Notice2022-21202
Agency Information Collection Activities: Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) Program Regulations-Reporting and Recordkeeping Burden
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
September 30, 2022
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 a proposed information collection. This collection is a revision of the currently approved information collection for the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC), which contains the reporting and recordkeeping burdens associated with the WIC Program regulations. These revisions include existing requirements that have been in use without Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approval, identified during the drafting of proposed information collection requests associated with two rulemakings: the Revisions in the WIC Food Packages proposed rule and the WIC Online Ordering and Transactions proposed rule.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 87 Issue 189 (Friday, September 30, 2022)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 189 (Friday, September 30, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 59392-59393]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2022-21202]
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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Food and Nutrition Service
Agency Information Collection Activities: Special Supplemental
Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) Program
Regulations--Reporting and Recordkeeping Burden
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 a proposed information collection. This collection is a revision of
the currently approved information collection for the Special
Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC),
which contains the reporting and recordkeeping burdens associated with
the WIC Program regulations. These revisions include existing
requirements that have been in use without Office of Management and
Budget (OMB) approval, identified during the drafting of proposed
information collection requests associated with two rulemakings: the
Revisions in the WIC Food Packages proposed rule and the WIC Online
Ordering and Transactions proposed rule.
DATES: Written comments must be received on or before November 29,
2022.
ADDRESSES: Comments may be sent to: Allison Post, Chief, WIC
Administration, Benefits, and Certification Branch, Policy Division,
Food and Nutrition Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, 1320
Braddock Place, Alexandria, VA 22314. Comments may also be submitted
via email to <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#33725f5f5a405c5d1d635c404773464057521d545c45"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="d392bfbfbaa0bcbdfd83bca0a793a6a0b7b2fdb4bca5">[email protected]</span></a>. Comments will also be accepted
through the 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. 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 Allison
Post at (703) 457-7708 or <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#82c3eeeeebf1edecacd2edf1f6c2f7f1e6e3ace5edf4"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="c283aeaeabb1adacec92adb1b682b7b1a6a3eca5adb4">[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 automated, electronic, mechanical, or other
technological collection techniques or other forms of information
technology.
Title: Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants,
and Children (WIC) Program Regulations--Reporting and Recordkeeping
Burden.
Form Number: N/A.
OMB Number: 0584-0043.
Expiration Date: 12/31/2023.
Type of Request: Revision of a currently approved collection.
Abstract: FNS is currently drafting two proposed rules that would
change Federal regulations governing the WIC Program at 7 CFR part 246.
FNS will seek comment on the proposed information collections
associated with those two rules separately. In the development of those
two rules, FNS identified several existing requirements that are
currently in use without OMB approval. This revision of OMB Control
Number 0584-0043 adds those requirements and their associated burdens
into this collection to correct this oversight. These requirements will
be included in future revisions to the WIC burden.
During development of the Revisions in the WIC Food Packages
proposed rule, FNS identified the State agency reporting burden
associated with 7 CFR 246.12(h)(1)(i) as in use without OMB approval.
This provision requires the State agency to enter into a written
agreement with retail vendors. State agencies must review completed
applications and sign a vendor agreement where the agreement period
must not exceed three years. The revision increases the approved annual
reporting burden by 13,584.12 responses across all 89 State agencies,
totaling 10,188.09 hours.
During the development of the WIC Online Ordering and Transactions
proposed rule, FNS identified six additional existing regulatory
requirements as in use without OMB approval that affect the reporting
burdens for WIC State agencies, households, and WIC-authorized retail
vendors. The State agency reporting burden associated with vendor
applications and agreements, discussed above, was identified during the
development of both WIC proposed rules.
WIC State Agency Reporting Burden: WIC regulations at Sec.
246.12(g)(5), Sec. 246.12(j)(2), and Sec. 246.12(j)(4) require State
agencies to visit vendors on site to conduct preauthorization visits of
new vendor applicants, routine monitoring visits of five percent of
vendors, and compliance investigations of five percent of vendors,
respectively.\1\ These requirements involve both the necessary time to
conduct the visit and the round-trip travel time. In addition to the
13,584.12 responses and 10,188.09 hours associated with reviewing
vendor applications and agreements discussed above, these revisions
would add 3,571.20 responses and 4,943.33 hours to the approved WIC
State agency reporting burden, for a total of 17,155.32 additional
responses and 15,131.42 additional burden hours across all 89 State
agencies.
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\1\ The burden associated with conducting compliance
investigations is already included in the approved burden for this
collection, but the travel time has been previously omitted.
Including the travel time affects the number of burden hours (686.07
hours added) but not the number of responses associated with
compliance investigations.
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Household Reporting Burden: Section 246.12(r) requires WIC
participants to pick up food instruments and cash-value vouchers (CVVs)
in person when scheduled for a nutrition or recertification
appointment. Outside of these scheduled appointments, State agencies
may issue benefits through alternative means including electronic
benefits transfer (EBT) or mailing, but many participants must still
visit the clinic to pick up their benefits. Households with multiple
WIC participants would only need to travel to the clinic once to pick
up all members' benefits, and State agencies may issue up to three
months of food instruments and CVVs at a time.
If a State agency operates an offline EBT system or has not
completed their transition to EBT, participants are generally required
to reload their offline EBT card or pick up paper food instruments and
CVVs in person. FNS estimates that in these State agencies, 656,135.82
households visit the clinic three times per year outside of other
scheduled appointments to pick up benefits in person, requiring
1,968,407.46 visits and 984,203.73 hours. If a State agency operates an
online EBT system, new participants generally pick up new EBT cards in
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person and all other participants receive benefits electronically. FNS
estimates that in these State agencies, 1,042,098.07 households spend
521,049.03 hours picking up EBT cards in person once per year outside
of other scheduled appointments. These revisions would add 3,010,505.53
responses and 1,505,252.76 total hours to the approved reporting burden
for 1,698,234 households.
WIC-Authorized Vendor Reporting Burden: In addition to the State
agency reporting burden associated with preauthorization visits
required by Sec. 246.12(g)(5), vendors' reporting burden must account
for such visits. Approximately 1,513 vendors are newly authorized for
the WIC Program each year and undergo preauthorization visits. Once
authorized for the WIC Program, all 41,164 WIC-authorized vendors are
required to attend annual training, per Sec. 246.12(j)(1). FNS
estimates that including the burden associated with these two existing
provisions adds 42,677 responses and 83,336.72 hours to the approved
vendor reporting burden for this collection.
Affected Public: Individual/Households; Business or Other for
Profit; and State and Tribal Government. Respondent groups include WIC
participants/households, WIC-authorized retail vendors, and WIC State
agencies (including Indian Tribal Organizations and U.S. Territories).
Estimated Number of Respondents: The total estimated number of
respondents is 1,739,487 for the proposed revisions to the information
collection request associated with OMB Number 0584-0043. This includes:
89 State agencies; 1,698,234 WIC households, and 41,164 WIC-authorized
retail vendors.
Estimated Number of Responses per Respondent: 1.77 responses.
Estimated Total Annual Responses: The total estimated number of
responses is 3,072,396 for the proposed revisions to the information
collection request associated with OMB Number 0584-0043.
Estimated Time per Response: 0.52 hours.
Estimated Total Annual Burden on Respondents: 1,607,837 hours.
Current OMB Inventory: 4,547,099 hours and 48,798,800 responses.
Difference (Burden Revisions Requested): +1,603,721 hours and
+3,070,338 responses.\2\
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\2\ The burden revisions requested do not exactly match the
number of hours and responses for the proposed revisions to the
information collection listed above because the burden associated
with conducting compliance investigations is already included in the
approved burden for this collection; the revision only adds the
estimated travel time that is required to conduct compliance
investigations.
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Estimated Grand Total for Reporting and Recordkeeping Burden:
6,150,819 hours and 51,869,137 responses (numbers may not sum due to
rounding).
Tameka Owens,
Assistant Administrator, Food and Nutrition Service.
[FR Doc. 2022-21202 Filed 9-29-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-30-P
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