Notice2024-03485
Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request
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
February 21, 2024
Issuing agencies
Agriculture Department
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 89 Issue 35 (Wednesday, February 21, 2024)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 35 (Wednesday, February 21, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Page 13034]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2024-03485]
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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request
The Department of Agriculture has submitted the following
information collection requirement(s) to 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 March
22, 2024 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
<a href="http://www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain">www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain</a>. Find this particular 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 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: Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)-Waiver Requests to Offer
Incentives to SNAP Recipients at SNAP Authorized Stores.
OMB Control Number: 0584-NEW.
Summary of Collection: SNAP equal treatment provisions at 7 CFR
278.2(b) and 7 CFR 274.7(f) require that SNAP recipients receive
treatment equal to that received by other customers at all stores
authorized to participate in SNAP with the exception that sales tax may
not be charged on eligible foods purchased with SNAP benefits. This
equal treatment provision prohibits both negative treatment (such as
discriminatory practices) as well as preferential treatment (such as
incentive programs). Pursuant to Section 4008 of the Agriculture
Improvement Act of 2018, Public Law 115-334 (2018 Farm Bill),
individual SNAP authorized retailers (or private organizations or
governmental entities, which partner with authorized stores) may
request that FNS waive the SNAP equal treatment provisions in order to
be allowed to implement an incentive program the meets the requirements
under 7 U.S.C. 2018(j) to encourage SNAP recipients to purchase
healthier foods. Most SNAP authorized stores that offer incentives to
SNAP recipients are either farmers' markets or part of a federally
funded grant program that is authorized by statute, including the Gus
Schumacher Nutrition Incentive Program (GusNIP) administered by the
USDA's National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA), and the
Healthy Fluid Milk Incentive (HFMI) project administered by the Food
and Nutrition Service.
Need and Use of the Information: Farmers markets are authorized to
provide incentives to SNAP recipients under a blanket FNS waiver of the
SNAP equal treatment provision, specifically for farmers' markets. Only
incentive projects that are funded outside of a Federal grant, other
than projects funded by farmers' markets, are required to have a waiver
from FNS to provide incentives to SNAP households at authorized SNAP
retailer locations. FNS provided incentive waivers to SNAP retailers
prior to passage of the 2018 Farm Bill under FNS' regular waiver
process and has been providing the waivers under a streamlined approach
since 2020. Over the past 3 years, FNS has received an average of nine
incentive waiver requests that generally cover multiple retailer
locations, and we expect those numbers to increase over the next 5
years. With this new streamlined process, the Department estimates that
out of 254,350 authorized retailers that participate in our program,
approximately 730 different retailers would be covered under 15
different incentive waiver requests annually.
Description of Respondents: State, Local, or Tribal Government.
Number of Respondents: 15.
Frequency of Responses: Reporting: Annually.
Total Burden Hours: 30.
Rachelle Ragland-Greene,
Acting Departmental Information Collection Clearance Officer.
[FR Doc. 2024-03485 Filed 2-20-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-30-P
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</html>Indexed from Federal Register on February 21, 2024.
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