[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 230 (Tuesday, December 1, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 75044-75045]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-30442]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Food and Nutrition Service


Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Collection; 
Comment Request--Follow Up to an Assessment of the Roles and 
Effectiveness of Community-Based Organizations in the Supplemental 
Nutrition Assistance Program

AGENCY: Food and Nutrition Service, USDA.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: 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 an 
existing collection for the Food and Nutrition Service to describe the 
roles of community-based organizations (CBOs) in the Supplemental 
Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), and to assess if, and how, the use 
of CBOs to conduct SNAP applicant interviews has impacted SNAP program 
outcomes such as timeliness, payment error rates, access, and client 
satisfaction across five (5) States.

DATES: Written comments on this notice must be received on or before 
February 1, 2016.

ADDRESSES: Comments are invited on: (a) Whether the proposed collection 
of information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions 
of the agency, including whether the information will have practical 
utility; (b) the accuracy of the agency's burden estimate for the 
proposed collection of information, including the validity of the 
methodology and assumptions that were used; (c) ways to minimize the 
burden of the collection of information on those who are to respond, 
including use of appropriate automated, electronic, mechanical, or 
other technological collection techniques or other forms of information 
technology, and (d) ways to enhance the quality, utility and clarity of 
the information to be collected.
    Comments may be sent to: Rosemarie Downer, Food and Nutrition 
Service/U.S. Department of Agriculture, 3101 Park Center Drive, Room 
1014, Alexandria, VA 22302. Comments may also be submitted via fax to 
the attention of Rosemarie Downer at 703-305-2576 or via email to 
[email protected]. Comments will also be accepted through 
the Federal eRulemaking Portal. Go to http://www.regulations.gov and 
follow the online instructions for submitting comments electronically.
    All written comments will be open for public inspection at the 
office of the Food and Nutrition Service during regular business hours 
(8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday) at 3101 Park Center 
Drive, Room 1014, Alexandria, Virginia 22302.
    All responses to this notice will be summarized and included in the 
request for Office of Management and Budget approval. All comments will 
also become a matter of public record.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Requests for additional information or 
copies of this information collection should be directed to Rosemarie 
Downer at 703-305-2129. Information requests submitted through email 
should refer to the title of this proposal.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    Title: Follow Up to an Assessment of the Roles and Effectiveness of 
Community-Based Organizations in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance 
Program.
    OMB Number: 0584-0578.
    Form Number: Not Applicable.
    Expiration Date: May 31, 2016.
    Type of Request: Revision of a currently approval information 
collection.
    Abstract: To provide more timely and efficient services to the 
growing number of applicants to SNAP, State and local SNAP offices are 
partnering with CBOs that have the capacity to provide application 
assistance and conduct applicant interviews for SNAP across five (5) 
States. FNS has approved these partnerships as part of a demonstration 
of ``Community Partner Interviewer Projects.'' In 2015, FNS released a 
report that assessed whether the use of CBOs to conduct SNAP applicant 
interviews had an impact on SNAP program performance. Specific program 
outcomes included efficiency, payment accuracy and client satisfaction. 
FNS has extended the demonstration projects, and to further assess the 
impact of these SNAP-CBO partnerships on SNAP program outcomes, FNS is 
seeking to collect additional data from the five States that are 
participating in the demonstration.
    The information collection plan for this follow-up includes a 
satisfaction survey to be completed by SNAP

[[Page 75045]]

participants who were interviewed by CBO staff at the time of 
application or recertification for SNAP, and program administration 
data (error rates, timeliness, payment accuracy, and eligibility 
determination) from the five participating States. FNS' data collection 
strategy aims to maximize both efficiency and data quality. The 
participant satisfaction survey will take no more than five minutes. 
FNS will use the information collected to evaluate whether the 10 
Community Partner Interviewer projects have helped to improve SNAP 
access and performance.
    Affected Public: 3,452 Individuals and Households (3,384 Respondent 
& 68 Non-Respondent type SNAP participants).
    Estimated Number of Respondents: 3,384.
    Estimated Number of Responses per Respondent: 1.
    Estimated Total Annual Response: 3,384.
    Estimated Time per Respondent: 0.08 hours (4.8 minutes).
    Estimated Total Annual Burden on Respondents: 272.08 burden hours.
    Affected Public: State Agencies.
    Estimated Number of Respondents: 5 States.
    Estimated Number of Responses per Respondent: 2.
    Estimated Total Annual Responses: 10.
    Estimated Time per Respondent: 1.
    Estimated Total Annual Burden on Respondents: 10 burden hours.
    Affected Public: Business-for-not-for-Profit (Respondent type: 
Community-Based Organizations (CBOs).
    Estimated Number of Respondents: 10.
    Estimated Number of Responses per Respondent: 338.40.
    Estimated Total Annual Responses: 3,384.
    Estimated Time per Respondent: 0.08.
    Estimated Total Annual Burden on Respondents: 270.40.
    FNS is requesting 552.48 burden hours.
    There is no recordkeeping requirements involved in this data 
collection.

    Dated: November 24, 2015.
Yvette S. Jackson,
Acting Administrator, Food and Nutrition Service.
[FR Doc. 2015-30442 Filed 11-30-15; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-30-P