The purpose of this proposed rule is to implement the Food Stamp Program retailer provisions included in the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA) of 1996, as well as the retailer provision included in the Federal Agriculture Improvement and Reform Act.
While a number of amendments to the current regulations are proposed in order to meet the objectives of streamlining the regulations in response to the Departmental review of the regulations, the majority of the proposed changes included in this proposal are derived from the retailer provisions of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996.
Most of the provisions in this proposed rule are nondiscretionary and required by law. The intent of this rule is to strengthen integrity and eliminate fraud in the Food Stamp Program by ensuring that only legitimate stores participate in the program, by improving the Department’s ability to monitor authorized firms, and by strengthening penalties against firms that violate program rules