[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 28 (Monday, February 11, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 3138-3139]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-01726]
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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Food and Nutrition Service
Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Collection;
Comment Request--Annual State Report on Verification of Supplemental
Nutrition Assistance Program Participation
AGENCY: Food and Nutrition Service, USDA.
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: This is an extension, without change, of a currently approved
information collection request (ICR). 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 for
the Annual State Report of Verification of Supplemental Nutrition
Assistance Program (SNAP) Participation. The purpose of the Annual
State Report of Verification of SNAP Participants is to ensure that no
person who is deceased, or has been permanently disqualified from SNAP,
improperly received SNAP benefits for the fiscal year preceding the
report submission. Section 4032 of the Agriculture Act of 2014 is the
basis for this collection. Section 4032 mandates that States will
``submit to the Secretary a report containing sufficient information
for the Secretary to determine whether the State agency has, for the
most recently concluded fiscal year preceding that annual date,
verified that the State agency in that fiscal year--(1) did not issue
benefits to a deceased individual; and (2) did not issue benefits to an
individual who had been permanently disqualified from receiving
benefits.'' An email from each State agency to the corresponding Food
and Nutrition Service (FNS) Regional SNAP Program Director containing
the answers to the above questions will be used as the mechanism for
State agencies to report their compliance with Sec. 4032 of the
Agriculture Act of 2014.
DATES: Written comments must be submitted on or before April 12, 2019.
ADDRESSES: Comments are invited on: (a) Whether the proposed
information collection is necessary for the proper performance of the
functions of the agency, including whether the information has
practical utility; (b) the accuracy of the agency's estimated burden
for the proposed information collection, including the validity of the
methodology and assumptions used; (c) ways to enhance the quality,
utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and (d) ways
to minimize the burden of the information collection on those who are
to respond, including the use of appropriate automated, electronic,
mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or other forms
of information technology.
Comments may be sent to Jane Duffield, Branch Chief, State
Administration Branch, Program Accountability and Administration
Division, Food and Nutrition Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture,
3101 Park Center Drive, Room 818, Alexandria, VA 22302. You may also
download an electronic version of this notice at http://www.fns.usda.gov/snap/federal-register-documents/rules/view-all and
comment via email at [email protected] or the Federal e-Rulemaking
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 p.m., Monday through Friday) at 3101 Park Center Drive,
Room 822, Alexandria, Virginia 22302.
All comments to this notice will be 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 Tamieka
Muns at (703) 305-2636.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Title: Annual State Report on Verification of SNAP Participation.
OMB Number: 0584-0605.
Expiration Date: March 30, 2019.
Type of Request: Extension, without change, of a currently approved
information collection.
Abstract: SNAP regulations at 7 CFR 273.16 require that State
agencies disqualify an individual who has committed an intentional
program violation (IPV). Paragraph 7 CFR 273.16(e)(8) requires that
these individuals ``be disqualified in accordance with the
disqualification periods and procedures in paragraph (b) of this
section'' (273.16(b)). Paragraph 7 CFR 273.16(i) requires State
agencies to report information concerning each individual disqualified
for an IPV to the disqualified recipient database, the electronic
Disqualified Recipient System (eDRS), and to use eDRS data to determine
the eligibility of individual applicants prior to certification. SNAP
regulations at 7 CFR 272.14 require that each State agency establish a
system to
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verify and ensure that benefits are not issued to individuals who are
deceased, and that data source is the Social Security Administration's
(SSA) Death Master File. The information required for the Annual State
Report on Verification of SNAP Participation is obtained by validating
that the State had the appropriate systems in place and followed
procedures currently mandated at 7 CFR 272.14 and 7 CFR 273.16 for the
preceding fiscal year. The burdens associated with establishing a
system to verify and ensure that benefits are not issued to deceased
individuals or those permanently disqualified from SNAP using both the
SSA Death Master File and eDRS are already approved under OMB burden
number 0584-0064, expiration date July 31, 2020.
In order to meet the reporting requirements specified in section
4032 of the Act, States are required to confirm via email to their FNS
Regional SNAP Program Director that in the immediately preceding
Federal fiscal year, they had the appropriate systems in place to meet
the requirements of regulations at 7 CFR 272.14 and 273.16(i)(4) and
that they conducted the matches required by these regulations. States
are required to submit their section 4032 reports to the FNS Regional
SNAP Director by March 31 each year for the preceding Federal fiscal
year. The estimated annual burden for this collection is 57.41 hours.
This estimate includes the time it takes each State agency to confirm
that they have complied with FNS regulations for performing mandated
checks against both eDRS and the SSA Death Master File, send an email
to their FNS Regional Office SNAP Program Director to provide the
verification, and any additional recordkeeping associated with this
burden. States must perform this verification once a year and must
retain these records for 3 years.
Annual Reporting Burden Estimates
Affected Public: State, Local and Tribal Government Agencies.
Number of Respondents: 53 State Agencies.
Number of Responses per Respondent: 1.
Total Annual Responses: 53.
Reporting time per Response: 1 Hour.
Estimated Annual Reporting Burden Hours: 53.
Annual Recordkeeping Burden Estimates
Affected Public: State, Local and Tribal Government Agencies.
Number of Respondents: 53 State Agencies.
Number of Responses per Respondent: 1.
Total Annual Responses: 53.
Reporting time per Response: 0.08333 Hours or 5 minutes.
Estimated Annual Reporting Burden Hours: 4.41649.
Annual Grand Total Burden Estimates for Reporting and
Recordkeeping: 57.41 hours.
Dated: February 1, 2019.
Brandon Lipps,
Administrator, Food and Nutrition Service.
[FR Doc. 2019-01726 Filed 2-8-19; 8:45 am]
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