendar days prior to the date of
distribution. For distributions held prior to June 1, the flyer must be sent to
all HEAP recipients who received a benefit during the HEAP program year ending
the previous September 30. The emergency feeding organization shall make all
reasonable efforts to supplement the list with HEAP recipients in a current
HEAP program. For distributions held after June 1, the flyer must be sent to
all HEAP recipients who received a benefit during the current HEAP program
year, beginning the previous September. The flyer shall contain at least the
following information:
a. The name, address
and phone number of the emergency feeding organization;
b. The name of the food assistance
program;
c. The time, date and
place of distribution;
d. The
approximate weight of food the household is eligible to receive;
e. An indication of whether the household is
a large, medium or small household, if that information is readily available to
the emergency feeding organization;
f. A statement of
nondiscrimination;
g. A statement
that presentation of the flyer at the distribution site will facilitate the
process.
3. Prior to
distribution, publish notice in newspapers (and issue public service radio
announcements as necessary) to inform all potentially eligible households in
the service area of the emergency feeding organization. This notice shall
include at least the following:
a. The name,
address and phone number of the emergency feeding organization;
b. The name of the food assistance
program;
c. The eligibility
criteria set forth in Section 1.4A:
d. The documentation required by Section
1.4B;
e. The date, time and place
of distribution;
f. A statement of
nondiscrimination;
g. The
procedures for filing a complaint as provided for in Section 1.7B(1).
4. At least fifteen (15) working
days prior to beginning each distribution, submit to the Division for approval
a schedule of distribution sites in a form provided by the Division and a
budget for costs of said distribution.
4A. Submit to the Division for approval a
distribution plan in a form provided by the Division by September 1 of each
year.
5. In the case of emergency
feeding organizations which do not offer HEAP assistance to all residents
within its service area, make positive efforts to cooperate with the
appropriate Indian tribe and municipal HEAP program operators to notify HEAP
recipients of the availability of the food assistance program.
6. Not diminish their normal expenditures for
food because of receipt of commodities.
7. Immediately report to the Division loss or
damage to commodities from any cause whatsoever.
8. Provide facilities for the proper care,
handling, storage and distribution of the commodities accepted. An emergency
feeding organization must enter into an agreement with all municipalities and
other sub-distributing entities which have responsibility for the distribution
of commodities. The agreement to be used is attached hereto as Appendix B. Full
restitution shall be made to the Division for any loss or damage to commodities
resulting from failure to provide such facilities or from any acts of
negligence on the part of the emergency feeding organization or
sub-distributing entity.
9. Be
responsible for distributing any commodities remaining at the end of the
planned distribution. Such distribution shall be:
a. An immediate extension of the initial
distribution to eligible households;
b. Storing the commodities until the next
scheduled distribution at which time the stored commodities shall be added to
the new commodities; or
c.
Distributing the commodities to eligible food banks, food pantries, soup
kitchens, temporary emergency shelters or, with the prior approval of the
Division, to other eligible recipient agencies as defined in the Act. An
emergency feeding organization must enter into an agreement with all such
eligible recipient agencies. The agreement to be used is attached hereto as
Appendix C.
The emergency feeding organization shall inform the Division in writing the amount of commodities thus distributed and the method of distribution.
10. Maintain complete and accurate records as
required by the Division including, but not limited to, records:
a. To document the receipt, disposal and
inventory of commodities received under the food assistance program, including,
but not limited to, the name, address and size of the household of all eligible
households to whom commodities were distributed;
b. To document the receipt and disbursement
of funds arising from operation of the food assistance program;
c. Showing the data and method used to
determine the number of eligible persons served by the emergency feeding
organization; and
d. To the extent
feasible, documenting the number of eligible households which did not receive
commodities because of insufficient supply.
All such records shall be made available for inspection by the U.S.D.A., General Accounting Office, the Division or their authorized representatives and shall be retained for three years from the close of the federal fiscal year to which they pertain.
11. Ensure that each distribution site shall
keep accurate and complete records showing the data and method used to
determine the number of eligible households served at that site. Each
distribution site shall collect from each household participating in the
program the name of the household member receiving commodities, the address of
the household (to the extent practicable), the number of persons in the
household, and the basis for determining that the household is eligible to
receive commodities. Emergency feeding organizations shall report to the State
agency no later than thirty days following the end of the quarter to which such
data pertain, household participation figures which have been collected in
accordance with this section.
12.
Complete and submit in a timely manner all reports required by the Division or
by U.S.D.A.
13. Cooperate with any
monitoring visits or investigations made by the Division or by
U.S.D.A.
14. Make available to an
auditor all materials and documentation necessary to permit a conclusion by the
auditor on the allowability of expenditures.
15. Comply with all provisions of the Act, 7
CFR 25197 CFR 250 as applicable, these rules, any agreements entered into with
the Division and the Division's Distribution Plan.
16. Comply with the procedures and policies
regarding claims as prescribed by the Division and U.S.D.A. An emergency
feeding organization (EFO) must comply, at a minimum, with the following
requirement:
"Lost foods" with an aggregate value of $100 or more must be reported to the Division for review, and the Division will determine whether a claims action will be pursued. An EFO must provide in writing the following information. The report form to be used is attached hereto as Appendix D.
a. Description and quantity of the
lost commodity.
b. Time and place
of the loss.
c. Circumstances of
the loss and the apparent cause.
d.
Date of discovery of the loss.
e.
Statement indicating efforts to be taken to eliminate future losses.
17. Post notices at all
distribution sites as required by the Division. These notices shall provide
information to applicants on eligibility criteria, income guidelines, penalty
provisions, and nondiscrimination.
18. Maintain adequate insurance to cover any
injury suffered by emergency feeding organization personnel, volunteers, or
clients involved in the distribution.
19. Ensure that activities conducted at
distribution sites and unrelated to TEFAP do not interfere with the operation
of the distribution and, further, that such activities are clearly not endorsed
by the State or USDA. Ensure that persons conducting activities at distribution
sites shall make clear that cooperation is not a condition of the receipt of
TEFAP commodities. (Cooperation includes contributing money, signing petitions
or conversing with the persons.)
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