Notice2021-22552
Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Collection; Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) Mobile Payment Pilots (MPPs)
Primary source
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Published
October 18, 2021
Issuing agencies
Agriculture DepartmentFood and Nutrition Service
Abstract
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. This is a request for a new collection to conduct demonstration pilot projects to test the redemption of SNAP benefits through mobile payment technologies and issue a request for volunteers (RFV) to solicit applications from SNAP State agencies (State agencies) for these pilots.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 86 Issue 198 (Monday, October 18, 2021)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 198 (Monday, October 18, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 57634-57637]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2021-22552]
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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Food and Nutrition Service
Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Collection;
Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) Mobile Payment Pilots
(MPPs)
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 the proposed information collection. This is a request for a new
collection to conduct demonstration pilot projects to test the
redemption of SNAP benefits through mobile payment technologies and
issue a request for volunteers (RFV) to solicit applications from SNAP
State agencies (State agencies) for these pilots.
DATES: Written comments must be received on or before December 17,
2021.
ADDRESSES:
<bullet> Preferred Method: Federal eRulemaking Portal. Go to <a href="http://www.regulations.gov">http://www.regulations.gov</a>, and follow the online instructions for submitting
comments electronically.
<bullet> Email: <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#c092908d848891ed9785828095938481ee878f96"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="6a383a272e223b473d2f282a3f392e2b442d253c">[email protected]</span></a>.
<bullet> Mail: Send comments to Shelly Pierce, Food and Nutrition
Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, 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 (OMB) 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 Shelly
Pierce, at 703-605-4400 or via email to <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#86d4d6cbc2ced7abd1c3c4c6d3d5c2c7a8c1c9d0"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="faa8aab7beb2abd7adbfb8baafa9bebbd4bdb5ac">[email protected]</span></a>.
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
[[Page 57635]]
automated, electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection
techniques or other forms of information technology.
Title: SNAP Mobile Payment Pilots (MPPs) and Request for Volunteers
(RFV).
Form Number: None.
OMB Number: 0584-NEW.
Expiration Date: Not Yet Assigned.
Type of Request: New collection.
Abstract: Section 4006(e) of the Agricultural Act of 2018 (Pub. L.
115-334) authorizes the Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) to allow up to
five Mobile Payment Pilots (MPPs) to allow the use of personal mobile
devices, such as cellular phones, tablets and smart watches in place of
SNAP Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) cards to conduct SNAP
transactions. Respondents (SNAP State agencies (State agencies) and
their SNAP business partners) will conduct pilots to test the use of
mobile payment technologies for the redemption of SNAP benefits by SNAP
households at participating retailers, in order to determine their
feasibility and implications for program integrity. FNS will conduct
these projects to evaluate whether allowing mobile payments is in the
best interest of the Program, and to therefore, recommend allowing
their use to the Secretary. The information collected in the pilot
evaluation (to be submitted for OMB approval under a separate
information collection request) will help FNS determine the success of
and best practices for the use of mobile payment technologies to redeem
SNAP benefits. This information will inform Program design, standards,
rulemaking, and guidance for approval of SNAP mobile payment
technologies as well as Departmental decisions and recommendations to
Congress with respect to requiring all State EBT systems to accept
mobile payment technologies in the future.
To achieve these objectives, FNS requests OMB approval to: (1)
Issue a Request for Volunteers (RFV) to solicit applications from up to
53 SNAP State agencies to participate in these MPPs; and (2) select up
to 5 State agencies that apply to implement a MPP in their State. This
information collection request seeks OMB approval only for the RFV
application process and implementation of MPP by State agencies. Under
the Paperwork Reduction Act, FNS will seek a separate OMB approval to
evaluate the results of completed MPPs under a separate 60-day Federal
Register Notice and information collection request.
1. Assumptions
It is impossible for FNS to know in advance the design and
structure of pilots that may be proposed or the specific activities
each State and associated partners will undertake in their preparation
of the RFV application or in conducting an MPP. Therefore, we have
provided general estimates based on an assumed pilot model. Actual
pilots may vary widely from this model and include a variety of
potential stakeholders; this information collection does not intend to
establish a standard model; this model will be used throughout this
notice simply for ease of estimation. If there is substantive changes
to this data collection request, the agency will seek OMB approval to
revise this information collection request following the Paperwork
Reduction Act process. The estimates below are based on a model in
which one State agency partners with an average of four (4) stakeholder
businesses (2 retailers, 1 EBT processor, and 1 mobile payment vendor)
and recruits 1,000 SNAP participants per pilot proposal. It is
important to note for burden estimation purposes that while there are
numerous retailer and mobile payment vendors the States may choose to
partner with, there are only 4 EBT processors nationally. Therefore,
EBT processors may partner with multiple pilot proposals submitted by
the various State agencies; this has been considered in our estimation.
2. RFV Application Process
FNS will issue a RFV to solicit an estimate of 53 applications for
an up to eighteen (18) month pilot. In order to participate in the
Mobile Payment Pilot, interested States first need to submit a letter
of intent as discussed in the RFV, followed by an RFV application. This
response will include all documents required in the RFV, such as a
detailed work plan (as outlined in Appendix AA), the Application
Checklist (Appendix A), which ensures completeness, and the Assurances
(Appendix B), which ensures State Applicant compliance with pilot
requirements. In preparation for completing the RFV Application, State
agencies are expected to coordinate with business partner stakeholders,
including EBT processors, retailers, and other contractors. FNS
estimates that up to 53 State SNAP agencies may apply through the RFV
process, and that each State agency will require 20 hours to prepare
and submit their RFV application electronically to FNS. In addition,
FNS estimates that each of the 53 State agencies may require 80 hours
of coordination and planning activities with each of their business
partner organizations before submitting an application. The information
collected through the RFV application process will help FNS determine
each State agency's eligibility to participate in a MPP, evaluate their
proposed pilots, and select candidates to participate in the pilot. FNS
will verify that Applicant States/Territories with mobile payment
capability meet requirements laid out in the RFV Application. Those
that pass the verification process will be rated based on a structured
evaluation process described in the RFV. Up to five (5) of the best
rated Applicant States will be invited to participate in the pilot; as
defined in RFV Section 3.2 Participant Selection. Ideally, selected
State agency participants will represent a variety of different types
of mobile payment technologies. Following selection of State agency
participants, the pilot period will last a total of eighteen (18)
months, and Pilot Participants (State agencies and associated business
partner organizations) will join on a rolling basis with the condition
that they must each participate for a minimum of nine (9) months.
3. Mobile Payment Pilot Implementation
Per the requirement in Section 4006(e) of the Agricultural Act of
2018 (Pub. L. 115-334) FNS will limit the number of MPPs selected to 5,
and each MPP will operate for a maximum of 12 months. FNS estimates
that, based on the assumed model in this notice, each State agency may
require 80 hours to conduct the following activities during each month
of implementation of an MPP (as applicable). These activities include;
1. Design of mobile payment integration and changes to EBT
systems and functionality to accommodate mobile payments,
2. Testing of EBT systems to ensure compatibility,
3. Provision of technical assistance and support to SNAP
households that participate in an MPP, and/or
4. Coordination with EBT processors, SNAP retailers, and mobile
payment contractors.
FNS estimates that, based on the assumed model in this notice, each
of the 5 State agencies may issue 1 recruitment notice for the MPP to
5,000 individuals who are members of SNAP households in each State for
a total of 25,000 individuals. These notices may be issued to SNAP
households electronically or via mail, depending on the State.
Generation and issuance of each notice by the State agency is
[[Page 57636]]
expected to take approximately 3 minutes (0.05 hours). FNS also
estimates that each of the 25,000 individual household members will
require up to 3 minutes (0.05 hours) to read the recruitment notice for
participation in the pilot. FNS estimates that approximately 5,000 of
the recruited participants will opt to participate in the pilot (1,000
per State) and that each of the 5,000 participants will require 15
minutes to enroll in an MPP. Potential enrollment activities for SNAP
household respondents are based on the assumed model in this
information collection may include calling or emailing the State agency
to indicate interest, reviewing instructions, downloading an
application (as known as app), technical assistance, and/or enrolling
in the app.
Reporting Burden for State Agencies
Affected Public: State SNAP agencies.
Estimated Number of Respondents: 53 State agencies.
Estimated Number of Responses per Respondent: 478.23.
Estimated Total Annual Responses: 25,346.
Estimated Time per Response: 1.05.
Estimated Total Annual Burden on Respondents: 26,575 hours.
Reporting Burden for Businesses
Affected Public: Business (Respondent Types: EBT Stakeholders (EBT
Processors, SNAP Retailers, Mobile Payment Vendors or Contractors).
Estimated Number of Respondents: 163.
Estimated Number of Responses per Respondent: 2.63.
Estimated Total Annual Responses: 429.40.
Estimated Time per Response: 80 hours per response.
Estimated Total Annual Burden on Respondents: 34,352 hours.
Reporting Burden for Individual Households
Affected Public: SNAP Recipients.
Estimated Number of Respondents: 25,000.
Estimated Number of Responses per Respondent: 1.2 responses.
Estimated Total Annual Responses: 30,000 responses.
Estimated Time per Response: .08 hour.
Estimated Total Annual Burden on Respondents: 2,500 hours.
Recordkeeping Burden for State Agencies
There is no recordkeeping or third-party reporting burden
associated with this information collection.
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Estimated
Estimated number of Estimated Estimated avg. Estimated
Respondent type Activity number of responses total annual number of total annual
respondents annually per responses hours per hours
respondent response
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State SNAP Agencies.................... Request for Volunteers-- 53.00 1.00 53.00 20.00 1,060.00
Preparation and Submission of
Application.
Request for Volunteers-- 53.00 1.00 53.00 80.00 4,240.00
Stakeholder Coordination.
Mobile Payment Pilot--Design & 5.00 12.00 60.00 80.00 4,800.00
System Changes.
Mobile Payment Pilot--System 5.00 12.00 60.00 80.00 4,800.00
Testing.
Mobile Payment Pilot--Issue 5.00 5,000.00 25,000.00 0.08 2,075.00
Recruitment Notices.
Mobile Payment Pilot-- 5.00 12.00 60.00 80.00 4,800.00
Implementation & Support.
Mobile Payment Pilot-- 5.00 12.00 60.00 80.00 4,800.00
Stakeholder Coordination.
State Agency Subtotal.............. ............................... 53.00 478.23 25,346.00 1.05 26,575.00
EBT Processors......................... Request for Volunteers-- 4.00 10.60 42.40 80.00 3,392.00
Coordination.
Mobile Payment Pilot-- 4.00 12.00 48.00 80.00 3,840.00
Coordination.
SNAP Retailers......................... Request for Volunteers-- 106.00 1.00 106.00 80.00 8,480.00
Coordination.
Mobile Payment Pilot-- 10.00 12.00 120.00 80.00 9,600.00
Coordination.
Mobile Payment Vendor.................. Request for Volunteers-- 53.00 1.00 53.00 80.00 4,240.00
Coordination.
Mobile Payment Pilot-- 5.00 12.00 60.00 80.00 4,800.00
Coordination.
Business Subtotal.................. ............................... 164.00 2.76 452.00 80.00 36,160.00
SNAP Recipients........................ Mobile Payment Pilot--Review 25,000.00 1.00 25,000.00 0.05 1,250.00
Recruitment Notice.
Mobile Payment Pilot--Complete 5,000.00 1.00 5,000.00 0.25 1,250.00
Enrollment.
Individual/Household Subtotal...... ............................... 25,000.00 1.20 30,000.00 0.08 2,500.00
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Totals......................... ............................... 25,216.00 2.21 55,775.40 1.14 63,427.00
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[[Page 57637]]
Cynthia Long,
Administrator, Food and Nutrition Service.
[FR Doc. 2021-22552 Filed 10-15-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-30-P
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