Source: https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/7/274.1
Timestamp: 2017-01-21 13:47:55
Document Index: 746580220

Matched Legal Cases: ['art 274', 'art 274', '§ 274', 'art 277', '§ 277', '§ 277', '§ 277', 'art 277', 'art 277', '§ 277', '§ 277', '§ 274', '§ 274', '§ 277', '§ 277', '§ 277', '§ 274', '§ 273', 'art 200', 'art 400', 'art 415', 'art 200', 'art 400', 'art 415', '§ 277', 'art 200', 'art 400', 'art 415', '§ 277', '§ 274', 'art 274']

7 CFR 274.1 - Issuance system approval standards. | US Law | LII / Legal Information Institute
CFR › Title 7 › Subtitle B › Chapter II › Subchapter C › Part 274 › Section 274.1 7 CFR 274.1 - Issuance system approval standards.
There are 4 Updates appearing in the Federal Register for 7 CFR Part 274. View below or at eCFR (GPOAccess)
§ 274.1 Issuance system approval standards.
(a)Basic issuance requirements. State agencies shall establish issuance and accountability systems which ensure that only certified eligible households receive benefits; that Program benefits are timely distributed in the correct amounts; and that benefit issuance and reconciliation activities are properly conducted and accurately reported to FNS.
(b)System classification. State agencies may issue benefits to households through any of the following systems:
(c)Alternative benefit issuance system.
(1) If the Secretary, in consultation with the Office of the Inspector General, determines that Program integrity would be improved by changing the issuance system of a State, the Secretary shall require the State agency to issue or deliver benefits using another method. The alternative method may be one of the methods described in paragraph (b) of this section. The determination of which alternative to use will be made by FNS after consultation with the State agency. The cost of conversion will be shared by the Department and the State agency in accordance with the cost accounting provision of part 277 of this chapter.
(d)Contracting or delegating issuance responsibilities. State agencies may assign to others such as banks, savings and loan associations, and other commercial businesses, the responsibility for the issuance of benefits. State agencies may permit contractors to subcontract assigned issuance responsibilities.
(e)Ownership rights and procurement requirements.
(1) The State agency shall comply with the software and automated data processing equipment ownership rights prescribed under §§ 277.13 and 277.18(1) of this chapter.
(2) The State agency shall comply with the procurement standards prescribed under § 277.18(c)(2)(iii) of this chapter. Under service agreements, the procurement of equipment and services which will be utilized in the SNAP EBT system shall be conducted in accordance with the provisions set forth under § 277.18(e) of this chapter.
(f)Advance planning documentation. State agencies must comply with the procurement requirements of part 277 of this chapter for the acquisition, design, development, or implementation of initial and subsequent EBT systems. With certain exceptions detailed in part 277, State agencies must receive prior approval for the design and acquisition of EBT systems through submission of advance planning documents (APDs).
(1)Pilot project approval requirements. To the extent the State is moving EBT to new technology or incorporating enhancements or upgrades that significantly change the architecture and interface requirements or functionality of issuing benefits electronically:
(i) The State agency shall comply with the two stage approval process for submitting an EBT system proposal to FNS for approval. The Planning APD shall contain the requirements specified under § 277.18(d)(1) of this chapter, including a brief letter of intent, planning budget, cost allocation plan, and schedule of activities and deliverables.
(A)Pilot project site and expanded site descriptions. At a minimum, the proposed pilot project site and expanded site descriptions shall include the geographical boundaries, average number and characteristics of Program participants and households, the number and type of authorized food retailers and authorized retailers bordering the pilot and expanded areas, the SNAP redemption patterns of food retailers, the status of commercial POS deployment and the estimated number of checkout lanes that will require POS equipment; and
(B)A description of major contacts. A description of initial contacts the State agency has made in the proposed pilot area among food retailers, financial institutions and households or their representatives that may be affected by implementation of the EBT system. Written commitments from the retail grocer community (including supermarket chains, independent retailers, and convenience stores) and participating financial institutions in the pilot area shall be provided along with other documentation that demonstrates the willingness to support the proposed EBT system within the pilot area and expanded system area. The State agency shall submit evidence of contacts with recipient organizations and others.
(iii)Pilot project reporting. The State agency is required to report to FNS all issues that arise during the pilot period. Reports to FNS shall be provided as problems occur. In instances where the State agency must investigate the issue, FNS must receive the information no later than 1 month after completion of the pilot operations.
(iv)Expansion requirements. The pilot and expansion schedule must be delineated in the State agency's approved implementation plan. As part of the plan, the State agency must indicate a suitable pilot area to serve as the basis of the 3-month analysis and reporting, however, expansion can occur simultaneously with pilot operations. Submission of an Advanced Planning Document Update to request FNS approval to implement and operate the EBT system in areas beyond the pilot area is only required in instances where there are substantial changes to the implementation plan. However, if significant problems arise during the pilot period or expansion, the Department can require the roll-out be suspended until such problems are resolved.
(2)EBT Implementation APD. The EBT Implementation APD shall include the completed documents required under § 277.18 of this chapter for implementation APDs, where appropriate. Also, the State agency shall commit to completing and submitting the following documents for FNS approval and obtaining such approval prior to issuance of benefits to eligible households in the project area:
(i)Functional demonstration. A functional demonstration of the functional requirements prescribed in § 274.8 in combination with the system components described by the approved system design is recommended in order to identify and resolve any problems prior to acceptance testing. The Department reserves the right to participate in the functional demonstration if one is conducted. FNS may require that any or all of these tests be repeated in instances where significant modifications are made to the system after these tests are initially completed or if problems that surfaced during initial testing warrant a retest;
(ii)An acceptance test plan. The Acceptance Test Plan for the project shall describe the methodology to be utilized to verify that the EBT system complies with Program requirements and System Design specifications. At a minimum, the Acceptance Test Plan shall address:
(iii)An acceptance test report. The State agency shall provide a separate report after the completion of the acceptance test only in instances where FNS is not present at the testing or when serious problems are uncovered during the testing that remain unresolved by the end of the test session. The report shall summarize the activities, describe any discrepancies, describe the proposed solutions to discrepancies, and the timetable for their retesting and completion. In addition, the report shall contain the State agency's recommendations regarding implementation of the EBT system.
(iv)A prototype food retailer agreement. The State agency shall enter an agreement with each FNS authorized retailer that complies with the requirements under § 274.3.
(v)An implementation plan. The implementation plan shall include the following:
(vi)A contingency plan. The State agency shall submit a written contingency plan for FNS approval. The contingency plan shall contain information regarding the back-up issuance system that will be activated in the event of an emergency shut-down which results in short-term or extended system inaccessibility, or total discontinuation of EBT system operations. The contingency plan shall be incorporated into the State system security plan after FNS approval as prescribed at § 277.18(m) of this chapter.
(3)EBT Implementation APD budget. The Implementation APD budget shall be prepared and submitted for FNS approval in accordance with the requirements of paragraph (k) of this section and § 277.18(d)(2) of this chapter.
(g)EBT system administration.
(1) The State agency shall be responsible for the coordination and management of the EBT system. The Secretary may suspend or terminate some or all EBT system funding or withdraw approval of the EBT system from the State agency upon a finding that the State agency or its contracted representative has failed to comply with the requirements of this section and/or § 277.18 of this chapter.
(h)Master issuance file.
(1) The State agency shall establish a master issuance file which is a composite of the issuance records of all certified SNAP households. The State agency shall establish the master issuance file in a manner compatible with its system used for maintaining case record information and shall separate the information on the master issuance file into active and inactive case file categories. The master issuance file shall contain all the information needed to identify certified households, issue household benefits, record the participation activity for each household and supply all information necessary to fulfill the reporting requirements prescribed in § 274.4.
(ii) Before entering a household's data on the master issuance file, the State agency shall review the master issuance file to ensure that the household is not currently participating in, or disqualified from, the Program. If benefits are issued under the expedited service requirements of §§ 273.2(i) of this chapter and 274.2(b), the State agency shall complete as much of the master issuance file review as possible prior to issuing the benefits. Any uncompleted reviews shall be completed after issuance and appropriate corrective action shall be taken to recover overissuance.
(i)State monitoring, examinations, and audits.
(1) The State agency's accountability system shall include procedures for monitoring benefit issuers to assure that the day-to-day operations of all benefit issuers comply with these regulations, to identify and correct deficiencies, and to report violations of the Act or regulations to FNS.
(i) The examination report must include a list of all States whose systems operate under the same control environment. Auditors conducting the examination must follow EBT guidance contained in the 2 CFR part 200, subpart F and Appendix XI, Compliance Supplement, and USDA implementing regulations 2 CFR part 400 and part 415to the extent the guidelines refer to SNAP benefits. (ii) The State agency must retain a copy of the SAS No. 70 examination report.
(vi) EBT services provided directly by the State are not subject to SAS No. 70 examination requirements of this section but remain subject to the single audit requirements at 7 CFR 277.7 and >2 CFR part 200, subpart F and Appendix XI, Compliance Supplement and USDA implementing regulations 2 CFR part 400 and part 415.
(j)Compliance Investigations. State agencies shall provide on-line read-only access to State EBT systems for compliance investigations.
(k)Federal financial participation.
(1) The cost of administering statewide benefit issuance after implementation of the EBT system shall be funded at the regular Federal financial participation rate.
(2) The State agency shall comply with the provisions set forth under § 277.18 of this chapter and 2 CFR part 200, subparts D and E and USDA implementing regulations 2 CFR part 400 and part 415, as applicable.
(3) Access to system documentation, including cost records of contractors or subcontractors shall be made available and incorporated into contractual agreements in accordance with § 277.18(k) of this chapter.
(i) Meet standards of interoperability and portability under § 274.8;
Title 7 published on 2015-08-22The following are ALL rules, proposed rules, and notices (chronologically) published in the Federal Register relating to 7 CFR Part 274 after this date.2017-01-06; vol. 82 # 4 - Friday, January 6, 201782 FR 2010 - Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP): Eligibility, Certification, and Employment and Training Provisions of the Food, Conservation and Energy Act of 2008