The Payment Integrity Information Act of 2019 requires federal agencies, like FNS, to give Congress information about payment errors for federal programs, like CACFP. FNS planned this study to estimate payment errors in CACFP child care centers. However, after completing the study, FNS found an error in the method used to estimate nationwide findings from the study data. Because of the error, FNS is not publishing the full study, and will instead present key findings that relate to broad trends instead of specific estimates.
We explored the feasibility of using existing data from state monitoring reviews – a process designed to assess operations and provide real-time technical assistance to family day care homes operating CACFP – to estimate the rate of improper payments in those operations. This study found that flexibility in these reviews and the information they report across states, while beneficial for their main purpose, made the resulting data unusable for estimating a national improper payment rate.
These SNAP and Food Stamp Program Quality Control annual reports present official quality control error rates and other statistical data derived from SNAP QC reviews conducted for each fiscal year.
This study reviewed corrective action plans (CAPs) for payment error rate, case and procedural error rate and quality control completion rate from eight states and describes the approaches used to develop, implement, and monitor CAPs. The study also identified challenges and promising practices and provided recommendations for improving states' ability to conduct corrective action activities.
The Summer Food Service Program Integrity Study was designed to improve understanding of how state agencies provide oversight of the SFSP. To address the research objectives, the study examined such areas as sponsor and site selection, training and technical assistance, meal counting and claiming, and reviews. The findings, based on data collected in 2021, also offered some preliminary responses about the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on SFSP operations.
All applicants and participants in SNAP are required to submit personally identifiable information for verification before receiving benefits. To better understand the evolving landscape of data security, USDA conducted this study to evaluate how state agencies protect PII of SNAP recipients and compiled best practices for maintaining data security of program.
List of FNS completed peer review plans and reports.
As required by federal law, state SNAP agencies verify financial and non-financial information by matching SNAP applicant and participant information to various national and state data sources to ensure they meet the program’s eligibility criteria. Data matching is an important tool for ensuring program integrity and benefit accuracy. However, information on states’ data matching practices and protocols is limited. This study was undertaken to address this knowledge gap.
Trafficking of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits occurs when SNAP recipients sell their benefits for cash to food retailers, often at a discount. Although trafficking does not increase costs to the federal government, it is a diversion of program benefits from their intended purpose of helping low-income families access a nutritious diet. This report, the latest in a series of periodic analyses, provides estimates of the extent of trafficking during the period 2012 through 2014.
This report provides the 2015 national estimate of incorrect payments for the meal reimbursements. The assessment calculates both overpayments and underpayments for FDCHs that earn either Tier 1 (higher) or Tier II (lower) reimbursements depending on the location and circumstances of the child care provider or the participating children.