§ 2020. Administration
(a)
State responsibility
(1)
In general
The State agency of each participating State shall have responsibility for certifying applicant households and issuing EBT cards.
(3)
Records
(A)
In general
Each State agency shall keep such records as may be necessary to determine whether the program is being conducted in compliance with this chapter (including regulations issued under this chapter).
(4)
Review of major changes in program design
(A)
In general
The Secretary shall develop standards for identifying major changes in the operations of a State agency, including—
(i)
large or substantially-increased numbers of low-income households that do not live in reasonable proximity to an office performing the major functions described in subsection (e);
(ii)
substantial increases in reliance on automated systems for the performance of responsibilities previously performed by personnel described in subsection (e)(6)(B);
(b)
Correction of improper denials and underissuances
When a State agency learns, through its own reviews under section
2025 of this title or other reviews, or through other sources, that it has improperly denied, terminated, or underissued benefits to an eligible household, the State agency shall promptly restore any improperly denied benefits to the extent required by subsection (e)(11) of this section and section
2023
(b) of this title, and shall take other steps to prevent a recurrence of such errors where such error was caused by the application of State agency practices, rules or procedures inconsistent with the requirements of this chapter or with regulations or policies of the Secretary issued under the authority of this chapter.
(c)
Civil rights compliance
(1)
In general
In the certification of applicant households for the supplemental nutrition assistance program, there shall be no discrimination by reason of race, sex, religious creed, national origin, or political affiliation.
(d)
Plan of operation by State agency; approval by Secretary; Indians
The State agency (as defined in section
2012
(t)(1) of this title) of each State desiring to participate in the supplemental nutrition assistance program shall submit for approval a plan of operation specifying the manner in which such program will be conducted within the State in every political subdivision. The Secretary may not, as a part of the approval process for a plan of operation, require a State to submit for prior approval by the Secretary the State agency instructions to staff, interpretations of existing policy, State agency methods of administration, forms used by the State agency, or any materials, documents, memoranda, bulletins, or other matter, unless the State determines that the materials, documents, memoranda, bulletins, or other matter alter or amend the State plan of operation or conflict with the rights and levels of benefits to which a household is entitled. In the case of all or part of an Indian reservation, the State agency as defined in section
2012
(t)(1) of this title shall be responsible for conducting such program on such reservation unless the Secretary determines that the State agency (as defined in section
2012
(t)(1) of this title) is failing, subsequent to August 31, 1964, properly to administer such program on such reservation in accordance with the purposes of this chapter and further determines that the State agency as defined in section
2012
(t)(2) of this title is capable of effectively and efficiently conducting such program, in light of the distance of the reservation from State agency-operated certification and issuance centers, the previous experience of such tribal organization in the operation of programs authorized under the Indian Self-Determination Act (25 U.S.C. 450) and similar Acts of Congress, the tribal organization’s management and fiscal capabilities, and the adequacy of measures taken by the tribal organization to ensure that there shall be no discrimination in the operation of the program on the basis of race, color, sex, or national origin, in which event such State agency shall be responsible for conducting such program and submitting for approval a plan of operation specifying the manner in which such program will be conducted. The Secretary, upon the request of a tribal organization, shall provide the designees of such organization with appropriate training and technical assistance to enable them to qualify as expeditiously as possible as a State agency pursuant to section
2012
(t)(2) of this title. A State agency, as defined in section
2012
(t)(1) of this title, before it submits its plan of operation to the Secretary for the administration of the supplemental nutrition assistance program on all or part of an Indian reservation, shall consult in good faith with the tribal organization about that portion of the State’s plan of operation pertaining to the implementation of the program for members of the tribe, and shall implement the program in a manner that is responsive to the needs of the Indians on the reservation as determined by ongoing consultation with the tribal organization.
(e)
Requisites of State plan of operation
The State plan of operation required under subsection (d) of this section shall provide, among such other provisions as may be required by regulation—
(1)
that the State agency shall—
(A)
at the option of the State agency, inform low-income households about the availability, eligibility requirements, application procedures, and benefits of the supplemental nutrition assistance program; and
(B)
comply with regulations of the Secretary requiring the use of appropriate bilingual personnel and printed material in the administration of the program in those portions of political subdivisions in the State in which a substantial number of members of low-income households speak a language other than English;
(2)
(A)
that the State agency shall establish procedures governing the operation of supplemental nutrition assistance program offices that the State agency determines best serve households in the State, including households with special needs, such as households with elderly or disabled members, households in rural areas with low-income members, homeless individuals, households residing on reservations, and households in areas in which a substantial number of members of low-income households speak a language other than English.
(B)
In carrying out subparagraph (A), a State agency—
(i)
shall provide timely, accurate, and fair service to applicants for, and participants in, the supplemental nutrition assistance program;
(ii)
(iii)
shall permit an applicant household to apply to participate in the program on the same day that the household first contacts a supplemental nutrition assistance program office in person during office hours;
(iv)
shall consider an application that contains the name, address, and signature of the applicant to be filed on the date the applicant submits the application;
(v)
shall require that an adult representative of each applicant household certify in writing, under penalty of perjury, that—
(C)
Electronic and automated systems.—
(i)
In general.—
Nothing in this chapter shall prohibit the use of signatures provided and maintained electronically, storage of records using automated retrieval systems only, or any other feature of a State agency’s application system that does not rely exclusively on the collection and retention of paper applications or other records.
(ii)
State option for telephonic signature.—
A State agency may establish a system by which an applicant household may sign an application through a recorded verbal assent over the telephone.
(iii)
Requirements.—
A system established under clause (ii) shall—
(I)
record for future reference the verbal assent of the household member and the information to which assent was given;
(IV)
promptly provide to the household member a written copy of the completed application, with instructions for a simple procedure for correcting any errors or omissions;
(3)
that the State agency shall thereafter promptly determine the eligibility of each applicant household by way of verification of income other than that determined to be excluded by section
2014
(d) of this title (in part through the use of the information, if any, obtained under section
2025
(e) of this title), household size (in any case such size is questionable), and such other eligibility factors as the Secretary determines to be necessary to implement sections
2014 and
2015 of this title, although the State agency may verify prior to certification, whether questionable or not, the size of any applicant household and such other eligibility factors as the State agency determines are necessary, so as to complete certification of and provide an allotment retroactive to the period of application to any eligible household not later than thirty days following its filing of an application, and that the State agency shall provide each applicant household, at the time of application, a clear written statement explaining what acts the household must perform to cooperate in obtaining verification and otherwise completing the application process;
(4)
that the State agency shall insure that each participating household receive a notice of expiration of its certification prior to the start of the last month of its certification period advising the household that it must submit a new application in order to renew its eligibility for a new certification period and, further, that each such household which seeks to be certified another time or more times thereafter by filing an application for such recertification no later than fifteen days prior to the day upon which its existing certification period expires shall, if found to be still eligible, receive its allotment no later than one month after the receipt of the last allotment issued to it pursuant to its prior certification, but if such household is found to be ineligible or to be eligible for a smaller allotment during the new certification period it shall not continue to participate and receive benefits on the basis authorized for the preceding certification period even if it makes a timely request for a fair hearing pursuant to paragraph (10) of this subsection: Provided, That the timeliness standards for submitting the notice of expiration and filing an application for recertification may be modified by the Secretary in light of sections
2014
(f)(2) and
2015
(c) of this title if administratively necessary;
(5)
the specific standards to be used in determining the eligibility of applicant households which shall be in accordance with sections
2014 and
2015 of this title and shall include no additional requirements imposed by the State agency;
(6)
that—
(A)
the State agency shall undertake the certification of applicant households in accordance with the general procedures prescribed by the Secretary in the regulations issued pursuant to this chapter; and
(B)
the State agency personnel utilized in undertaking such certification shall be employed in accordance with the current standards for a Merit System of Personnel Administration or any standards later prescribed by the Office of Personnel Management pursuant to section
4728 of title
42 modifying or superseding such standards relating to the establishment and maintenance of personnel standards on a merit basis;
(7)
that an applicant household may be represented in the certification process and that an eligible household may be represented in benefit issuance or food purchase by a person other than a member of the household so long as that person has been clearly designated as the representative of that household for that purpose by the head of the household or the spouse of the head, and, where the certification process is concerned, the representative is an adult who is sufficiently aware of relevant household circumstances, except that the Secretary may restrict the number of households which may be represented by an individual and otherwise establish criteria and verification standards for representation under this paragraph;
(8)
safeguards which prohibit the use or disclosure of information obtained from applicant households, except that—
(A)
the safeguards shall permit—
(B)
the safeguards shall not prevent the use or disclosure of such information to the Comptroller General of the United States for audit and examination authorized by any other provision of law;
(C)
notwithstanding any other provision of law, all information obtained under this chapter from an applicant household shall be made available, upon request, to local, State or Federal law enforcement officials for the purpose of investigating an alleged violation of this chapter or any regulation issued under this chapter;
(D)
the safeguards shall not prevent the use by, or disclosure of such information, to agencies of the Federal Government (including the United States Postal Service) for purposes of collecting the amount of an overissuance of benefits, as determined under section
2022
(b) of this title, from Federal pay (including salaries and pensions) as authorized pursuant to section
5514 of title
5 or a Federal income tax refund as authorized by section
3720A of title
31;
(E)
notwithstanding any other provision of law, the address, social security number, and, if available, photograph of any member of a household shall be made available, on request, to any Federal, State, or local law enforcement officer if the officer furnishes the State agency with the name of the member and notifies the agency that—
(i)
the member—
(I)
is fleeing to avoid prosecution, or custody or confinement after conviction, for a crime (or attempt to commit a crime) that, under the law of the place the member is fleeing, is a felony (or, in the case of New Jersey, a high misdemeanor), or is violating a condition of probation or parole imposed under Federal or State law; or
(9)
that the State agency shall—
(10)
for the granting of a fair hearing and a prompt determination thereafter to any household aggrieved by the action of the State agency under any provision of its plan of operation as it affects the participation of such household in the supplemental nutrition assistance program or by a claim against the household for an overissuance: Provided, That any household which timely requests such a fair hearing after receiving individual notice of agency action reducing or terminating its benefits within the household’s certification period shall continue to participate and receive benefits on the basis authorized immediately prior to the notice of adverse action until such time as the fair hearing is completed and an adverse decision rendered or until such time as the household’s certification period terminates, whichever occurs earlier, except that in any case in which the State agency receives from the household a written statement containing information that clearly requires a reduction or termination of the household’s benefits, the State agency may act immediately to reduce or terminate the household’s benefits and may provide notice of its action to the household as late as the date on which the action becomes effective. At the option of a State, at any time prior to a fair hearing determination under this paragraph, a household may withdraw, orally or in writing, a request by the household for the fair hearing. If the withdrawal request is an oral request, the State agency shall provide a written notice to the household confirming the withdrawal request and providing the household with an opportunity to request a hearing;
(11)
upon receipt of a request from a household, for the prompt restoration in the form of benefits to a household of any allotment or portion thereof which has been wrongfully denied or terminated, except that allotments shall not be restored for any period of time more than one year prior to the date the State agency receives a request for such restoration from a household or the State agency is notified or otherwise discovers that a loss to a household has occurred;
(12)
for the submission of such reports and other information as from time to time may be required by the Secretary;
(14)
that the State agency shall specify a plan of operation for providing supplemental nutrition assistance program benefits for households that are victims of a disaster; that such plan shall include, but not be limited to, procedures for informing the public about the disaster program and how to apply for its benefits, coordination with Federal and private disaster relief agencies and local government officials, application procedures to reduce hardship and inconvenience and deter fraud, and instruction of caseworkers in procedures for implementing and operating the disaster program;
(15)
notwithstanding paragraph (8) of this subsection, for the immediate reporting to the Immigration and Naturalization Service by the State agency of a determination by personnel responsible for the certification or recertification of households that any member of a household is ineligible to receive supplemental nutrition assistance program benefits because that member is present in the United States in violation of the Immigration and Nationality Act [8 U.S.C. 1101 et seq.];
(16)
at the option of the State agency, for the establishment and operation of an automatic data processing and information retrieval system that meets such conditions as the Secretary may prescribe and that is designed to provide efficient and effective administration of the supplemental nutrition assistance program;
(17)
at the option of the State agency, that information may be requested and exchanged for purposes of income and eligibility verification in accordance with a State system which meets the requirements of section 1137 of the Social Security Act [42 U.S.C. 1320b–7] and that any additional information available from agencies administering State unemployment compensation laws under the provisions of section 303(d) of the Social Security Act [42 U.S.C. 503
(d)] may be requested and utilized by the State agency described in section
2012
(t)(1) of this title to the extent permitted under the provisions of section 303(d) of the Social Security Act;
(18)
that the State agency shall establish a system and take action on a periodic basis—
(A)
to verify and otherwise ensure that an individual does not receive benefits in more than 1 jurisdiction within the State; and
(B)
to verify and otherwise ensure that an individual who is placed under detention in a Federal, State, or local penal, correctional, or other detention facility for more than 30 days shall not be eligible to participate in the supplemental nutrition assistance program as a member of any household, except that—
(i)
the Secretary may determine that extraordinary circumstances make it impracticable for the State agency to obtain information necessary to discontinue inclusion of the individual; and
(ii)
a State agency that obtains information collected under section 1611(e)(1)(I)(i)(I) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1382
(e)(1)(I)(i)(I)) pursuant to section 1611(e)(1)(I)(ii)(II) of that Act (42 U.S.C. 1382
(e)(1)(I)(ii)(II)), or under another program determined by the Secretary to be comparable to the program carried out under that section, shall be considered in compliance with this subparagraph.
(19)
the plans of the State agency for carrying out employment and training programs under section
2015
(d)(4) of this title, including the nature and extent of such programs, the geographic areas and households to be covered under such program, and the basis, including any cost information, for exemptions of categories and individuals and for the choice of employment and training program components reflected in the plans;
(20)
in a project area in which 5,000 or more households participate in the supplemental nutrition assistance program, for the establishment and operation of a unit for the detection of fraud in the supplemental nutrition assistance program, including the investigation, and assistance in the prosecution, of such fraud;
(21)
at the option of the State, for procedures necessary to obtain payment of uncollected overissuance of benefits from unemployment compensation pursuant to section
2022
(c) of this title;
(23)
if a State elects to carry out a Simplified Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program under section
2035 of this title, the plans of the State agency for operating the program, including—
(A)
the rules and procedures to be followed by the State agency to determine supplemental nutrition assistance program benefits;
(g)
State noncompliance; correction of failures
If the Secretary determines, upon information received by the Secretary, investigation initiated by the Secretary, or investigation that the Secretary shall initiate upon receiving sufficient information evidencing a pattern of lack of compliance by a State agency of a type specified in this subsection, that in the administration of the supplemental nutrition assistance program there is a failure by a State agency without good cause to comply with any of the provisions of this chapter, the regulations issued pursuant to this chapter, the State plan of operation submitted pursuant to subsection (d) of this section, the State plan for automated data processing submitted pursuant to subsection (o)(2) of this section, or the requirements established pursuant to section
2032 of this title the Secretary shall immediately inform such State agency of such failure and shall allow the State agency a specified period of time for the correction of such failure. If the State agency does not correct such failure within that specified period, the Secretary may refer the matter to the Attorney General with a request that injunctive relief be sought to require compliance forthwith by the State agency and, upon suit by the Attorney General in an appropriate district court of the United States having jurisdiction of the geographic area in which the State agency is located and a showing that noncompliance has occurred, appropriate injunctive relief shall issue, and, whether or not the Secretary refers such matter to the Attorney General, the Secretary shall proceed to withhold from the State such funds authorized under sections
2025
(a),
2025
(c), and
2025
(g) of this title as the Secretary determines to be appropriate, subject to administrative and judicial review under section
2023 of this title.
(h)
Deposit by State to cover fraudulently or negligently issued benefits
If the Secretary determines that there has been negligence or fraud on the part of the State agency in the certification of applicant households, the State shall, upon request of the Secretary, deposit into the Treasury of the United States, a sum equal to the face value of any benefits issued as a result of such negligence or fraud.
(i)
Application and denial procedures
(1)
Application procedures
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, households in which all members are applicants for or recipients of supplemental security income shall be informed of the availability of benefits under the supplemental nutrition assistance program and be assisted in making a simple application to participate in such program at the social security office and be certified for eligibility utilizing information contained in files of the Social Security Administration.
(2)
Denial and termination
Except in a case of disqualification as a penalty for failure to comply with a public assistance program rule or regulation, no household shall have its application to participate in the supplemental nutrition assistance program denied nor its benefits under the supplemental nutrition assistance program terminated solely on the basis that its application to participate has been denied or its benefits have been terminated under any of the programs carried out under the statutes specified in the second sentence of section
2014
(a) of this title and without a separate determination by the State agency that the household fails to satisfy the eligibility requirements for participation in the supplemental nutrition assistance program.
(j)
Notice of availability of benefits and applications; revision of memorandum of understanding
(1)
Any individual who is an applicant for or recipient of supplemental security income or social security benefits (under regulations prescribed by the Secretary in conjunction with the Commissioner of Social Security) shall be informed of the availability of benefits under the supplemental nutrition assistance program and informed of the availability of a simple application to participate in such program at the social security office.
(2)
The Secretary and the Commissioner of Social Security shall revise the memorandum of understanding in effect on December 23, 1985, regarding services to be provided in social security offices under this subsection and subsection (i) of this section, in a manner to ensure that—
(A)
applicants for and recipients of social security benefits are adequately notified in social security offices that assistance may be available to them under this chapter;
(k)
Use of post offices
Subject to the approval of the President, post offices in all or part of the State may provide, on request by the State agency, supplemental nutrition assistance program benefits to eligible households.
(l)
Special financial audit review of high participation States
Whenever the ratio of a State’s average supplemental nutrition assistance program participation in any quarter of a fiscal year to the State’s total population in that quarter (estimated on the basis of the latest available population estimates as provided by the Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census, Series P–25, Current Population Reports (or its successor series)) exceeds 60 per centum, the Office of the Inspector General of the Department of Agriculture shall immediately schedule a financial audit review of a sample of project areas within that State. Any financial audit review subsequent to the first such review, required under the preceding sentence, shall be conducted at the option of the Office of the Inspector General.
(m)
Alaskan fee agents; use and services
The Secretary shall provide for the use of fee agents in rural Alaska. As used in this subsection “fee agent” means a paid agent who, although not a State employee, is authorized by the State to make applications available to low-income households, assist in the completion of applications, conduct required interviews, secure required verification, forward completed applications and supporting documentation to the State agency, and provide other services as required by the State agency. Such services shall not include making final decisions on household eligibility or benefit levels.
(n)
Verification by State agencies
The Secretary shall require State agencies to conduct verification and implement other measures where necessary, but no less often than annually, to assure that an individual does not receive both benefits and benefits or payments referred to in section
2015
(g) of this title or both benefits and assistance provided in lieu of benefits under section
2026
(b)(1) of this title.
(o)
Data processing systems; model plan; comprehensive automation and computerization; State plans; evaluation and report to Congress; corrective measures by State; time for implementation
(1)
The Secretary shall develop, after consultation with, and with the assistance of, an advisory group of State agencies appointed by the Secretary without regard to the provisions of the Federal Advisory Committee Act, a model plan for the comprehensive automation of data processing and computerization of information systems under the supplemental nutrition assistance program. The plan shall be developed and made available for public comment through publication of the proposed plan in the Federal Register not later than October 1, 1986. The Secretary shall complete the plan, taking into consideration public comments received, not later than February 1, 1987. The elements of the plan may include intake procedures, eligibility determinations and calculation of benefits, verification procedures, coordination with related Federal and State programs, the issuance of benefits, reconciliation procedures, the generation of notices, and program reporting. In developing the plan, the Secretary shall take into account automated data processing and information systems already in existence in States and shall provide for consistency with such systems.
(2)
Not later than October 1, 1987, each State agency shall develop and submit to the Secretary for approval a plan for the use of an automated data processing and information retrieval system to administer the supplemental nutrition assistance program in such State. The State plan shall take into consideration the model plan developed by the Secretary under paragraph (1) and shall provide time frames for completion of various phases of the State plan. If a State agency already has a sufficient automated data processing and information retrieval system, the State plan may, subject to the Secretary’s approval, reflect the existing State system.
(3)
Not later than April 1, 1988, the Secretary shall prepare and submit to Congress an evaluation of the degree and sufficiency of each State’s automated data processing and computerized information systems for the administration of the supplemental nutrition assistance program, including State plans submitted under paragraph (2). Such report shall include an analysis of additional steps needed for States to achieve effective and cost-efficient data processing and information systems. The Secretary, thereafter, shall periodically update such report.
(4)
Based on the Secretary’s findings in such report submitted under paragraph (3), the Secretary may require a State agency, as necessary to rectify identified shortcomings in the administration of the supplemental nutrition assistance program in the State, except where such direction would displace State initiatives already under way, to take specified steps to automate data processing systems or computerize information systems for the administration of the supplemental nutrition assistance program in the State if the Secretary finds that, in the absence of such systems, there will be program accountability or integrity problems that will substantially affect the administration of the supplemental nutrition assistance program in the State.
(p)
State verification option
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, in carrying out the supplemental nutrition assistance program, a State agency shall not be required to use an income and eligibility or an immigration status verification system established under section 1137 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1320b–7).
(q)
Denial of benefits for prisoners
The Secretary shall assist States, to the maximum extent practicable, in implementing a system to conduct computer matches or other systems to prevent prisoners described in subsection (e)(18)(B) of this section from participating in the supplemental nutrition assistance program as a member of any household.
(r)
Denial of benefits for deceased individuals
Each State agency shall—
(s)
Transitional benefits option