[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 106 (Friday, June 1, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 25425-25426]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-11849]
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Notices
Federal Register
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This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER contains documents other than rules
or proposed rules that are applicable to the public. Notices of hearings
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Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 106 / Friday, June 1, 2018 /
Notices
[[Page 25425]]
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Food and Nutrition Service
Request for Information: Supplemental Nutrition Assistance
Program (SNAP) Quality Control Integrity and Modernization
AGENCY: Food and Nutrition Service (FNS), USDA.
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: In order to accurately estimate improper payments in the
Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, the Food and Nutrition
Service (FNS) has undertaken significant steps to strengthen its
measurement process, the SNAP Quality Control system. Improvements
include new training, policy clarifications, procedural improvements,
and clarification of existing documentation requirements necessary to
substantiate case findings. FNS has also implemented new policies to
improve accountability and eliminate the potential for bias in the
reporting system. FNS is considering proposals for a regulatory reform
of its SNAP's Quality Control system in order to align the regulations
with new policy and procedural requirements. FNS's intent is to achieve
three objectives from reforming the Quality Control system: (1)
Strengthen the integrity and accountability of the Quality Control
system, (2) increase transparency in the process, and (3) use
technology to improve improper payment estimates. Thus, FNS is issuing
this Request for Information in order to obtain State government and
other stakeholder perspectives as the Agency considers how to best to
proceed with reforming the SNAP Quality Control system.
DATES: Written comments must be received on or before July 31, 2018.
ADDRESSES: Comments may be sent to Stephanie Proska, Chief, Quality
Control Branch, Program Accountability and Administration Division,
Food and Nutrition Service (FNS), U.S. Department of Agriculture, 3101
Park Center Drive, Room 822, Alexandria, VA 22302. Comments may also be
emailed to [email protected]. Comments will also be accepted
through the Federal eRulemaking Portal. Go to http://www.regulations.gov and follow the online instructions for submitting
comments electronically.
All comments submitted in response to this notice will be included
in the record and will be made available to the public at
www.regulations.gov. Please be advised that the substance of the
comments and the identity of the individuals or entities commenting
will be subject to public disclosure.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Requests for additional information or
copies of this request for information should be directed to Stephanie
Proska at (703) 305-2437.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The purpose of SNAP's Quality Control
system is to measure improper payments consistent with Federal law. In
addition to QC requirements in the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008, as
amended, SNAP must comply with requirements in The Improper Payments
Information Act of 2002 (IPIA), as amended by the Improper Payments
Elimination and Recovery Act of 2010 (IPERA) and the Improper Payments
Elimination and Recovery Improvement Act of 2012 (IPERIA). This
legislation requires federal agencies to estimate the annual amount of
improper payments. Federal law further directs the Office of Management
and Budget (OMB) to establish guidance requiring federal agencies to
classify errors. OMB defines error types as: Documentation and
administrative errors--errors caused by the absence of supporting
documentation necessary to verify the accuracy of a payment;
authentication--errors caused by an inability to authenticate
eligibility criteria through third-party databases or other resources
because no databases or other resources exist; and verification
errors--errors caused by the failure or inability to verify recipient
information.
All suggestions received in response to this notice shall be
considered in the development of proposed rulemaking, particularly
those that articulate how the reform will improve adherence to Federal
laws and OMB guidance, as well as contribute to improved accuracy and
reduction of bias in the case review or measurement process.
With these general interests in mind, FNS is seeking information
from stakeholders on the following particular questions:
1. What regulatory changes should FNS consider to further enhance
the integrity of the quality control system necessary to ensure the
accuracy of improper payment estimates?
2. In January 2016, FNS published a study evaluating how to enhance
SNAP Quality Control completion rates. The study made a number of
recommendations regarding how to improve case completion rates. What
benefits, implementation challenges, or administrative factors,
including cost implications, should FNS consider when evaluating the
following recommendations:
a. Require more contact attempts to reach clients?
b. Require a greater variety of contact methods to be used?
c. Revise procedures for scheduling and conducting interviews?
d. Require client education of the QC process and a client's
responsibility to cooperate with QC reviews at the point of application
and recertification in order to raise awareness for recipients?
3. SNAP currently requires field QC investigations to include a
personal interview, almost exclusively performed in person. SNAP allows
for a State option to conduct phone interviews for QC cases where
households receive $100 or less in monthly benefits. SNAP also allows
for a State option to conduct video conferences in lieu of an in person
interview. What factors should FNS consider and what are the cost
implications of allowing for an expanded use of telephone or video
interviews in lieu of in-person interviews? What measures should a SNAP
State agency take to ensure the accuracy of the case and thoroughness
of verifications if telephone interviews were allowed for all QC case
reviews?
4. What electronic databases do State quality control reviewers
currently have access to in order to verify information? Do you
recommend FNS consider expanding Federal and State reviewer access to
electronic databases and, if so, what factors or challenges would you
anticipate?
5. Should FNS consider revising staffing standards, per 7 CFR
275.2(b), to
[[Page 25426]]
ensure there are a sufficient number of State quality control reviewers
staffed in order to complete cases within prescribed time periods?
6. Federal regulations at 7 CFR 275.23(b)(iii) require FNS to
adjust a State agency's regressed error rate for failing to complete 98
percent of its required sample size. FNS is considering a proposal to
increase the adjustment as the current formula may not effectively
deter mitigation strategies that encourage error prone cases to be
dropped. What factors should FNS consider in adjusting a State agency's
regressed error rate for incomplete cases?
7. In both OIG's review of SNAP's QC system and FNS' own QC
integrity reviews it was found that one tactic used to minimize the
reporting of errors was to drop cases that were subject to QC review.
What policies or procedures should FNS consider to ensure that only
cases that cannot be verified are dropped while also discouraging the
over-use of dropping cases?
8. FNS uses a two-step process in order to determine a case's final
payment error amount, referred to as Comparison I and Comparison II. In
an audit, USDA's Office of Inspector General expressed concerns that
the existing two-step process does not conform to regulatory
requirements and that it does not accurately measure errors because
Comparison II is not applied to all cases. This inconsistency raises
concerns of underreporting payment errors. What recommendations should
FNS consider in revising the use of Comparison I and Comparison II to
reflect a more accurate account of a sampled case's payment error
amount?
9. FNS is interested in recommendations that incentivize quality
control reviewers to accurately report case results. Performance
requirements that focus exclusively on timeliness of the case reviews
without any qualitative measure may inadvertently lead to inaccurate
case results. What factors should FNS consider in establishing
qualitative metrics for quality control case reviews?
10. What concerns or barriers, if any, would exist if FNS were to
mandate the use of the SNAP Quality Control System (SNAPQCS) as a means
of reporting case results and documentation to FNS for all QC
Worksheets? This is based on an assumption that a State would retain
the option to maintain its own internal quality control system,
provided that case results were reported to SNAPQCS.
11. Are there any data elements that FNS should consider collecting
through the quality control system as part of the FNS form 380-1 in
order to better understand SNAP case record information and/or patterns
over time or across States? This includes information that would
further FNS's knowledge of potential bias in the payment error rates.
12. Are there additional recommendations FNS should consider to
encourage a greater use of technology to enhance the accuracy of case
reviews in QC?
13. FNS is interested in improving the transparency of the QC
process. What factors should FNS consider if FNS were to require all
State QC procedures be in writing and submitted to FNS as part of an
annual state plan?
14. What factors should FNS consider in revising the current
corrective action planning requirement as a result of payment errors,
incomplete cases, or negative case actions?
To get a quick overview of the referenced Financial Reporting
Requirements set by OMB, visit https://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/whitehouse.gov/files/omb/circulars/A136/a136_revised_2013.pdf and
http://comptroller.defense.gov/Portals/45/documents/micp_docs/Authoritative_Laws_and_Regulations/OMB_Circular_A-123_Appendix_C.pdf.
For an overview of the SNAP QC Completion Rate study, visit https://fns-prod.azureedge.net/sites/default/files/ops/SNAPQCCompletion.pdf and
for an overview of USDA's OIG audit of SNAP's Quality Control Process
for SNAP Error Rates, visit https://www.usda.gov/oig/webdocs/27601-0002-41.pdf. FNS has verified the website addresses in this document,
as of the date this document publishes in the Federal Register, but
websites are subject to change over time.
Dated: May 24, 2018.
Brandon Lipps,
Administrator, Food and Nutrition Service.
[FR Doc. 2018-11849 Filed 5-31-18; 8:45 am]
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