[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 7 (Wednesday, January 11, 1995)]
[Notices]
[Pages 2731-2734]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-636]
RIN: 0584-AB96
Food Stamp Program: Maximum Allotments for the 48 States and
D.C., and Income Eligibility Standards and Deductions for the 48 States
and D.C., Alaska, Hawaii, Guam, and the Virgin Islands
AGENCY: Food and Consumer Service, USDA.
ACTION: General notice.
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SUMMARY: The purpose of this notice is to update for Fiscal Year 1995:
(1) the maximum allotment levels, which are the basis for determining
the maximum amount of food stamps which participating households
receive, (2) the gross and net income limits for food stamp eligibility
which certain households may have, (3) the standard deduction available
to certain households, and (4) the homeless household shelter expense.
These adjustments, required by law, take into account changes in the
cost of living and statutory adjustments.
EFFECTIVE DATE: October 1, 1994.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Judith M. Seymour, Supervisor,
Eligibility and Certification Regulations Section, Certification Policy
Branch, Program Development Division, Food Stamp Program, Food and
Consumer Service, USDA, Alexandria, Virginia 22302, (703) 305-2496.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION
Publication
As required by law, State agencies must implement this action on
October 1, 1994 based on advance notice of the new amounts. In
accordance with regulations published at 47 FR 46485-46487 (October 19,
1982), annual statutory adjustments to the maximum allotment levels,
income eligibility
[[Page 2732]]
standards, and deductions are issued by General Notices published in
the Federal Register and not through rulemaking proceedings.
Executive Order 12866
This rule has been determined to be not significant for purposes of
Executive Order 12866 and therefore has not been reviewed by the Office
of Management and Budget.
Executive Order 12372
The Food Stamp Program is listed in the Catalog of Federal Domestic
Assistance under No. 10.551. For the reasons set forth in the final
rule related notice to 7 CFR Part 3015, Subpart V (48 FR 29116, June
24, 1983), this program is excluded from the scope of Executive Order
12372 which requires intergovernmental consultation with State and
local officials.
Regulatory Flexibility Act
Ellen Haas, the Under Secretary for Food, Nutrition, and Consumer
Services, has certified that this action will not have a significant
economic impact on a substantial number of small entities. The action
will increase the amount of money spent on food through food stamps.
However, this money will be distributed among the nation's food
vendors, so the effect on any one vendor will not be significant.
Paperwork Reduction Act
This action does not contain reporting or recordkeeping
requirements subject to approval by the Office of Management and Budget
(OMB).
Background
Income Eligibility Standards
The eligibility of households for the Food Stamp Program, except
those in which all members are receiving public assistance (PA) or
supplemental security income benefits (SSI), is determined by comparing
their incomes to the appropriate income eligibility standards (limits).
Households containing an elderly or disabled member need to have net
incomes below the net income limits, while households which do not
contain an elderly or disabled member must have net incomes below the
net income limit and gross incomes below the gross income limit.
Households in which all members are receiving PA or SSI are
categorically eligible; their incomes do not have to be below the
income limits.
In addition, elderly individuals (and their spouses) who are unable
to prepare meals because of certain disabilities, may be considered
separate households, even if they are living and eating with another
household. 7 U.S.C. Sec. 2012(i). The Food Stamp Act limits separate
household status to those persons who meet both of the following
requirements:
(1) Their own income may not exceed the net income eligibility
standards, and
(2) The income of those with whom they reside may not exceed 165
percent of the poverty line.
The net and gross income limits are derived from the Federal income
poverty guidelines. The net income limit is 100 percent of the
guidelines; the gross income limit is 130 percent of the guidelines.
The guidelines are updated annually. Based on that update, the Food
Stamp Program's income eligibility standards are updated annually. The
effective date of October 1 is required by the Food Stamp Act.
The revised income eligibility standards are as follows:
Food Stamp Program October 1, 1994-September 30, 1995
------------------------------------------------------------------------
48 States
Household size \1\ Alaska Hawaii
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Net Monthly Income Eligibility Standards (100 Percent of Poverty Level)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
1................................ $614 $767 $706
2................................ 820 1,025 944
3................................ 1,027 1,284 1,181
4................................ 1,234 1,542 1,419
5................................ 1,440 1,800 1,656
6................................ 1,647 2,059 1,894
7................................ 1,854 2,317 2,131
8................................ 2,060 2,575 2,369
Each additional member........... +207 +259 +238
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gross Monthly Income Eligibility Standards (130 Percent of Poverty
Level)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
1................................ $798 $997 $918
2................................ 1,066 1,333 1,227
3................................ 1,335 1,669 1,536
4................................ 1,604 2,005 1,844
5................................ 1,872 2,340 2,153
6................................ 2,141 2,676 2,462
7................................ 2,410 3,012 2,771
8................................ 2,678 3,348 3,079
Each additional member........... +269 +336 +309
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gross Monthly Income Eligibility Standards for Households Where Elderly
Disabled Are a Separate Household (165 Percent of Poverty Level)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
1................................ $1,012 $1,265 $1,165
2................................ 1,353 1,692 1,557
3................................ 1,694 2,118 1,949
4................................ 2,035 2,544 2,341
5................................ 2,376 2,970 2,733
6................................ 2,717 3,397 3,124
7................................ 3,058 3,823 3,516
8................................ 3,399 4,249 3,908
[[Page 2733]]
Each additional member........... +341 +427 +392
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\1\ Includes District of Columbia, Guam, and the Virgin Islands.
Thrifty Food Plan (TFP) and Allotments
The TFP is a plan for the consumption of foods of different types
(food groups) that households might use to provide nutritious meals and
snacks for household members. The plan suggests amounts of food for
men, women, and children of different ages, and it meets dietary
standards. The cost of the TFP is adjusted monthly to reflect changes
in the costs of the food groups.
The TFP is also the basis for establishing food stamp allotments.
Nationally, food stamp allotment levels are adjusted periodically to
reflect changes in food cost levels. Section 3(o)(11) of the Food Stamp
Act (7 U.S.C. Sec. 2012(o)(11)), provides for an adjustment on October
1, 1994, based upon 103 percent of the June 1994 cost of the TFP for a
family of four persons consisting of a man and woman ages 20-50 and
children ages 6-8 and 9-11. In June 1994, the cost of the TFP was
$375.30 in the 48 States and D.C.
To obtain the maximum food stamp benefit for each household size,
June 1994 TFP costs for the four-person household (of $375.30) were
increased by 3 percent, divided by four, multiplied by the appropriate
household size and economy of scale factor, and the final result was
rounded down to the nearest dollar. The maximum benefit, or allotment,
is paid to households which have no net income. For households which
have some income, the individual household's allotment is determined by
reducing the maximum allotment for the household's size by 30 percent
of the individual household's net income.
The following tables show the new allotments for the 48 States and
D.C.
Allotment Amounts \1\--October 1994 as adjusted
------------------------------------------------------------------------
48 States
Household size and D.C.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
1.......................................................... $115
2.......................................................... 212
3.......................................................... 304
4.......................................................... 386
5.......................................................... 459
6.......................................................... 550
7.......................................................... 608
8.......................................................... 695
Each additional person..................................... +87
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\1\ Adjusted to reflect the cost of food in June, adjustments for each
household size, economies of scale, a 3 percent increase in the TFP
and rounding.
Minimum Benefit
Pursuant to Section 8(a) of the Food Stamp Act, the $10 minimum
monthly benefit provided to all one- and two-person households must be
adjusted on each October 1 to reflect the percentage change in the TFP
for the 12-month period ending the preceding June, with the result
rounded to the nearest $5. In order to implement this provision of the
law, the minimum benefit is adjusted each year as follows: (1) the
percentage change in the TFP from June of the previous year to June of
the current year (prior to rounding) is calculated; (2) this percentage
change is multiplied by the previous ``unrounded'' minimum benefit to
obtain a new unrounded benefit amount; and (3) the new unrounded
minimum benefit is then rounded to the nearest $5 in accordance with
the statutory provisions.
The unrounded cost of the TFP was $364.895 in June 1993 and
$375.3158 in June 1994. The change from June 1993 to June 1994 is
1.028558 percent, which when multiplied by $11.24974, the unrounded
minimum benefit in Fiscal Year 1993, results in a new unrounded minimum
benefit of $11.56999. Rounded to the nearest $5, the minimum benefit
for Fiscal Year 1995 is $10.
Deductions
Food stamp benefits are calculated on the basis of an individual
household's net income. Deductions serve to lower household net income
and thus to increase household benefits. When a household's net income
decreases, its food stamp benefits increase.
Adjustment of the Standard Deduction
Section 5(e) of the Food Stamp Act provides that, in computing
household income, households shall be allowed a standard deduction. 7
U.S.C. Sec. 2014(e). Section 5(e) also requires that the standard
deduction be adjusted periodically. The deduction for the 48 States and
D.C. was last adjusted effective October 1, 1993. Section 5(e)(4)
requires that the adjustment in the level of the standard deduction
shall take into account changes in the Consumer Price Index for All
Urban Consumers (CPI-U) published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics
(BLS) for items other than food. (7 U.S.C. Sec. 2014(e)(4). The
adjustments are rounded to the nearest lower dollar pursuant to the
requirements of Section 5(e). There are separate standard deductions
for the 48 States and D.C., Alaska, Hawaii, Guam, and the Virgin
Islands.
The following table shows the deductions resulting from the last
adjustment, the unrounded results of this adjustment, and the new
deduction amounts that go into effect on October 1, 1994.
Standard Deductions for All Households
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Previous
standard New Standard
deductions unrounded deductions
(effective numbers (10- (effective
10-1-93) 1-94) 10-1-94)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
48 States and DC................. $131 $134.53 $134
Alaska........................... 223 229.47 229
Hawaii........................... 185 189.93 189
Guam............................. 262 269.03 269
Virgin Islands................... 115 118.70 118
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[[Page 2734]]
Adjustment of the Shelter Deduction
Section 13912 of the Mickey Leland Childhood Hunger Relief Act,
Chapter 3, Title XIII, Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1993, Pub.
L. 103-66, enacted August 10, 1993, (the Leland Act) amended section
5(e) of the Food Stamp Act to change procedures for adjusting the
excess shelter deduction cap. Prior to the Leland Act, the excess
shelter deduction cap was adjusted annually based on changes in the
shelter, fuel and utilities components of housing costs in the CPI-U
published by BLS. The Leland Act, however, mandated increases in the
shelter cap effective July 1, 1994, and October 1, 1995, and an
elimination of the cap effective January 1, 1997. The shelter cap
amounts effective for Fiscal Year 1995 were announced in a General
Notice published in the Federal Register on March 14, 1994 at 59 FR
11761, and in a proposed rule on Excess Shelter Expense Limit and
Standard Utility Allowances published in the Federal Register on
November 22, 1994. For the convenience of the reader, however, we are
restating those amounts below.
Maximum Shelter Deductions for Households Without Elderly or Disabled
Member
[Effective 07-01-94 through 09-30-95]
------------------------------------------------------------------------
------------------------------------------------------------------------
48 States and DC.............................................. $231
Alaska........................................................ 402
Hawaii........................................................ 330
Guam.......................................................... 280
Virgin Islands................................................ 171
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(7 U.S.C. 2011-2032)
Adjustment of the Homeless Household Shelter Expense
Section 11(e)(3)(E) of the Food Stamp Act requires the Secretary to
prescribe rules requiring state agencies to develop standard estimates
of the shelter expenses that may reasonably be expected to be incurred
by households in which all members are homeless but which are not
receiving free shelter throughout the month. 7 U.S.C. Sec.
2020(e)(3)(E). In recognition of the difficulty State agencies may face
in gathering the necessary information to compute standard shelter
estimates for their States, the Secretary offered a standard estimate
which may be used by all State agencies in lieu of their own estimates.
In the Deduction and Disaster Provisions from the Mickey Leland
Memorial Domestic Hunger Relief Act final rule, published at 56 FR
63613 (December 4, 1991), the Department stated that it would annually
adjust the homeless household shelter expense each October 1 using the
same changes in the shelter, fuel and utilities component of the CPI
used in indexing the shelter cap. This year's homeless household
shelter expense is $139.
Dated: January 4, 1995.
Ellen Haas,
Under Secretary for Food, Nutrition, and Consumer Services.
[FR Doc. 95-636 Filed 1-10-95; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-30-U