[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 245 (Friday, December 22, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Page 88559]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-28171]


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Notices
                                                Federal Register
________________________________________________________________________

This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER contains documents other than rules 
or proposed rules that are applicable to the public. Notices of hearings 
and investigations, committee meetings, agency decisions and rulings, 
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Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 245 / Friday, December 22, 2023 / 
Notices

[[Page 88559]]



DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE


Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request

    The Department of Agriculture has submitted the following 
information collection requirement(s) to OMB for review and clearance 
under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, Public Law 104-13. Comments 
are requested regarding; whether the collection of information is 
necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the agency, 
including whether the information will have practical utility; the 
accuracy of the agency's estimate of burden including the validity of 
the methodology and assumptions used; ways to enhance the quality, 
utility and clarity of the information to be collected; and ways to 
minimize the burden of the collection of information on those who are 
to respond, including through the use of appropriate automated, 
electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or 
other forms of information technology.
    Comments regarding this information collection received by January 
22, 2024 will be considered. Written comments and recommendations for 
the proposed information collection should be submitted within 30 days 
of the publication of this notice on the following website 
www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain. Find this particular information 
collection by selecting ``Currently under 30-day Review--Open for 
Public Comments'' or by using the search function.
    An agency may not conduct or sponsor a collection of information 
unless the collection of information displays a currently valid OMB 
control number and the agency informs potential persons who are to 
respond to the collection of information that such persons are not 
required to respond to the collection of information unless it displays 
a currently valid OMB control number.

Food and Nutrition Service

    Title: How Have SNAP State Agencies Shifted Operations in the 
Aftermath of COVID-19? Study.
    OMB Control Number: 0584-NEW.
    Summary of Collection: As the cornerstone of the nation's nutrition 
safety net, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) 
provides monthly benefits to households with low incomes to reduce food 
insecurity and improve health and well-being. The COVID-19 pandemic and 
its economic fallout created extraordinary challenges for SNAP and the 
broader safety net as whole. To keep processing applications and 
issuing benefits, SNAP agencies had to pivot sharply to adapt their 
core operations and deliver services primarily or entirely virtually. 
Drawing on both new and existing waivers and policy options in this 
uncharted environment required a host of complicated decisions and 
choices on the part of State SNAP agencies. The study titled ``How Have 
SNAP State Agencies Shifted Operations in the Aftermath of COVID-19? 
(SNAP COVID study)'' will provide the U.S. Department of Agriculture 
(USDA) Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) with a comprehensive picture of 
how State SNAP agencies responded to the pandemic, including their 
decision-making processes, experiences with program changes in the 
short and long terms, and how these experiences have prepared States 
for major disruptions in the future.
    The SNAP COVID study will provide information about State SNAP 
agencies' experiences with the wide range and mix of operational 
changes made in response to the evolving pandemic. This gives FNS and 
State SNAP agencies an important opportunity to assess what did and did 
not work and why; to describe the decision-making processes that led to 
States' responses to date and their plans for the period after the 
public health emergency; to identify changes that are here to stay for 
the foreseeable future; and to consider the lessons learned to inform 
continued program improvement and increase preparedness for any future 
disruptions that affect service delivery.
    Need and Use of the Information: The SNAP COVID study will provide 
information about State SNAP agencies' experiences with the wide range 
and mix of operational changes made in response to the evolving 
pandemic. This gives FNS and State SNAP agencies an important 
opportunity to assess what did and did not work and why; to describe 
the decision-making processes that led to States' responses to date and 
their plans for the period after the public health emergency; to 
identify changes that are here to stay for the foreseeable future; and 
to consider the lessons learned to inform continued program improvement 
and increase preparedness for any future disruptions that affect 
service delivery.
    Description of Respondents: State, Local and Tribal Governments.
    Number of Respondents: 288.
    Frequency of Responses: Reporting: Once.
    Total Burden Hours: 389.

Ruth Brown,
Departmental Information Collection Clearance Officer.
[FR Doc. 2023-28171 Filed 12-21-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-30-P