This is the first of a series of annual reports which will assess the administrative error associated with school food authorities’ approval of applications for free and reduced-price school meals. More than 95 percent of students who were approved for benefits on the basis of an application were receiving correct benefits, based on the information in the application files. In school year 2004/05, 3.5 percent of all students who submitted an application for free/reduced-price meal benefits had an administrative error in the processing of their applications.
This document announces the effective date of the information collection provisions contained in the originally-published rule.
Using Food Stamp Quality Control data from fiscal year 2000, this analysis suggests that the simplified reporting policies adopted by states in 2004 could have lowered error rates by 1.2 to 1.5 percentage points.
Low participation rates among low-income people eligible for food stamp benefits have prompted a number of outreach and public education efforts. In 2002, the Food and Nutrition Service awarded $5 million in grants to community-based organizations in 15 States to investigate how to increase participation among people eligible for food stamp benefits. The evaluation of these grants describes the features and outcomes of these 18 projects.
This notice announces the annual adjustments to the national average payment rates for meals and supplements served in child care centers, outside-school-hours care centers, at-risk afterschool care centers, and adult day care centers; the food service payment rates for meals and supplements served in day care homes; and the administrative reimbursement rates for sponsoring organizations of day care homes, to reflect changes in the Consumer Price Index.
We are continuing to receive questions regarding procurements in the child nutrition programs, particularly in the National School Lunch and School Breakfast Programs. Attached are the most recently received questions and answers.
This interim rule reflects amendments made by section 111 of the Child Nutrition and WIC Reauthorization Act of 2004 which require schools participating in the National School Lunch Program and the School Breakfast Program to increase the number of food safety inspections from the one inspection currently required to two inspections per year; to post the most recent inspection report in a visible location; and to release a copy of the report to members of the public upon request.
We have recently received a series of questions regarding the procurement of automated meal accountability systems in conjunction with the procurement of a food service management company.
Periodically, we receive questions concerning the procurement requirements of 7 CFR Parts 3016 and 3019 and certain procurement procedures used by public and nonprofit school food authorities. Attached are a number of these recent questions and their corresponding answers.
FNS published an interim rule, “Child and Adult Care Food Program; Improving Management and Program Integrity" that explains a provision in that rule requiring state agencies that administer the CACFP to share information with state agencies that administer the Food Stamp Program