Public Comments

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Gregory Walton
Program Analyst, Food Distribution Policy Branch
Supplemental Nutrition and Safety Programs
Food and Nutrition Service
U.S. Department of Agriculture
1320 Braddock Place
Alexandria, VA 22314
RE: Docket ID number FNS-2023-0026, “Food Distribution Programs: Improving Access and Parity”
Mr. Gregory Walton,
The Ohio Association of Foodbanks appreciates the opportunity to comment on the Food and
Nutrition, U.S. Department of Agriculture’s proposed rules regarding improving access and parity in
food distribution programs.
The Ohio Association of Foodbanks represents 12 Feeding America foodbanks and 3,600 partner
agencies serving all 88 counties in the state. We are writing with specific comments in response to
USDA FNS related to its proposed changes to the administration and implementation of The
Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP) and the Commodity Supplemental Food Program
(CSFP).
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In response to A.III and C.III, “Public Posting of Availability of USDA Foods”
We thank USDA FNS for its proposed requirement that State agencies administering CSFP
and TEFAP make information about the availability of USDA Foods publicly accessible online.
As community-based organizations (CBOs) that have served as public-private partners for
decades in the delivery of USDA Foods through CSFP and TEFAP, Ohio’s foodbanks are eager
to be partners in making information about where to access USDA Foods available,
accessible, and reliable. Foodbanks already use several strategies to maintain accurate
online referral platforms and searchable databases, such as making directory lists available
on their own websites, partnering with 2-1-1, or utilizing technology like FreshTrak/Service
Insights. With thousands of nonprofit and faith-based agencies and organizations partnering
to equitably distribute USDA Foods throughout Ohio, maintaining reliable directories down to
the zip code level requires significant administrative effort. We appreciate that USDA FNS
recommends, but does not require, that state agencies publicize additional details related to
operating hours, distribution site addresses, etc. as a requirement could mean that
foodbanks and CBOs distributing USDA Foods that have already developed referral platforms
would be burdened with duplicating that ever-changing information on more than one site.

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In response to A.V, “Eligibility Requirements”
The Ohio Association of Foodbanks and its member foodbanks support the USDA FNS
proposal to increase CSFP's maximum income eligibility guidelines to 150 percent of the U.S.
Federal Poverty Guidelines without the addition of a medical deduction. We agree that the
addition of a medical deduction would be administratively burdensome and counter to the
program’s goals for simplicity and ease of administration.
As to the USDA’s interest in seeking comment on aligning the maximum eligibility guidelines
for CSFP to 185 percent of federal poverty in future rulemaking, we are somewhat agnostic.
We think that the caseload availability for CSFP is so limited that the priority in setting
income guidelines should be aligning them to ensure ease of participation and adequate
resources (program slots) for vulnerable older adults. Just because the Senior Farmers
Market Program is set at 185 percent FPL does not mean it is necessarily the most logical
eligibility threshold with which to align CSFP in a given state. For example, in Ohio, our
maximum income eligibility for the general Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program
(SNAP) population is 130 percent, but households with only elderly or disabled members
have a maximum income eligibility of 165 percent; it might make the most sense for our
state to align CSFP with this threshold for elderly SNAP participants. However, because CSFP
is not an entitlement program and of most interest to older adults with mobility limitations
and most at-risk for worsening nutrition-related outcomes, we feel it is more important to set
eligibility guidelines that align CSFP resources with the target population’s income. By
increasing to 150 percent, we hope that additional older adults that have previously been
excluded from participating may gain access to CSFP or avoid losing access when minor Cost
of Living Adjustments are made to social security benefits. We would encourage USDA to
assess utilization of available CSFP caseload as this change goes into effect and propose
future changes to maximum income eligibility if necessary based on trends in CSFP
utilization compared to trends in household income for older adult households.

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In response to A.VI, “Changes to Identification Check at Distribution”
We thank USDA for proposing that it would no longer require that participants or proxies
present a form of identification and instead require that local agencies must have a process
in place to verify the identity of participants, in accordance with State agency requirements.
We agree that this proposed change will support options to modernize the program's delivery
methods, including with increased utilization of home delivery services driven by foodbanks,
community-based organizations, and/or third-party delivery partners.

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In response to C.IV, “State Agency Options for TEFAP Eligibility Criteria, Documentation, and
Public Communication”
o

TEFAP Maximum Income Eligibility Range and State Agency Option for Alternative
Income Eligibility Thresholds
We appreciate USDA’s desire to increase alignment of income eligibility criteria
nationwide and ensure access to USDA Foods for vulnerable individuals. However, we
also recognize that TEFAP represents only a small portion of the emergency foods
distributed by foodbanks in Ohio and across the country and is inadequate to meet
the needs of Americans experiencing food insecurity.
Fortunately for Ohio, our TEFAP maximum eligibility threshold has long been
established at 200 percent of the Federal Poverty Level. This threshold aligns with
other sources of revenue Ohio foodbanks leverage in partnership with our state
agency to provide increased services to people facing hunger, such as Temporary
Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) block grant funds. It is critically important that
hunger relief providers be able to partner with state agencies to align TEFAP eligibility
thresholds with other emergency hunger relief programs and funding to simplify and
streamline participation and distribution and maximize available resources for people
in need. We are glad to see that states with higher costs of living could seek out
approval for a maximum threshold about 250 percent of the Federal Poverty Level
(FPL).

o

Methods for Verifying Residency
The Ohio Association of Foodbanks and its member foodbanks support proposed
revisions that would require State agencies to develop a process for requesting
residency information to determine eligibility that does not require an address or
identification, such as self-declaration of residency by the applicant. This change is
critical for allowing some of our most vulnerable community members, such as those
reentering their community after incarceration, those fleeing domestic violence, and
those experiencing homelessness, to receive USDA Foods. We support the proposed
revision that would prohibit State agencies from requiring households to provide an
address or identification to confirm residency as part of their statewide eligibility
criteria. However, we do have concerns about the ability to partner across programs
and state and federal agencies related to the proposal that would amend regulations
to establish requirements for protecting information obtained from applicants and
participants to establish eligibility (see C.VII below).

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In response to C.VII, “Removal of Federal Address Collection Requirements, Redesignations,
and Updated References for Miscellaneous Provisions”
o

Removal of Federal Address Collection Requirements and Establishing
Confidentiality Protections for Applicant and Participant Household Information

As noted above, we support the removal of a requirement that an address be collected to
receive USDA Foods. However, we have concerns with the proposed language revising
251.10 in the rule regarding Establishing Confidentiality Protections for Applicant and
Participant Household Information.
If this proposal were to be adopted, TEFAP participant information would be required to
be kept confidential. Limits would be established related to the disclosure of information
obtained from applicants or participants. These proposed limits could have detrimental
impact on existing and rapidly accelerating efforts to improve nutrition and hunger relief
programming through linking community food distribution to customer health outcomes.
Data sharing components – completed through careful privacy safeguards – are key to
everything from streamlining eligibility across federal and state programs to making twoway, closed-loop referrals to measuring the impact of Health Related Social Needs
(HRSNs) and HRSN interventions on health outcomes.
While privacy safeguards are important to protecting confidentiality, limiting data sharing
for efforts to improve efficiencies could negatively affect customer service and be
counterintuitive to key goals identified through the White House Conference on Hunger,
Nutrition, and Health.
Many organizations that are TEFAP distribution partners, including members of the Ohio
Association of Foodbanks, have instituted programs to integrate emergency food
distribution into a developing whole-person health care system. This allows for collective
work to tailor nutritious food for customers to drive measurably improved health
outcomes. For example, one Ohio foodbank conducted a pilot with a Federally Qualified
Health Center and 10,000 common customers that also accessed TEFAP and other
hunger relief services; results showed significant weight loss and lowering of blood sugar
levels, key indicators of common health issues that can be addressed through diet.
Based off those results, this foodbank now has a food-is-health program currently serving
nearly 37,000 customers through 29 sites in partnership with 12 health care partners.
This is reflective of the many similar programs run through our members across Ohio,
positively impacting the lives of tens of thousands of our foodbank customers. By
identifying patients who are food insecure and experiencing health-related issues, health
care providers can now work with hunger relief agencies for a food-based response
tailored to specific health issues. However, this is predicated on sharing of information

among foodbanks and various health care providers, governed by agreements on data
and personal information integrity.
What is happening in Ohio on food-based health response is reflective of similar efforts
across the nation, tying assistance programs to Social Determinants of Health for
improved, coordinated holistic outcomes. Instituting a blanket prohibition on information
sharing could greatly harm efforts to improve emergency food distribution and to work
with customers to improve overall health outcomes and advance toward self-sufficiency.
We encourage USDA to work closely with the Feeding America national organization and
network, including the Ohio Association of Foodbanks, to ensure confidentiality
regulations promote, rather than hinder, current practices focused on improving the daily
lives of customers through interventions addressing Health-Related Social Needs and
Social Determinants of Health.
In closing, we support the USDA FNS’ efforts to improve TEFAP and CSFP access and parity and hope
that USDA FNS considers consultation with its cross-agency partners, such as Centers for Medicare
and Medicaid Services, on how proposed limits on data sharing could adversely impact progress
toward core goals of the White House Conference on Hunger, Nutrition, and Health. We look forward
to continuing as partners toward reduced hunger and improved nutrition for food insecure
Americans.
Thank you for the opportunity to submit comments and shape the work you are pursuing.
Sincerely,

Joree Novotny
Executive Director
Ohio Association of Foodbanks