[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 197 (Friday, October 15, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 57407-57408]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-22656]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE


Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request

October 13, 2021.
    The Department of Agriculture has submitted the following 
information collection requirement(s) to the Office of Management and 
Budget (OMB) for review and clearance under the Paperwork Reduction Act 
of 1995, Public Law 104-13. Comments are requested regarding; whether 
the collection of information is necessary for the proper performance 
of the functions of the agency, including whether the information will 
have practical utility; the accuracy of the agency's estimate of burden 
including the validity of the methodology and assumptions used; ways to 
enhance the quality, utility and clarity of the information to be 
collected; and ways to minimize the burden of the collection of 
information on those who are to respond, including through the use of 
appropriate automated, electronic, mechanical, or other technological 
collection techniques or other forms of information technology.
    Comments regarding this information collection received by November 
15, 2021 will be considered. Written comments and recommendations for 
the proposed information collection should be submitted within 30 days 
of the publication of this notice on the following website 
www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain. Find this information collection by 
selecting ``Currently under 30-day Review--Open for Public Comments'' 
or by using the search function.
    An agency may not conduct or sponsor a collection of information 
unless the collection of information displays a currently valid OMB 
control number and the agency informs potential persons who are to 
respond to

[[Page 57408]]

the collection of information that such persons are not required to 
respond to the collection of information unless it displays a currently 
valid OMB control number.

Food and Nutrition Service

    Title: School Meals Operations Study: Evaluation of the COVID-19 
Child Nutrition Waivers and Child Nutrition Programs.
    Control Number: 0584-0607.
    Summary of Collection: This is a revision to a currently approved 
information collection for the School Meals Operations Study: State 
Agency COVID-19 Child Nutrition Waivers Evaluation (which has been 
renamed for this revision). This collection is necessary to provide up-
to-date information about child nutrition (CN) program operations, 
including the use and impact of the COVID-19 CN nationwide waivers 
required by the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) (Pub. 
L. 116-127). The annual data collected from this study allows the Food 
and Nutrition Service (FNS) to describe and assess program operations, 
provide input for legislation and regulations on the CN programs, 
develop pertinent technical assistance and training for program staff 
at the State and School Food Authority (SFA) levels, and inform the 
budget process. This information is necessary for FNS to understand how 
recent and proposed legislation, regulations, policies, and initiatives 
change the CN program operations. Because the COVID-19 pandemic has 
changed the way that school meal programs operate, with other CN 
programs such as the Child and Adult Care Food Program and the Summer 
Food Service Program being used in place of or in combination with the 
National School Lunch and School Breakfast Programs to provide meals to 
students, this study will collect administrative and web survey data 
from the States on each of these programs, and web survey data from 
SFAs on the programs that they operate.
    Need and Use of the Information: This mandatory study will collect 
data from the State CN and School Food Authority (SFA) directors. The 
State CN directors will complete two online surveys in 2021 and 2022 
and two state-level administrative data collections covering Fiscal 
Years 2021 and 2022. The SFA directors (including those of private 
schools) will complete one online survey in 2021/2022. The state-level 
collection activities will focus primarily on collecting the data 
needed to meet the congressionally-mandated reporting requirements for 
the nationwide CN COVID-19 waivers specified in section 2202 of the 
FFCRA and used in Fiscal Years 2021 and 2022. The survey for the SFA 
directors will focus on the financial impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic 
and program operations during School Years 2020-2021 and 2021-2022. FNS 
will use the data to assess meal service levels to determine coverage 
within and across states, look for patterns and trends across site 
types, and assess how the waivers were used and how they improved 
services to children since, in the absence of these waivers, meal 
service may not have been possible. The information will also inform 
FNS's planning, policy, and guidance related to state and local meal 
service operations during future emergency situations and unanticipated 
school closures.
    Description of Respondents: State, Local, or Tribal Government and 
Not-for-Profit Institutions.
    Number of Respondents: 1,339.
    Frequency of Responses: Reporting: Annually.
    Total Burden Hours: 4,116.

Levi S. Harrell,
Departmental Information Collection Clearance Officer.
[FR Doc. 2021-22656 Filed 10-14-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-30-P