34146 Federal Register / Vol. 66, No. 124 / Wednesday, June 27, 2001 / Notices

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Food and Nutrition Service

National School Lunch, Special Milk,

and School Breakfast Programs;

National Average Payments/Maximum

Reimbursement Rates

AGENCY: Food and Nutrition Service,

USDA.

ACTION: Notice.

SUMMARY: This Notice announces the

annual adjustments to: (1) The ‘‘national

average payments,’’ the amount of

money the Federal Government

provides States for lunches, afterschool

snacks and breakfasts served to children

participating in the National School

Lunch and School Breakfast Programs;

(2) the ‘‘maximum reimbursement

rates,’’ the maximum per lunch rate

from Federal funds that a State can

provide a school food authority for

lunches served to children participating

in the National School Lunch Program;

and (3) the rate of reimbursement for a

half-pint of milk served to nonneedy

children in a school or institution which

participates in the Special Milk Program

for Children. The payments and rates

are prescribed on an annual basis each

July. The annual payments and rates

adjustments for the National School

Lunch and School Breakfast Programs

reflect changes in the Food Away From

Home series of the Consumer Price

Index for All Urban Consumers. The

annual rate adjustment for the Special

Milk Program reflects changes in the

Producer Price Index for Fluid Milk

Products. These payments and rates are

in effect from July 1, 2001 through June

30, 2002.

EFFECTIVE DATE: July 1, 2001.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms.

Mary Jane Whitney, Section Chief,

School Programs Section, Policy and

Program Development Branch, Child

Nutrition Division, Food and Nutrition

Service, USDA, 3101 Park Center Drive,

Room 640, Alexandria, VA 22302 or

phone (703) 305–2620.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

Special Milk Program for Children

Pursuant to section 3 of the Child

Nutrition Act of 1966, as amended (42

U.S.C. 1772), the Department announces

the rate of reimbursement for a half-pint

of milk served to nonneedy children in

a school or institution which

participates in the Special Milk Program

for Children. This rate is adjusted

annually to reflect changes in the

Producer Price Index for Fluid Milk

Products, published by the Bureau of

Labor Statistics of the Department of

Labor.

For the period July 1, 2001 to June 30,

2002, the rate of reimbursement for a

half-pint of milk served to a nonneedy

child in a school or institution which

participates in the Special Milk Program

is 14.5 cents. This reflects an increase of

10.8 percent in the Producer Price Index

for Fluid Milk Products from May 2000

to May 2001 (from a level of 142.5 in

May 2000 to 157.9 in May 2001).

As a reminder, schools or institutions

with pricing programs which elect to

serve milk free to eligible children

continue to receive the average cost of

a half-pint of milk (the total cost of all

milk purchased during the claim period

divided by the total number of

purchased half-pints) for each half-pint

served to an eligible child.

National School Lunch and School

Breakfast Programs

Pursuant to sections 11 and 17A of

the National School Lunch Act, (42

U.S.C. 1759a and 1766a), and Section 4

of the Child Nutrition Act of 1966, (42

U.S.C. 1773), the Department annually

announces the adjustments to the

National Average Payment Factors and

to the maximum Federal reimbursement

rates for lunches and afterschool snacks

served to children participating in the

National School Lunch Program and

breakfasts served to children

participating in the School Breakfast

Program. Adjustments are prescribed

each July 1, based on changes in the

Food Away From Home series of the

Consumer Price Index for All Urban

Consumers, published by the Bureau of

Labor Statistics of the Department of

Labor. The changes in the national

average payment rates for schools and

residential child care institutions for the

period July 1, 2001 through June 30,

2002 reflect a 2.85 percent increase in

the Consumer Price Index for All Urban

Consumers during the 12-month period

May 2000 to May 2001 (from a level of

168.3 in May 2000 to 173.1 in May

2001). Adjustments to the national

average payment rates for all lunches

served under the National School Lunch

Program, breakfasts served under the

School Breakfast Program, and

afterschool snacks served under the

National School Lunch Program are

rounded down to the nearest whole

cent.

Lunch Payment Levels

Section 4 of the National School

Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1753) provides

general cash for food assistance

payments to States to assist schools in

purchasing food. The National School

Lunch Act provides two different

Section 4 payment levels for lunches

served under the National School Lunch

Program. The lower payment level

applies to lunches served by school food

authorities in which less than 60

percent of the lunches served in the

school lunch program during the second

preceding school year were served free

or at a reduced price. The higher

payment level applies to lunches served

by school food authorities in which 60

percent or more of the lunches served

during the second preceding school year

were served free or at a reduced price.

To supplement these section 4

payments, section 11 of the National

School Lunch Act provides special cash

assistance payments to aid schools in

providing free and reduced price

lunches. The Section 11 National

Average Payment Factor for each

reduced price lunch served is set at 40

cents less than the factor for each free

lunch.

As authorized under sections 8 and 11

of the National School Lunch Act (42

U.S.C. 1757, 1759a), maximum

reimbursement rates for each type of

lunch are prescribed by the Department

in this Notice. These maximum rates are

to ensure equitable disbursement of

Federal funds to school food authorities.

Afterschool Snack Payments in

Afterschool Care Programs

Section 17A of the National School

Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1766a) establishes

National Average Payments for free,

reduced price and paid afterschool

snacks as part of the National School

Lunch Program.

Breakfast Payment Factors

Section 4 of the Child Nutrition Act

of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1773) establishes

National Average Payment Factors for

free, reduced price and paid breakfasts

served under the School Breakfast

Program and additional payments for

free and reduced price breakfasts served

in schools determined to be in ‘‘severe

need’’ because they serve a high

percentage of needy children.

Revised Payments

The following specific Section 4,

Section 11 and Section 17A National

Average Payment Factors and maximum

reimbursement rates for lunch, the

afterschool snack rates, and the

breakfast rates are in effect from July 1,

2001 through June 30, 2002. Due to a

higher cost of living, the average

payments and maximum

reimbursements for Alaska and Hawaii

are higher than those for all other States.

The District of Columbia, Virgin Islands,

Federal Register / Vol. 66, No. 124 / Wednesday, June 27, 2001 / Notices 34147

Puerto Rico and Guam use the figures

specified for the contiguous States.

National School Lunch Program

Payments

Section 4 National Average Payment

Factors—In school food authorities

which served less than 60 percent free

and reduced price lunches in School

Year 1999–00, the payments for meals

served are: Contiguous States—paid

rate—20 cents, free and reduced price

rate—20 cents, maximum rate—28

cents; Alaska—paid rate—32 cents, free

and reduced price rate—32 cents,

maximum rate—44 cents; Hawaii—paid

rate—23 cents, free and reduced price

rate—23 cents, maximum rate—32

cents.

In school food authorities which

served 60 percent or more free and

reduced price lunches in School Year

1999–00, payments are: Contiguous

States—paid rate—22 cents, free and

reduced price rate—22 cents, maximum

rate—28 cents; Alaska—paid rate—34

cents, free and reduced price rate—34

cents, maximum rate—44 cents;

Hawaii—paid rate—25 cents, free and

reduced price rate—25 cents, maximum

rate—32 cents.

Section 11 National Average Payment

Factors—Contiguous States—free

lunch—189 cents, reduced price

lunch—149 cents; Alaska—free lunch—

306 cents, reduced price lunch—266

cents; Hawaii—free lunch—221 cents,

reduced price lunch—181 cents.

Afterschool Snacks in Afterschool

Care Programs—The payments are:

Contiguous States—free snack—57

cents, reduced price snack—28 cents,

paid snack—5 cents; Alaska—free

snack—93 cents, reduced price snack—

46 cents, paid snack—8 cents; Hawaii—

free snack—67 cents, reduced price

snack—33 cents, paid snack—6 cents.

School Breakfast Program Payments

For schools ‘‘not in severe need’’ the

payments are: Contiguous States—free

breakfast—115 cents, reduced price

breakfast—85 cents, paid breakfast—21

cents; Alaska—free breakfast—182

cents, reduced price breakfast—152

cents, paid breakfast—31 cents;

Hawaii—free breakfast—133 cents,

reduced price breakfast—103 cents, paid

breakfast—24 cents.

For schools in ‘‘severe need’’ the

payments are: Contiguous States—free

breakfast—137 cents, reduced price

breakfast—107 cents, paid breakfast—21

cents; Alaska—free breakfast—218

cents, reduced price breakfast—188

cents, paid breakfast—31 cents;

Hawaii—free breakfast—159 cents,

reduced price breakfast—129 cents, paid

breakfast—24 cents.

Payment Chart

The following chart illustrates: the

lunch National Average Payment

Factors with the Sections 4 and 11

already combined to indicate the per

lunch amount; the maximum lunch

reimbursement rates; the reimbursement

rates for afterschool snacks served in

afterschool care programs; the breakfast

National Average Payment Factors

including ‘‘severe need’’ schools; and

the milk reimbursement rate. All

amounts are expressed in dollars or

fractions thereof. The payment factors

and reimbursement rates used for the

District of Columbia, Virgin Islands,

Puerto Rico and Guam are those

specified for the contiguous States.

BILLING CODE 3410–30–U

34148 Federal Register / Vol. 66, No. 124 / Wednesday, June 27, 2001 / Notices

BILLING CODE 3410–30–C

Federal Register / Vol. 66, No. 124 / Wednesday, June 27, 2001 / Notices 34149

This action is not a rule as defined by

the Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C.

601–612) and thus is exempt from the

provisions of that Act.

In accordance with the Paperwork

Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3507),

no new recordkeeping or reporting

requirements have been included that

are subject to approval from the Office

of Management and Budget.

This action is exempted from review

by the Office of Management and

Budget under Executive Order 12866.

National School Lunch, School

Breakfast and Special Milk Programs are

listed in the Catalog of Federal Domestic

Assistance under No. 10.555, No. 10.553

and No. 10.556, respectively, and are

subject to the provisions of Executive

Order 12372, which requires

intergovernmental consultation with

State and local officials. (See 7 CFR Part

3015, Subpart V, and the final rule

related notice published at 48 FR 29114,

June 24, 1983.)

Authority: Sections 4, 8, 11 and 17A of the

National School Lunch Act, as amended, (42

U.S.C. 1753, 1757, 1759a, 1766a) and

sections 3 and 4(b) of the Child Nutrition

Act, as amended, (42 U.S.C. 1772 and 42

U.S.C. 1773(b)).

Dated: June 21, 2001.

George A. Braley,

Acting Administrator.

[FR Doc. 01–16110 Filed 6–26–01; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3410–30–U

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

National Agricultural Statistics Service

Notice of Intent To Request an

Extension of a Currently Approved

Information Collection

AGENCY: National Agricultural Statistics

Service, USDA.

ACTION: Notice and request for

comments.

SUMMARY: In accordance with the

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (Pub.

L. No. 104–13) and Office of

Management and Budget regulations at

5 CFR part 1320 (60 FR 44978, August

29, 1995), this notice announces the

intention the National Agricultural

Statistics Service (NASS) to request an

extension of a currently approved

information collection, the Agricultural

Prices Surveys.

DATES: Comments on this notice must be

received by August 31, 2001 to be

assured of consideration.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Contact Rich Allen, Associate

Administrator, National Agricultural

Statistics Service, U.S. Department of

Agriculture, Room 4117 South Building,

1400 Independence Avenue SW,

Washington, D.C. 20250–2001, (202)

720–4333.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Title: Agricultural Prices.

OMB Control Number: 0535–0003.

Expiration Date of Approval: 09/30/

01.

Type of Request: To extend a

currently approved information

collection.

Abstract: The primary objective of the

National Agricultural Statistics Service

(NASS) is to prepare and issue State and

national estimates of crop and livestock

production and prices. The Agricultural

Prices surveys provide data on the

prices received by farmers and prices

paid by them for production goods and

services. NASS estimates based on these

surveys are used by agencies of the U.S.

Department of Agriculture to prepare

the economic accounts of the United

States. These price estimates are also

used to compute Parity Prices in

accordance with requirements of the

Agricultural Adjustment Act of 1938 as

amended (Title III, Subtitle A, Section

301a). In addition, price data are used

by the Federal Crop Insurance

Corporation to help determine payment

rates, program option levels, and

disaster programs.

The Agricultural Surveys program

was last approved by OMB in 1998 for

a 3-year period. NASS intends to

request that the surveys be approved for

another 3 years.

Estimate of Burden: Public reporting

burden for this collection of information

is estimated to average 11 minutes per

response.

Respondents: Farmers and farmrelated businesses.

Estimated Number of Respondents:

82,000.

Estimated Total Annual Burden on

Respondents: 17,000 hours.

These data will be collected under the

authority of 7 U.S.C. 2204(a).

Individually identifiable data collected

under this authority are governed by

Section 1770 of the Food Security Act

of 1985, 7 U.S.C. 2276, which requires

USDA to afford strict confidentiality to

non-aggregated data provided by

respondents.

Copies of this information collection

and related instructions can be obtained

without charge from Ginny McBride, the

Agency OMB Clearance Officer, at (202)

720–5778.

Comments:

Comments are invited on: (a) Whether

the proposed collection of information

is necessary for the proper performance

of the functions of the agency, including

whether the information will have

practical utility; (b) the accuracy of the

agency’s estimate of the burden of the

proposed collection of information

including the validity of the

methodology and assumptions used; (c)

ways to enhance the quality, utility, and

clarity of the information to be

collected; and (d) 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 may be sent to:

Ginny McBride, NASS OMB Clearance

Officer, U.S. Department of Agriculture,

Room 5330B South Building, 1400

Independence Avenue SW, Washington,

D.C. 20250–2024 or

gmcbride@nass.usda.gov.

All responses to this notice will

become a matter of public record and be

summarized in the request for OMB

approval.

Signed at Washington, D.C., May 24, 2001.

Rich Allen,

Associate Administrator.

[FR Doc. 01–16126 Filed 6–26–01; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3410–20–P

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

National Agricultural Statistics Service

Notice of Intent To Request an

Extension of a Currently Approved

Information Collection

AGENCY: National Agricultural Statistics

Service, USDA.

ACTION: Notice and request for

comments.

SUMMARY: In accordance with the

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (Pub.

L. 104–13) and Office of Management

and Budget regulations at 5 CFR part

1320 (60 FR 44978, August 29, 1995),

this notice announces the intention the

National Agricultural Statistics Service

(NASS) to request an extension of a

currently approved information

collection, the Fruits, Nuts, and

Specialty Crops Surveys.

DATES: Comments on this notice must be

received by August 31, 2001 to be

assured of consideration.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Contact Rich Allen, Associate

Administrator, National Agricultural

Statistics Service, U.S. Department of

Agriculture, Room 4117 South Building,

1400 Independence Avenue SW,

Washington, D.C. 20250–2001, (202)

720–4333.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: