Dec 20 -- The Food and Nutrition Service invites comments to OMB by January 22, 2024 regarding Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) Program Regulations—Reporting and Recordkeeping. [Comments due 30 days after submission to OMB on December 21.]
The Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) provides supplemental foods, nutrition education, including breastfeeding promotion and support, and health care referrals to low income, nutritionally at-risk pregnant, breastfeeding and postpartum women, infants, and children up to age five. Currently, WIC operates through State health departments in 50 States, 33 Indian Tribal Organizations, American Samoa, District of Columbia, Guam, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands. The Federal regulations governing the WIC Program (7 CFR part 246) require that certain program-related information be collected and that full and complete records concerning WIC operations are maintained. The WIC Program is authorized by the Child Nutrition Act of 1966, as amended.
The Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) collects information from state and local agencies, applicants, and retail vendors to determine eligibility in the WIC Program. This ongoing information collection is mandatory for state agencies and required to obtain or retain benefits for the WIC participants. This information includes participant certification information (e.g., income and nutrition risk); nutrition education documentation; local agency and vendor application and agreement information; vendor sales and shelf price data; data related to vendor monitoring and training; financial and food delivery system records, and Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) delivery. State Plans are the principal source of information about how each State agency operates its WIC Program. The information is needed for the general operation of the Program, including regulatory compliance, and for ongoing program integrity and cost-saving efforts. The information is also used by FNS to manage, plan, evaluate, make decisions, and report on WIC Program operations. If the information were not collected, the efficiency and effectiveness of the Program would be jeopardized, improper use of Federal funds would increase, and FNS' ability to detect violations would diminish greatly.
The information collection includes participant certification information (e.g., income and nutrition risk); nutrition education documentation; local agency and vendor application and agreement information; the processing of sanctions, complaints, and appeals; the household requirement to pick up food instruments and cash-value vouchers (CVVs) outside of scheduled recertification and nutrition education clinic visits; vendor sales and shelf price data; data related to vendor monitoring and training (see Appendix C Vendor Management Handbook); Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) delivery; infant formula cost containment measures; and financial and food delivery system records.
WIC Research:
https://www.fns.usda.gov/resources?f%5B0%5D=program%3A32&f%5B1%5D=resource_type%3A2
FNS submission to OMB:
https://www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAViewICR?ref_nbr=202310-0584-003 Click IC List for information collection instrument, View Supporting Statement for technical documentation. Submit comments through this webpage.
FRN:
https://www.federalregister.gov/d/2023-27888
For AEA members wishing to submit comments, "A Primer on How to Respond to Calls for Comment on Federal Data Collections" is available at
https://www.aeaweb.org/content/file?id=5806