[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 196 (Wednesday, October 12, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 61561-61564]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-22149]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Food and Nutrition Service


Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Collection; 
Comment Request; Understanding the Relationship Between Poverty, Well-
Being and Food Security

AGENCY: Food and Nutrition Service (FNS), 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 new collection will 
provide the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Food and Nutrition Service 
with new information about food security and individual and family 
circumstances and environmental factors related to poverty in six 
persistently poor counties.

DATES: Written comments must be received on or before December 12, 
2022.

ADDRESSES: Comments may be mailed to Michael Burke, Senior Social 
Science Research Analyst, Food and Nutrition Service, Braddock Metro 
Center II, 1320 Braddock Place, Alexandria, VA 22314. Comments may also 
be submitted 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 Braddock Metro 
Center II, 1320 Braddock Place, Alexandria, VA 22314.
    All responses to this notice will be summarized and included in the 
request for Office of Management and Budget approval. All comments will 
be a matter of public record.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Requests for additional information or 
copies of this information collected should be directed to Michael 
Burke by email at [email protected] or by phone at (703) 305-4369.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Comments are invited on the following 
topics: (1) whether the proposed collection of information is necessary 
for the proper performance of the functions of the agency, including 
whether the information shall have practical utility; (2) the accuracy 
of the agency's estimate of the burden on the proposed collection of 
information, including the validity of the methodology and assumptions 
that were used; (3) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity 
of the information collected; and (4) 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.
    Title: Understanding the Relationship Between Poverty, Well-Being, 
and Food Security.
    Form Number: Not applicable.
    OMB Number: 0584-NEW.
    Expiration Date: Not yet determined.
    Type of Request: New collection.

[[Page 61562]]

    Abstract: This is a new information collection request. The 
Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) is the nation's 
largest federal program aimed at reducing food insecurity and 
increasing access to healthy food. SNAP is administered by the U.S. 
Department of Agriculture's (USDA), Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) 
and provides nutrition assistance benefits to program participants, the 
majority of whom are children, the elderly, or people with 
disabilities. Through this data collection effort, FNS seeks to 
understand the interrelated factors that lead to household food 
insecurity. Data will be collected in six counties experiencing 
persistent intergenerational poverty through a study titled 
Understanding the Relationship Between Poverty, Well-Being, and Food 
Security.
    Understanding the Relationship Between Poverty, Well-Being, and 
Food Security will allow FNS to gain a deeper understanding of the 
interrelated factors that affect the food security status of SNAP 
beneficiaries and SNAP-eligible nonparticipants, information which has 
not previously collected in persistently poor counties. The USDA's 
Economic Research Service (ERS) defines counties as being persistently 
poor if 20 percent or more of county residents were poor at each of 
several points in time over a 30-year period, measured by the 1980, 
1990, and 2000 censuses and the 2007-2011 American Community Survey. 
Examining food insecurity and poverty in these populations will help 
FNS better understand the association between SNAP, other USDA-
administered programs, and community-based assistance with well-being 
and the food environment. Study objectives include:
     Objective 1: Produce descriptive statistics on key 
sociodemographic and economic variables, including household food 
security in a representative sample of all residents in each of six 
persistent-poverty counties.
     Objective 2: Produce descriptive statistics on key 
sociodemographic and economic variables, including household food 
insecurity in two representative stratified subsamples of low and very 
low food-secure residents, in each county of six persistent-poverty 
counties.
     Objective 3: Produce descriptive statistics for each 
subgroup in each county on key social, geospatial, and other policy-
actionable elements of well-being and material deprivation associated 
with both household food security and SNAP participation.
     Objective 4: Characterize the social context and the life 
course of individuals, within a multigenerational family unit, as they 
define their experiences with food insecurity through In-Depth 
Interviews (IDIs).
    To ensure a representative probability sample of households in each 
of the six persistent poverty counties (each located within six 
different states) we propose a two-stage address-based sampling (ABS) 
approach in which the primary sampling units (PSUs) will be small 
geographic clusters consisting of census-defined blocks or groups of 
blocks within the country, and the secondary sampling units will be 
residential addresses within the selected PSUs. We will use American 
Community Survey (ACS) and SNAP administrative data to obtain an 
estimate of SNAP-eligibility by PSU. The study includes several data 
collection activities: (1) SNAP administration data; (2) a household 
survey; (3) in-depth interviews with household survey respondents; and 
(4) focus groups with community stakeholders.
    Affected Public: Respondent groups identified include: (a) 
Individual/Households (county residents in the six selected counties); 
(b) Business--Profit, Non-Profit, or Farm (community stakeholder focus 
group participants); (c) State, Local, or Tribal Government (State/
County SNAP agencies).
    Estimated Number of Respondents: 15,997. The total estimated number 
of individuals/households (I/H) initially contacted is 15,840. Out of 
the initial number of I/H contacted 6,600 respondents will be surveyed, 
and a subsample of 156 respondents will participate in an in-depth 
interview. A total of 48 community stakeholders will participate in 
focus groups--36 Business (Profit, Non-Profit, or Farm) and 12 State, 
Local, or Tribal Government. 38 police stations (State, Local, or 
Tribal Government) will receive notifications that field staff are 
working in the area. In addition, 6 State SNAP agencies and 1 County 
SNAP agency (State, Local, or Tribal Government) will be asked to 
provide SNAP administrative data once to support development of the 
survey sampling frame. All 7 are expected to respond.
    Estimated Number of Responses per Respondent: All respondents will 
be asked to respond to each specific data collection activity only 
once. County residents will be asked to participate in one survey; a 
subset of interview respondents will be asked to participate in one in-
depth interview. Community stakeholders will be asked to participate in 
one focus group, and SNAP agency will be asked to complete one data 
request. The estimated number of responses is 5.8 responses per 
respondent, including all contact materials.
    Estimated Total Annual Responses: The estimate total annual 
responses is 115,347 (86,894 respondents and 28,453 non-respondents).
    Estimated Time per Response: The estimated time of response varies 
from 1 minute (0.0167 hours) to 8 hours, depending on respondent group, 
as shown in the table below, with an average estimated time of 0.0673 
hours for all participants.
    Estimated Total Annual Burden on Respondents: 465,761 minutes 
(7,763 hours). See the table below (Table 1) for estimated total annual 
burden for each type of respondent.
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[GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TN12OC22.014



[[Page 61564]]


Tameka Owens,
Assistant Administrator, Food and Nutrition Service.
[FR Doc. 2022-22149 Filed 10-11-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-30-C