States annually update Standard Utility Allowances (SUAs) to reflect changes in utility costs. When determining a household’s eligibility, states consider a household’s total shelter costs, including the cost of utilities. Since actual utility costs are often hard to determine, states can use SUAs, which are standard amounts that represent low-income household utility costs in the state or local area. SUAs may be used in lieu of the household's actual costs when determining eligibility and benefit amount.
FNS will collect and approve information from state agencies on how the various state SNAP agencies develop, update, change and implement options will be determined for SUAs for household.
The USDA Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) will discontinue the requirement for vendors to use high security seals to secure USDA Foods deliveries as of July 1, 2023.
This information collection addresses the mandatory state agency information and burden estimates associated with the following state agency options under SNAP: establishing and reviewing standard utility allowances and establishing methodology for offsetting cost of producing self-employment income.
This information collection addresses the state agency reporting burden associated with the following state agency options under the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP): Establishing and reviewing standard utility allowances (SUAs) and establishing methodology for offsetting cost of producing self-employment income.
The proposed rule would revise SNAP regulations to standardize the methodology for calculating standard utility allowances.
This webinar is Part 3 of our webinar series “Demystifying USDA Food Complaints.” It focuses on results and resolution in the USDA Foods complaint process for USDA Foods in schools. The USDA Foods Complaint Team, as represented by Tony Wilkins, presents different scenarios as USDA Foods are transported from the vendor to their final destination, school kitchens. The intended audience is individuals involved with the National School Lunch Program: SFAs and all distributing agencies and recipient agencies, including SDAs as well as schools and warehouses.
In this webinar focused on the Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations (FDPIR), Tony Wilkins and Matthew Martin from the USDA Food and Nutrition Service, Food Distribution Division, discuss warehousing, explain the USDA Foods feedback process, and provide instructions on how to formally enter a complaint into the Web-Based Supply Chain Management System (WBSCM).
In this webinar for state distributing agencies and recipient agencies, Tony Wilkins of the Food Distribution Division reviews best practices for using WBSCM in resolving complaints, provides analysis of USDA Foods complaint trends, shares 2016 complaint successes, and discusses what’s in the complaint pipeline.
Andre Orange and Tony Wilkins of the FNS Food Distribution Division share real-life examples of USDA Foods complaints as they provide helpful tips on how to handle and prevent these scenarios.