[Code of Federal Regulations]

[Title 7, Volume 4]

[Revised as of January 1, 2006]

From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access

[CITE: 7CFR275.9]



[Page 845-846]

 

                          TITLE 7--AGRICULTURE

 

    CHAPTER II--FOOD AND NUTRITION SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

 

PART 275_PERFORMANCE REPORTING SYSTEM--Table of Contents

 

              Subpart B_Management Evaluation (ME) Reviews

 

Sec. 275.9  Review process.



    (a) Review procedures. State agencies shall review the program 

requirements specified for review in Sec. 275.8 of this part using 

procedures that are adequate to identify problems and the causes of 

those problems. As each project area's operational structure will 

differ, State agencies shall review each program requirement applicable 

to the project area in a manner which will best measure the project 

area's compliance with each program requirement.

    (b) ME review plan. (1) State agencies shall develop a review plan 

prior to each ME review. This review plan shall specify whether each 

project area is large, medium, or small and shall contain:

    (i) Identification of the project area to be reviewed, program areas 

to be reviewed, the dates the review will be conducted, and the period 

of time that the review will cover;

    (ii) Information secured from the project area regarding its 

caseload and organization;

    (iii) Identification of the certification offices, issuance offices, 

bulk storage points, reporting points, and data management units 

selected for review and the techniques used to select them;

    (iv) Identification of whether the State agency is using the ME 

review to monitor coupon issuers and bulk storage points as discussed 

Sec. 274.1(c)(2). At State agency option it may also indicate whether 

the State agency is using the ME review process to perform non-

discrimination reviews; and

    (v) A description of the review method(s) the State agency plans to 

use for each program area being reviewed.

    (2) ME review plans shall be maintained in an orderly fashion and be 

made available to FNS upon request.

    (c) Review methods. (1) State agenices shall determine the method of 

reviewing the program requirements associated with each program area. 

For some areas of program operation it may be necessary to use more than 

one method of review to determine if the project area is in compliance 

with program requirements. The procedures used shall be adequate to 

identify any problems and the causes of those problems.

    (2) State agencies shall ensure that the method used to review a 

program requirement does not bias the review findings. Bias can be 

introduced through leading questions, incomplete reviews, incorrect 

sampling techniques, etc.

    (d) Review worksheet. (1) State agencies shall use a review 

worksheet to record all review findings. For each sub-unit reviewed the 

State agency shall, on the worksheet, identify:

    (i) The sub-unit being reviewed;

    (ii) Each program requirement reviewed in the sub-unit;

    (iii) The method used to review each program requirement;

    (iv) A description of any deficiency detected;

    (v) The cause(s) of any deficiency detected, if known;

    (vi) The number of casefiles and/or program records selected and 

examined within the sub-unit, identification of those selected (record 

case number, household name, etc.), the proportion which were not 

subject to review, as well as the method used to select the sample;



[[Page 846]]



    (vii) Where applicable, the numerical extent of any deficiency 

detected through examination of program rec ords; and

    (viii) Any pertinent comments concerning the sub-unit's operation.

    (2) State agencies shall promptly forward review findings to the 

appropriate State office for analysis, evaluation, and corrective action 

planning. Review worksheets shall be retained in an orderly fashion and 

made available to FNS upon request.



[Amdt. 160, 45 FR 15900, Mar. 11, 1980; 45 FR 25375, Apr. 15, 1980, as 

amended by Amdt. 266, 52 FR 3409, Feb. 4, 1987; Amdt. 356, 59 FR 29713, 

June 9, 1994]