Food stamp programs: Mickey Leland Childhood Hunger Relief Act— Quality control modifications; reporting and recordkeeping requirements,

[Federal Register: July 14, 1998 (Volume 63, Number 134)]

[Rules and Regulations]

[Page 37755]

From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

[DOCID:fr14jy98-1]

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[[Page 37755]]

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Food and Nutrition Service

7 CFR Parts 272 and 275

Food Stamp Program: Quality Control Provisions of the Mickey Leland Childhood Hunger Relief Act

AGENCY: Food and Nutrition Service, USDA.

ACTION: Final rule; announcement of effective and implementation dates.

SUMMARY: This action announces the effective and implementation dates for certain provisions in final regulations published June 2, 1997, Food Stamp Program: Quality Control Provisions of the Mickey Leland Childhood Hunger Relief Act. The affected provisions contain information collections relating to Quality Control system arbitration and good cause processes. These information collections needed Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approval, in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, prior to their implementation. A notice published in the Federal Register on December 19, 1997, solicited comment on the proposed information collections. OMB approved the information collections through June 30, 2001.

DATES: The information collections at 7 CFR 275.3(c)(4) are effective August 13, 1998 and will be implemented October 1, 1998, for the fiscal year 1999 Quality Control reporting period. Information collections at 7 CFR 275.23(e)(5) and at 7 CFR 275.23(e)(7) will be implemented August 13, 1998. Information collections at 7 CFR 275.23(e)(9) will be implemented October 1, 1998, for the fiscal year 1999 Quality Control reporting period.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Retha Oliver, (703) 305-2474.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The final rule, Food Stamp Program: Quality Control Provisions of the Mickey Leland Childhood Hunger Relief Act (``Leland Rule'') published June 2, 1997 (62 FR 29652), contains information collections that are subject to review by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44.U.S.C. 3507). These information collections pertain to the Quality Control (QC) burden for the arbitration and good cause processes. The implementation dates in this notice affect the following provisions in the Leland Rule: 7 CFR 275.3(c)(4) [Arbitration]; 7 CFR 275.23(e)(5)

[State agencies' liabilities for payment error--Fiscal Year 1992 and beyond] ; 7 CFR 275.23(e)(7) [Good Cause]; and 7 CFR 275.23(e)(9)

[Timeframes for announcing State agency error rates, for notifying States of their error rates and liabilities, and for completing all cases] .

During final clearance of the Leland Rule, OMB determined that the reporting and recordkeeping burdens associated with the arbitration and good cause processes needed to be submitted for OMB approval through an approval process specifically designed for paperwork burdens. In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, a December 19, 1997, notice (62 FR 66593) solicited public comment on the reporting and recordkeeping burden for the QC sampling plan, arbitration and good cause. There was one comment on the notice. This comment disagreed with the estimated burdens for the sampling plan and the arbitration process, stating that the State it represented spent more time than allotted in the notice for these two activities. The Department did not revise these estimates. These estimates are averages for States and the Department believes the estimates in the notice more accurately reflect the amount of time that States, on average, expend on these activities. The reporting and recordkeeping burden associated with the Food Stamp Program QC System sampling plan, arbitration and good cause is approved through June 30, 2001 under OMB No. 0584-0303. This action establishes effective and implementation dates for the specified provisions in the Leland rule.

Dated: July 6, 1998. George A. Braley, Acting Administrator, Food and Nutrition Service.

[FR Doc. 98-18680Filed7-13-98; 8:45 am]

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