OMB Control #: 0584-XXXX
Expiration Date: XX/XX/XXXX
OMB BURDEN STATEMENT: This information is being collected to assist the Food and Nutrition Service in determining the State agency’s need for a waiver to provide flexibility in administering the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) during a pandemic. This is a voluntary collection. This collection does not request any personally identifiable information under the Privacy Act of 1974. According to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, an agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a valid OMB control number. The valid OMB control number for this information collection is 0584-XXXX. The time required to complete this information collection is estimated to average 60 minutes per response, including the time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the collection of information. Send comments regarding this burden estimate or any other aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing this burden, to: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Food and Nutrition Service, Office of Policy Support, 1320 Braddock Place, Alexandria, VA 22306 ATTN: PRA (0584-XXXX).
State Plan for Pandemic EBT (P-EBT)
The contents of this document do not have the force and effect of law and are not meant to bind the public in any way. This document is intended only to provide clarity to the public regarding existing requirements under the law or agency policies.
Type of Request: Initial
Primary Citation: Families First Coronavirus Response Act
State:
Proposed Alternative Procedures:
The State proposes to provide P-EBT benefits to SNAP and non-SNAP households with children who have temporarily lost access to free or reduced-price school meals due to pandemic-related school closures. These households are eligible for P-EBT because they:
Include an eligible child or children, who if not for the closure of their school during a public health emergency designation and due to concerns about a COVID-19 outbreak, would receive free or reduced-price school meals under the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act, as amended, and
The
child’s school or district will be (or has been) closed for at
least 5 consecutive days during a public health emergency
designation and due to concerns about a COVID-19 outbreak.
The household allotment amount will be no less than the value of school meals at the free rate over the course of five (5) school days for each eligible child in the household. The value of the school meals is equal to the Federal reimbursement rate for breakfast and lunch at the free rate.
Verification of P-EBT Enrollment: [STATE MUST ADDRESS HOW THEY WILL obtain enrollment DATA from local educational entities, TO DETERMINE WHO THE CHILDREN ELIGIBLE TO RECEIVE P-EBT BENEFITS ARE, AND MATCH THEM TO THEIR EXISTING SNAP CASE, WHERE APPLICABLE.
Calculation of Household Allotments: [STATE MUST ADDRESS HOW THEY PROPOSE TO CALCULATE THE ALLOTMENTS FOR AFFECTED HOUSEHOLDS BASED ON THE FREE RATE FOR BREAKFAST AND LUNCH IN THEIR STATE.]
Issuing P-EBT Benefits to Households: [STATE MUST ADDRESS HOW THEY WILL ISSUE THESE BENEFITS TO EXISTING SNAP HOUSEHOLDS, E.G., in a manner similar to providing automatic supplements under D-SNAP operations, and HOW THEY WILL SET UP NEW CASES AND ISSUE CARDS AND BENEFITS TO NON-SNAP HOUSEHOLDS.]
For SNAP households States will use existing case information to issue the benefit. Therefore, the State could provide the P-EBT benefit without contacting a SNAP household.
For non-SNAP households, an application is required so that a P-EBT case may be set up in the State’s eligibility system and benefits can be issued. A non-SNAP household will need to provide household information in order to participate. A State may propose alternate procedures if the necessary data for non-SNAP households is readily available.
In instances where P-EBT eligible children are not part of an existing SNAP household, the State agency will obtain the following information prior to providing benefits:
Name and signature of the head of household
Number and names of eligible children in the household
Address of household on record with the school district
Mailing address if different than address on record with the school district
If available and practicable, States may [are encouraged to] utilize existing household information from school meal applications in order to create P-EBT cases in their system.
Other Requirements: [If applicable, STATE SHOULD ADDRESS ANY OTHER STATE-SPECIFIC NEEDS THEY MAY HAVE.]
All P-EBT benefits will be delivered on an EBT card, and the State hereby confirms that it has sufficient card stock on hand to successfully begin operations for the number of households estimated below.
The State should conduct a public information campaign to alert those receiving benefits the purpose of P-EBT and how it is to be used.
The State’s SNAP agency also agrees to complete the FNS-292 form on a timely basis in accordance with requirements as well as all other normally recurring SNAP reporting included the FNS 46 and 388 reports, on a timely basis in accordance with requirements.
In addition, the State agency will submit weekly reports to FNS with the following information for the entire State:
The value of the P-EBT benefits issued to SNAP and non-SNAP households, separately identified.
The average issuance amount per household for SNAP and non-SNAP households, separately identified.
The number of SNAP households issued P-EBT and the number of non-SNAP households issued P-EBT
Data should differentiate between non-SNAP and current SNAP households receiving P-EBT
Within SNAP households, the data should differentiate between base SNAP benefits and P-EBT benefits
.
Justification for Request: Coronavirus COVID-19
Affected Caseload: [these benefits will be issued FOR AS LONG AS SCHOOLS ARE CLOSED DUE TO COVID-19, but not beyond the end of the regular school year). thE BENEFITS ISSUED SHOULD BE EQUIVALENT TO THE DAILY REIMBURSEMENT FOR FREE BREAKFAST and LUNCH in the State MULTIPLIED BY THE AVERAGE NUMBER OF DAYS SCHOOL WAS CANCELLED AND BY the NUMBER OF ELIGIBLE CHILDREN IN the HOUSEHOLD. THE BENEFIT CEILING IS CALCULATED based on the number of cancelled school days in an average month, AND THE BENEFIT MAY BE PROVIDED on a monthly basis THROUGH THE END OF THE STATE’s CALCULATED MEAN DATE FOR THE END OF THE REGULARLY SCHEDULED SCHOOL YEAR. the State should provide estimates for the TOTAL first month of expected issuance BASED ON THE NUMBER OF DAYS THAT ARE INCLUDED.]
One month estimates for existing SNAP households under these procedures:
Number of households receiving P-EBT benefits:
Number of children receiving P-EBT benefits:
Amount of P-EBT benefits to be issued: $
One month estimates for those non-SNAP households/children who will receive P-EBT under these procedures:
Number of households receiving P-EBT benefits:
Number of children receiving P-EBT benefits:
Amount of P-EBT benefits to be issued: $
Anticipated Implementation Date: [STATES SHOULD SPECIFY TWO DATES IF THE IMPLEMENTATION DATE WILL VARY FOR SNAP AND NON-SNAP HOUSEHOLDS]
Signature and Title of Requesting SNAP and Child Nutrition State Agency Officials:
____________________________________
Signature
____________________________________
Print Name and Title
_____________________________________
Signature
_____________________________________
Print Name and Title
Date of Request:
| File Type | application/vnd.openxmlformats-officedocument.wordprocessingml.document |
| Author | OMB |
| File Modified | 0000-00-00 |
| File Created | 2021-01-14 |