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Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 2 / Tuesday, January 5, 2021 / Rules and Regulations
participant must receive case management. The commenter explained a State E&T program can contain case management and one component, or case management and multiple components. In the latter instance, all E&T participants are not required to participate in all components. The Department does not concur. The Department believes reading the statute in a manner that only offers case management to some E&T participants instead of all E&T participants does not make sense or further the purpose of the Acts changes. This change means all States agencies must now offer both case management and at least one component to each participant, and each individual must receive both case management and at least one component.
The Department received general support for including a description of the case management services offered by the State in the State E&T plan.
However, several commenters did not support requiring cost information associated with the case management services in the E&T State plan. A notfor-profit agency that works with service providers and several workforce training agencies explained that providers integrate case management into other individually tailored services within E&T components, such as career counseling and job readiness training, and it would be burdensome and difficult for providers to account for each activity separately. They asked the Department to allow the cost of case management services to be embedded within component costs when participants receive case management services as part of that component. In addition, two workforce training agencies, who already provide case management to E&T participants, asked that the Department not impose onerous tracking, reporting, and other requirements for case management on E&T providers. The Department agrees that regulations pertaining to case management should not impose unnecessary burdens on E&T providers or participants. The flexibility provided within the regulations allows E&T
providers, in conjunction with the State agency, to develop and provide case management services that are tailored to the needs of participants, the capacity of the E&T provider, and the structure of the E&T program in the State. The Department also understands that, in many circumstances, embedding case management in the E&T component will best serve the needs of the E&T
participant, and that separately tracking the cost of those case management
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services could indeed be onerous. As a result, the Department has modified the regulation at 7 CFR 273.7c6ii to remove the requirement that State agencies include the estimated cost of case management services in the E&T
State plan. However, the Department notes that State agencies must still track the receipt of case management services for the E&T quarterly reports to ensure every E&T participant receives case management. The Department provides State agencies with discretion regarding how they collect data from their providers. As such, State agencies should work with their respective E&T
providers to develop reporting systems that efficiently and accurately gather the appropriate information required for E&T quarterly and annual reports.
The Department also received a comment from a workforce training agency urging the Department to set aside a portion of E&T 100 percent funds to only be used for case management, and a separate comment from a not-for-profit agency to provide additional 100 percent funds for case management. Both commenters explained that the provision of high quality case management services is expensive, and may be cost prohibitive for some agencies if they do not receive dedicated or additional funds. In addition, both commenters explained that setting aside dedicated case management funds would encourage agencies to work more with individuals facing high barriers. The Department understands that the provision of highquality case management services is resource intensive. Each State agency receives 100 percent funds that can be used to offset the costs of case management services, and State agencies have discretion in how these funds are distributed to their E&T
providers. In addition, FNS reimburses State agencies 50 percent for allowable costs paid for with non-Federal funds above that amount, which would include costs associated with case management. The Department encourages State agencies to work with their E&T providers to ensure these resources are used to provide robust E&T case management services while maximizing the impact of E&T.
Lastly, the Department also received a comment regarding the frequency of case management meetings. The commenter had read in the Regulatory Impact Assessment RIA that the Department estimated approximately monthly case management meetings.
The commenter was concerned about what they viewed as the Departments decision to regulate the number and frequency of meetings. The Department
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is clarifying that the values provided in the RIA are only used to estimate the impact of the regulation on the affected public, and that the Department understands, as discussed above, that the number and frequency of case management meetings will vary by individual, depending on their circumstances, the structure of the E&T
program, and the capacity of the E&T
providers.
In conclusion, the Department codifies the proposed regulations with changes made to the description of case management at 7 CFR 273.7e2 and the information required in the E&T
State plan at 7 CFR 273.7c6ii.
Referral of Individuals Section 4005 of the Act added a new requirement for State agencies regarding any E&T participant, not otherwise exempted from the general work requirement, who is determined by the operator of an E&T component to be illsuited to participate in that E&T
program component. For work registrants determined to be ill-suited, the Act required the State agency to do the following: 1 Refer the individual to an appropriate E&T component; 2 refer the individual to an appropriate workforce partnership, if available; 3
re-assess the individuals physical and mental fitness; or 4 to the maximum extent practicable, coordinate with other Federal, State, or local workforce or assistance programs to identify work opportunities or assistance for the individual. During this time, also per the Act, the State agency shall ensure that an individual undergoing and complying with the process above shall not be found to have refused without good cause to participate in an E&T
program. This new requirement was added at new section 6d4O of the FNA. The Department proposed to codify this new requirement in a new paragraph at 7 CFR 273.7c18. The Department believes this new provision was intended by Congress to increase the accountability of State agencies, particularly for mandatory E&T
participants. While State agencies are already required to develop State criteria to determine who should be required to participate in E&T, State agencies often do not apply sufficient due diligence to ensure the SNAP
participants who are referred to the E&T
program have the capacity to benefit from the particular training or that the particular component to which they are referred matches the SNAP participants needs and skill level. Unfortunately, in these situations, SNAP participants could fail to benefit from the program and, ultimately, could be disqualified
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