This notice sets forth the interpretation that the U.S. Department of Agriculture uses for the term “Federal public benefit” as used in Title IV of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996. In doing so, this notice supersedes any prior interpretation in any notice or other document issued by any USDA agency. This notice also describes and preliminarily identifies the USDA programs that provide “Federal public benefits” within the scope of PRWORA.
This memorandum provides guidance on using school data when determining area eligibility for purposes of the child nutrition programs in instances where school attendance areas may not accurately reflect the population of the school for which eligibility data is being used.