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Page 5 of 7 Guidance documents lack the force and effect of law, unless expressly authorized by statute or incorporated into a contract. USDA may not cite, use, or rely on any guidance that is not available through their guidance portal, except to establish historical facts. 11. May State agencies consider the changes to exceptions from the time limit a mass change? No. Changes to exception criteria are not considered a mass change under 7 CFR 273.12(e). State agencies must follow normal notice requirements for time-limited participants.
12. Must State agencies modify their Notice of Adverse Action (NOAA) to include the modified exception criteria? State agencies must send a NOAA prior to reducing or terminating a household’s benefits, such as when a time-limited participant accrues three countable months and is no longer eligible for SNAP. Per 7 CFR 273.11(c)(4)(ii) and 273.13(a)(2), the NOAA must explain, at minimum, that the case will be closed because the individual failed to fulfill the work requirement and the action the individual can take to regain eligibility, including either fulfilling the work requirement or meeting an exception. State agencies must update their NOAA to ensure they provide accurate information to individuals on how they can regain eligibility.
B. Changes to Waiver Criteria 13. Are there changes to the information State agencies must provide to request waivers of the time limit? Yes. The OBBB amends the criteria under which the Secretary may approve a State agency request to waive the time limit. Per Section 6(o)(4)(A) of the Act, to qualify for a waiver, State agencies must demonstrate that the requested areas have unemployment rates of over 10 percent, or in Alaska and Hawaii, that unemployment rate is at or over 1.5 times the national unemployment rate. The OBBB does not change the process for submitting waiver requests.
14. May reservation areas continue to qualify for waivers of the time limit? Possibly. State agencies may continue to request waivers of the time limit for reservation areas if the unemployment rates meet the statutory criteria, as described in Question 13. Please note, the OBBB also excepts “Indians”, “Urban Indians”, and “California Indians” from the time limit. State agencies may continue to request waivers of the time limit for reservation areas since some people that live in reservation areas may not meet these exceptions.