FROM: USDA TECHNOLOGY
USDA Announces New Technology Grants to Combat SNAP Recipient Trafficking
Release No.
FNS 0006-15
Contact:
WASHINGTON, May 18, 2015 – Food, Nutrition and Consumer Services Under Secretary Kevin Concannon today announced that up to $7.5 million in technology grants is available to combat recipient benefit abuse and trafficking in the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). The final date to apply for this funding, which was made possible by the Agricultural Act of 2014 (i.e., the “Farm Bill”), is July 18, 2015.
“Safeguarding the integrity of SNAP is a top priority for USDA,” Concannon said. “That commitment includes ensuring that state government agencies administering SNAP are able to employ the most modern technology to track and root out benefit abuse by recipients.”
SNAP law and regulations require state and local agencies administering the program to maintain fraud prevention efforts and investigate program violations by SNAP recipients. While it occurs relatively infrequently, USDA recognizes that program fraud undermines public confidence in government and jeopardizes the ability of SNAP to serve the tens of millions of struggling families who need it the most, Concannon said.
Competitive grants announced today are designed to deploy new technology, or modernize existing technology that monitors and tracks investigation outcomes of individuals suspected of intentional program violations – with an emphasis on trafficking, the sale of benefits for cash.
These grants will build on prior USDA initiatives to support on-the-ground efforts to improve outcomes in the prevention, detection, and prosecution of recipient trafficking. USDA awarded just over $5 million in grants to seven states on September 30, 2014 to improve the effectiveness of integrity monitoring efforts and increase the number of investigations of recipients suspected of trafficking SNAP benefits.
SNAP administering agencies in the 50 states, the District of Columbia, Guam, and the Virgin Islands are eligible to apply for the grants, which are not to exceed three years. USDA expects to award three grants under this Request for Application by Sept. 30, 2015.
USDA's Food and Nutrition Service administers 15 nutrition assistance programs.
Showing posts with label SNAP. Show all posts
Showing posts with label SNAP. Show all posts
Monday, May 18, 2015
Saturday, August 17, 2013
USDA RELEASES REPORT ON THE ILLEGAL SALE OF SNAP BENEFITS FOR CASH OR INELIGIBLE ITEMS
FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
USDA Releases New Report on Trafficking and Announces Additional Measures to Improve Integrity in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program
WASHINGTON, August 15, 2013 – Agriculture Undersecretary for Food, Nutrition and Consumer Services Kevin Concannon today released a report that examines the trafficking rate in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and better pinpoints where the vast majority of SNAP trafficking occurs—smaller stores that typically offer minimal access to the healthier foods encouraged by the Dietary Guidelines for Americans. In response, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) will begin gathering public input on establishing stricter “depth of stock” requirements for SNAP retailers in order to discourage bad actors from entering and abusing the program. This move also supports USDA’s continuing efforts to improve SNAP recipients’ access to healthy foods.
The report indicates that the vast majority of trafficking – the illegal sale of SNAP benefits for cash or other ineligible items – occurs in smaller-sized retailers that typically stock fewer healthy foods. Over the last five fiscal years, the number of retailers authorized to participate in SNAP has grown by over 40 percent; small- and medium-sized retailers account for the vast majority of that growth. The rate of trafficking in larger grocery stores and supermarkets—where 82 percent of all benefits were redeemed—remained low at less than 0.5 percent.
While the overall trafficking rate has remained relatively steady at approximately one cent on the dollar, the report attributes the change in the rate to 1.3 percent primarily to the growth in small- and medium-sized retailers authorized to accept SNAP that may not provide sufficient healthful offerings to recipients. These retailers accounted for 85 percent of all trafficking redemptions. This finding echoes a Government Accountability Office (GAO) report that suggested minimal stocking requirements in SNAP may contribute to corrupt retailers entering the program.
“USDA has a zero tolerance policy on fraud, and we continue to strengthen our anti-fraud tactics to identify and exclude bad actors. More than any other factor, we know that the change in the trafficking rate is being driven by the growth in the number of smaller retailers where trafficking occurs at ten times the rate of larger grocery stores and supermarkets,” said Concannon. “And while the vast majority of retailers and participants are honest, exploring enhanced retailer requirements reaffirms our commitment to ensuring that everyone plays by the rules.”
In order to begin the process of establishing stricter retailer stocking requirements, USDA will be publishing a Request for Information (RFI) in the Federal Register to solicit feedback from stakeholders and the public.
USDA today also finalized a rule that will provide states the option to require SNAP recipients to make contact with the state when there have been an excessive number of requests for EBT card replacements in a year. Requesting excessive replacement cards can indicate that a client is exchanging SNAP cards for cash or other ineligible items. The rule will provide states the opportunity to determine whether the request is legitimate, or requires further investigation.
“Eliminating waste, fraud and abuse is a shared responsibility between the federal government and the states that administer SNAP,” said Concannon. “This new rule better safeguards the taxpayer investment in this critical nutrition program by providing states with additional tools to investigate potentially fraudulent behavior.”
SNAP continues to have one of the lowest fraud rates for Federal programs. Over the past several years, USDA has taken steps to improve SNAP oversight through its SNAP Stewardship Solutions Project. USDA has seen declines in the rate of trafficking from four percent down to about one percent of benefits over the last 15 years. While fraud is rare in SNAP, no amount is acceptable, and it will not be tolerated. USDA continues to crack down on individuals who violate the program and misuse taxpayer dollars by:
Supporting a Robust Investigation Process that, so far this fiscal year, has led to sanctioning of 549 stores and permanent disqualification of 826 stores for trafficking in SNAP benefits or falsifying an application. In 2012, USDA reviewed more than 15,000 stores and permanently disqualified almost 1,400 for program violations, a 14 percent increase over the 1,215 disqualified permanently in FY 2011. The Administration has requested additional resources for program integrity in the fiscal year 2014 budget request.
Cracking Down on New Forms of Fraud by requiring more frequent reviews of higher risk retailers, and expanding the definition of fraud to include so-called “water dumping” and online schemes to illegally sell benefits through social media sites like Facebook, Craigslist and Twitter.
Establishing Stiffer Penalties including a proposed rule that allows USDA to not only permanently disqualify a retailer who traffics, but to assess a monetary penalty in addition to the disqualification, and a separate proposal that would authorize USDA to immediately suspend payments to retailers suspected of flagrant trafficking violations while the retailer is under investigation.
Strengthening State Partnerships through data-sharing agreements to help states more aggressively target suspicious recipient activity and State Law Enforcement Bureau agreements, including a recently announced partnership with Massachusetts, that expands the power of states to investigate retailer fraud.
Improving Program Administration including ensuring that only eligible individuals participate and that recipients receive the correct amount of benefits with a record-high payment accuracy rate of 96.58 percent.
The SNAP Stewardship Solutions Project is part of the Obama Administration's ongoing Campaign to Cut Waste designed to fight fraud, abuse and misuse in federal programs. For more information about USDA efforts to combat fraud, visit the Stop SNAP fraud website at www.fns.usda.gov/snap/fraud.htm.
SNAP is the nation's first line of defense against hunger and is a vital supplement to the monthly food budget of millions low-income individuals. Nearly half of SNAP participants are children and more than 40 percent of recipients live in households with earnings.
USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) oversees the administration of 15 nutrition assistance programs, including the Summer Food Service Program and other child nutrition programs, that touch the lives of one in four Americans over the course of a year. These programs work in concert to form a national safety net against hunger. Visit www.fns.usda.gov for information about FNS and nutrition assistance programs.
USDA Releases New Report on Trafficking and Announces Additional Measures to Improve Integrity in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program
WASHINGTON, August 15, 2013 – Agriculture Undersecretary for Food, Nutrition and Consumer Services Kevin Concannon today released a report that examines the trafficking rate in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and better pinpoints where the vast majority of SNAP trafficking occurs—smaller stores that typically offer minimal access to the healthier foods encouraged by the Dietary Guidelines for Americans. In response, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) will begin gathering public input on establishing stricter “depth of stock” requirements for SNAP retailers in order to discourage bad actors from entering and abusing the program. This move also supports USDA’s continuing efforts to improve SNAP recipients’ access to healthy foods.
The report indicates that the vast majority of trafficking – the illegal sale of SNAP benefits for cash or other ineligible items – occurs in smaller-sized retailers that typically stock fewer healthy foods. Over the last five fiscal years, the number of retailers authorized to participate in SNAP has grown by over 40 percent; small- and medium-sized retailers account for the vast majority of that growth. The rate of trafficking in larger grocery stores and supermarkets—where 82 percent of all benefits were redeemed—remained low at less than 0.5 percent.
While the overall trafficking rate has remained relatively steady at approximately one cent on the dollar, the report attributes the change in the rate to 1.3 percent primarily to the growth in small- and medium-sized retailers authorized to accept SNAP that may not provide sufficient healthful offerings to recipients. These retailers accounted for 85 percent of all trafficking redemptions. This finding echoes a Government Accountability Office (GAO) report that suggested minimal stocking requirements in SNAP may contribute to corrupt retailers entering the program.
“USDA has a zero tolerance policy on fraud, and we continue to strengthen our anti-fraud tactics to identify and exclude bad actors. More than any other factor, we know that the change in the trafficking rate is being driven by the growth in the number of smaller retailers where trafficking occurs at ten times the rate of larger grocery stores and supermarkets,” said Concannon. “And while the vast majority of retailers and participants are honest, exploring enhanced retailer requirements reaffirms our commitment to ensuring that everyone plays by the rules.”
In order to begin the process of establishing stricter retailer stocking requirements, USDA will be publishing a Request for Information (RFI) in the Federal Register to solicit feedback from stakeholders and the public.
USDA today also finalized a rule that will provide states the option to require SNAP recipients to make contact with the state when there have been an excessive number of requests for EBT card replacements in a year. Requesting excessive replacement cards can indicate that a client is exchanging SNAP cards for cash or other ineligible items. The rule will provide states the opportunity to determine whether the request is legitimate, or requires further investigation.
“Eliminating waste, fraud and abuse is a shared responsibility between the federal government and the states that administer SNAP,” said Concannon. “This new rule better safeguards the taxpayer investment in this critical nutrition program by providing states with additional tools to investigate potentially fraudulent behavior.”
SNAP continues to have one of the lowest fraud rates for Federal programs. Over the past several years, USDA has taken steps to improve SNAP oversight through its SNAP Stewardship Solutions Project. USDA has seen declines in the rate of trafficking from four percent down to about one percent of benefits over the last 15 years. While fraud is rare in SNAP, no amount is acceptable, and it will not be tolerated. USDA continues to crack down on individuals who violate the program and misuse taxpayer dollars by:
Supporting a Robust Investigation Process that, so far this fiscal year, has led to sanctioning of 549 stores and permanent disqualification of 826 stores for trafficking in SNAP benefits or falsifying an application. In 2012, USDA reviewed more than 15,000 stores and permanently disqualified almost 1,400 for program violations, a 14 percent increase over the 1,215 disqualified permanently in FY 2011. The Administration has requested additional resources for program integrity in the fiscal year 2014 budget request.
Cracking Down on New Forms of Fraud by requiring more frequent reviews of higher risk retailers, and expanding the definition of fraud to include so-called “water dumping” and online schemes to illegally sell benefits through social media sites like Facebook, Craigslist and Twitter.
Establishing Stiffer Penalties including a proposed rule that allows USDA to not only permanently disqualify a retailer who traffics, but to assess a monetary penalty in addition to the disqualification, and a separate proposal that would authorize USDA to immediately suspend payments to retailers suspected of flagrant trafficking violations while the retailer is under investigation.
Strengthening State Partnerships through data-sharing agreements to help states more aggressively target suspicious recipient activity and State Law Enforcement Bureau agreements, including a recently announced partnership with Massachusetts, that expands the power of states to investigate retailer fraud.
Improving Program Administration including ensuring that only eligible individuals participate and that recipients receive the correct amount of benefits with a record-high payment accuracy rate of 96.58 percent.
The SNAP Stewardship Solutions Project is part of the Obama Administration's ongoing Campaign to Cut Waste designed to fight fraud, abuse and misuse in federal programs. For more information about USDA efforts to combat fraud, visit the Stop SNAP fraud website at www.fns.usda.gov/snap/fraud.htm.
SNAP is the nation's first line of defense against hunger and is a vital supplement to the monthly food budget of millions low-income individuals. Nearly half of SNAP participants are children and more than 40 percent of recipients live in households with earnings.
USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) oversees the administration of 15 nutrition assistance programs, including the Summer Food Service Program and other child nutrition programs, that touch the lives of one in four Americans over the course of a year. These programs work in concert to form a national safety net against hunger. Visit www.fns.usda.gov for information about FNS and nutrition assistance programs.
Monday, January 28, 2013
USDA MOVES AGAINST RETAILER CHEATS OF SNAP PROGRAM
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| Photo Credit: NIH |
USDA Announces Latest Actions to Enhance Integrity in America’s Most Critical Nutrition Assistance Program
Measures Help Fight Retailer Misuse, Preserve Taxpayer Investment in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program
WASHINGTON, Jan. 24, 2013 – USDA Under Secretary Kevin Concannon today announced results of USDA’s efforts to identify and eliminate fraudulent retailers from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) in fiscal year 2012. Last year, USDA compliance analysts and investigators took action to:
• Review over 15,000 stores;
• Conduct investigations on more than 5,000 stores nationwide;
• Impose sanctions, through fines or temporary disqualifications, on 692 stores found violating program rules; and
• Permanently disqualify 1,387 stores for trafficking in SNAP benefits (i.e. exchanging SNAP benefits for cash) or falsifying an application.
"Our message today is clear and firm: abuse of SNAP benefits—and the American taxpayer’s trust—will not be tolerated and carries severe consequences," said Under Secretary for Food, Nutrition and Consumer Services Kevin Concannon. "In the coming year, we will take further steps to strengthen SNAP integrity and continue to hold accountable those few bad actors that try to take advantage of the program. We are committed to ensuring these dollars are spent as intended - helping millions of American families put healthy food on the table."
In addition, as part of its ongoing effort to combat fraud among SNAP-authorized retailers, USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service published a Request for Information (RFI) soliciting cost-effective, automated solutions from all current and potential partners to help identify fraudulent activity and exclude retailers who violate the rules from participating in SNAP. The USDA is looking for innovative solutions which will identify connections between stores applying to accept SNAP benefits and store owners who have been previously disqualified from accepting SNAP benefits. The RFI also seeks to identify store owners applying or already authorized to accept SNAP benefits who have business integrity violations such as a criminal conviction, a history of fraud, violations of certain laws, or a history of non-compliance with other government programs.
"Enforcing SNAP business integrity is critically important," added Concannon. "The RFI continues our efforts to look at how improvements in commercial technology may be used to obtain accurate information on ownership so that fraudulent retailers can be excluded or removed from SNAP."
USDA continues to work with local, state and federal partners to root out fraud, waste and abuse in SNAP and ensure the integrity of our nation's most important food assistance program. Recent actions include:
• Published a proposed rule that allows USDA to not only permanently disqualify a retailer who traffics, but also assess a monetary penalty in addition to the disqualification.
• Published a final rule to establish standards and expectations regarding State matching requirements to prevent ineligible people from participating in the program. The final rule sets expectations for States to conduct matches against persons in prison, those who are currently disqualified from participating due to past program violations, and deceased persons.
• Updated the Agency’s Anti-fraud Locator using EBT Retailer Transactions (ALERT) system. The re-designed ALERT system, which monitors electronic transaction activity and identifies suspicious stores for analysis and investigation, allows USDA to quickly implement fraud detection scans as new schemes are identified, better target high risk areas, and incorporate better data mining driven models.
• Helped State Agencies conduct automated searches to monitor social media websites for attempts by individuals to buy or sell SNAP benefits online. Notified state social service agencies and federal agency partners about violators to better protect our public programs. This includes information on program recipients with suspicious transactions at stores that have been sanctioned for trafficking so that the recipients can be further investigated by States.
SNAP—the nation's first line of defense against hunger—helps put food on the table for millions of low income families and individuals every month. SNAP is a vital supplement to the monthly food budget for low-income individuals. Nearly half of SNAP participants are children and more than 40 percent of recipients live in households with earnings.
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