[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 249 (Wednesday, December 29, 2010)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Page 81831]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-32686]
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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Food and Nutrition Service
7 CFR Part 274
RIN 0584-AD48
Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, Regulation
Restructuring: Issuance Regulation Update and Reorganization To Reflect
the End of Coupon Issuance Systems
AGENCY: Food and Nutrition Service (FNS), USDA.
ACTION: Affirmation of direct final rule as final rule.
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SUMMARY: The Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) is adopting as a final
rule, without change, a direct final rule that made changes to the
Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) regulations to account
for the replacement of the paper coupon issuance system with the
Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) system as the nationwide method of
distributing benefits to program participants. This action is in
accordance with the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008, Public
Law 110-246, (the 2008 Farm Bill) which prohibited State agencies from
issuing paper food stamp coupons and made EBT cards the sole method of
benefit delivery. The 2008 Farm Bill also de-obligated paper coupons as
legal tender as of June 18, 2009. Therefore, paper coupons no longer
have any value and can no longer be redeemed at any store.
In line with EBT implementation and the elimination of coupons,
these changes remove coupon issuance and EBT pilot regulations that are
no longer applicable, revise regulatory language to more appropriately
reflect the new EBT issuance system and the Program's new name, and
reorganize sections to develop a more cohesive set of issuance
regulations.
DATES: Effective December 29, 2010, the Food and Nutrition Service
adopted as a final rule the direct final rule published at 75 FR 18377
on April 12, 2010. The effective date of that direct final rule was
June 11, 2010.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Andrea Gold, Chief, Retailer
Management and Issuance Branch, Benefit Redemption Division (703) 305-
2456.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
On April 12, 2010, the Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) published a
direct final rule entitled, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program,
Regulation Restructuring: Issuance Regulation Update and Reorganization
To Reflect the End of Coupon Issuance Systems, that made changes to the
SNAP regulations to account for the replacement of the paper coupon
issuance system with the EBT system as the nationwide method of
distributing benefits to program recipients. FNS published a direct
final rule to expedite implementation of the rule's provision, while
allowing public input. Comments were invited on the rule and the
comment period ended on May 12, 2010.
FNS received one comment in response to the direct Final Rule that
misinterpreted the intent of the rule. The comment addressed the new
citation at 7 CFR 274.6(a)(3)(i) regarding replacement issuances for
food lost in a household misfortune. The commenter believed that the
regulation was changed to only allow benefits used for food purchased
10 days prior to the misfortune to be replaced. To the contrary, the
new language merely removed obsolete coupon and authorization document
references and now reads, ``the report will be considered timely if it
is made to the State agency within 10 days of the date food purchased
with Program benefits is destroyed in a household misfortune.'' The
focus of this statement is on when households must report the food
loss, not on the date the food was purchased. Therefore, as required by
the previous language, households must report the food loss within 10
days after the date the food was destroyed. The food must be food that
was purchased with SNAP benefits. The date when the food was actually
purchased has no bearing on the amount of the issuance replacement.
The Department's Office of the General Counsel reviewed the comment
and clarification and determined that because the comment was based on
a misreading of the language, it would not have to be considered a
material comment that would prevent FNS from adopting the direct final
rule as a final rule.
List of Subjects in 7 CFR Part 274
SNAP, Grant programs-social programs, Reporting and recordkeeping
requirements.
Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, Regulation Restructuring:
Issuance Regulation Update and Reorganization to Reflect the End of
Coupon Issuance Systems
0
Accordingly, FNS is adopting as a final rule, without change, the
direct final rule that amended 7 CFR part 274 and was published at 75
FR 18377 on April 12, 2010.
Dated: November 24, 2010.
Julia Paradis,
Administrator, Food and Nutrition Service.
[FR Doc. 2010-32686 Filed 12-28-10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-30-P