[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 28 (Tuesday, February 11, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 7716-7718]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-02687]
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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Food and Nutrition Service
Agency Information Collection Activities: Supplemental Nutrition
Assistance Program: 2008 Farm Bill Provisions on Clarification of Split
Issuance; Accrual of Benefits and Definition Changes
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 associated with SNAP benefit
storage and expungement provisions of the 2008 and 2018 Farm Bills.
This collection involves both a new collection and an existing
collection in use without an OMB control number which is in violation
of the Paperwork Reduction Act. The new collection is for providing
SNAP households advance or concurrent notice prior to the State agency
expunging unused SNAP benefits from the household's Electronic Benefit
Transfer (EBT) account due to nine months of account inactivity. The
existing collection is for providing SNAP households advance or
concurrent notice of State agency action to store unused SNAP benefits
offline due to three or more months of account inactivity and for those
households to seek reinstatement of benefits prior to permanent
expungement.
DATES: Written comments must be received on or before April 13, 2020.
ADDRESSES: The Food and Nutrition Service, USDA, invites interested
persons to submit written comments on this information collection.
Comments may be submitted in writing by one of the following methods:
Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the online instructions for submitting
comments.
Mail: Comments should be addressed to Vicky Robinson,
Chief, Retailer Management and Issuance Branch, Retailer Policy and
Management Division, 1320 Braddock Place, Alexandria, Virginia 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 collection should be directed to Vicky
Robinson at 703-305-2476.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 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 shall have practical utility; (b) the accuracy of the
agency's estimate of the burden of the proposed collection of
information, including the validity of the methodology and assumptions
that were 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 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: SNAP Benefit Storage and Expungement.
Form Number: Not Applicable.
OMB Number: 0584-NEW.
Expiration Date: Not Yet Determined.
Type of Request: New information collection.
Abstract: The Department published a proposed rule, titled ``RIN-
0584-AD02 2008 Farm Bill Provisions on Clarification of Split Issuance;
Accrual of Benefits and Definition Changes,'' published on September
29, 2016, (81 FR 66866), to implement the mandatory Supplemental
Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefit storage and expungement
provisions of the Food, Conservation and Energy Act of 2008, Public Law
110-234 (2008 Farm Bill). However, the Department published the
proposed rule without taking into consideration the paperwork reduction
act burden activities and publishing a 60-day notice to allow the
public to provide comments. While the off-line notice and reinstatement
provisions had already been codified in SNAP regulations and,
therefore, are not new requirements, the 2008 Farm Bill makes the State
option to take inactive SNAP benefits off-line and the associated
requirements statutory. In the final rule, the Department also intends
to adopt as final the provisions in the Agriculture Improvement Act of
2018, Public Law 115-334 (2018 Farm Bill), which makes additional
mandatory changes to the provisions governing the storage and
expungement of unused benefits.
These Farm Bill provisions require State agencies to provide a 30-
day advance notice to Individuals/Households (SNAP recipients) in order
to permanently expunging unused SNAP benefits after nine months of
[[Page 7717]]
inactivity. State agencies that opt to take unused benefits off-line
after three months of SNAP Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) account
inactivity must also provide up to 10 days advance or concurrent notice
to the SNAP recipient before taking such action and to reinstate
benefits stored off-line within 48 hours of an Individual/Household's
request if the benefits have not reached the expungement timeframe.
Currently, only six State agencies are exercising the option to store
unused benefits off-line prior to expungement, which is depicted in the
burden estimates.
The Department has identified and outlined these activities and the
estimated burden hours associated with (1) Expungement Notice (2) Off-
line Storage Notice and (3) Off-line Benefit Reinstatement for
Individuals/Households and State Agencies.
1. Expungement Notice
Affected Public: (a) Individuals/Households and (b) State agencies:
Respondent groups identified include: (1) 2,961,834 Households
(Approximately 16 percent of all SNAP households nationwide) who do not
access their benefits within nine months and (2) 53 State SNAP
agencies.
a. Individuals/Households Annual Burden
Estimated Annual Number of Respondents: 2,961,834.
Estimated Annual Number of Responses per Respondent: 1.
Estimated Total Annual Responses: 2,961,834.
Estimated Annual Time per Response: 2 minutes or 0.0334 hours.
Estimated Total Annual Burden on Respondents: 98,925 hours.
b. State Agency Annual Burden
Estimated Annual Number of Respondents: 53.
Estimated Annual Number of Responses per Respondent: 55,884.
Estimated Total Annual Responses: 2,961,852.
Estimated Annual Time per Response: 30 seconds or 0.0083 hours.
Estimated Total Annual Burden on Respondents: 24,583 hours.
2. Off-Line Storage Notice
Affected Public: (a) Households and (b) State agencies: Respondent
groups identified include: (1) 540,818 SNAP households (Approximately
14 percent of all SNAP households in the six States that currently take
benefits off-line) who do not access their benefits within three months
and (2) Six State SNAP agencies that have opted to store unused
benefits off-line.
a. Indvidual/Household Annual Burden
Estimated Number of Respondents: 540,818.
Estimated Number of Responses per Respondent: 1.
Estimated Total Annual Responses: 540,818.
Estimated Time per Response: 3.5 minutes or .0583 hours.
Estimated Total Annual Burden on Respondents: 31,530 hours.
b. State Agency Annual Burden
Estimated Number of Respondents: 6.
Estimated Number of Responses per Respondent: 90,136.
Estimated Total Annual Responses: 540,818.
Estimated Time per Response: 30 seconds or 0.0083 hours.
Estimated Total Annual Burden on Respondents: 4,489 hours.
3. Off-line Benefit Reinstatement
Affected Public: (a) Households and (b) State agencies: Respondent
groups identified include: (1) 33,260 SNAP households (Approximately 6
percent of the estimated number of households whose benefits are taken
off-line) who get their off-line benefits reinstated and (2) Six State
SNAP agencies that have opted to store unused benefits off-line.
a. Individual/Household Annual Burden
Estimated Number of Respondents: 33,260.
Estimated Number of Responses per Respondent: 1.
Estimated Total Annual Responses: 33,260.
Estimated Time per Response: 5 minutes or 0.0835 hours.
Estimated Total Annual Burden on Respondents: 2,777 hours.
b. State Agency Annual Burden
Estimated Number of Respondents: 6.
Estimated Number of Responses per Respondent: 5,543.
Estimated Total Annual Responses: 33,260.
Estimated Time per Response: 3 minutes or .0501 hours.
Estimated Total Annual Burden on Respondents: 1,666 hours.
The grand total annual burden hours is 163,970.49 (133,232.16 for
individuals/households + 30,738.34 for State agencies) and 5,923,688
total annual responses (2,961,834 for individuals/household + 2,961,834
for State agencies).
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Estimated
Estimated average
annual Responses Total annual number of Estimated
Respondent CFR citation Activity number annually per responses hours per annual total
respondent respondent response hours
annually
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Individuals or Households SNAP TBD Expungement Notice..... 2,961,834 1 2,961,834 0.0334 98,925
Recipients.
TBD Off-line Storage Notice 540,818 1 540,818 0.0583 31,530
TBD Off-line Benefit 33,260 1 33,260 0.0835 2,777
Reinstatement.
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Sub-total of Individual/ ................ ....................... 2,961,834 1 2,961,834 0.1752 133,232
Households SNAP Recipients.
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State Agencies....................... TBD Expungement Notice..... 53 55,884 2,961,834 0.0083 24,583
TBD Off-line Storage Notice 6 90,136 540,818 0.0083 4,489
TBD Off-line Benefit 6 5,543 33,260 0.0501 1,666
Reinstatement.
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Sub-total of State Agencies...... ................ ....................... 53 55,884 2,961,834 0.0677 30,738
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Grand Total Reporting Burden ................ ....................... 2,961,887 2 5,923,668 0.0277 163,970
with both Affect Public.
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[[Page 7718]]
Dated: February 5, 2020.
Pamilyn Miller,
Administrator, Food and Nutrition Service.
[FR Doc. 2020-02687 Filed 2-10-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-30-P