(a) Corrective action planning is the process by which State agencies shall determine appropriate actions to reduce substantially or eliminate deficiencies in program operations and provide responsive service to eligible households.

(b) The State agency and project area(s)/management unit(s), as appropriate, shall implement corrective action on all identified deficiencies. Deficiencies requiring action by the State agency or the combined efforts of the State agency and the project area(s)/management unit(s) in the planning, development, and implementation of corrective action are those which:

(1) Result from a payment error rate of 6 percent or greater (actions to correct errors in individual cases, however, shall not be submitted as part of the State agency's corrective action plan);

(2) Are the causes of other errors/deficiencies detected through quality control, including error rates of 1 percent or more in negative cases (actions to correct errors in individual cases, however, shall not be submitted as part of the State agency's corrective action plan);

(3) Are identified by FNS reviews, GAO audits, contract audits, reports to FNS regarding the implementation of major changes (as discussed in § 272.15) or USDA audits or investigations at the State agency or project area level (except deficiencies in isolated cases as indicated by FNS); and,

(4) Result from 5 percent or more of the State agency's QC sample being coded “not complete” as defined in § 275.12(g)(1) of this part. This standard shall apply separately to both active and negative samples.

(5) Result in underissuances, improper denials, improper suspensions, improper termination, or improper systemic suspension of benefits to eligible households where such errors are caused by State agency rules, practices, or procedures.

(c) The State agency shall ensure that appropriate corrective action is taken on all deficiencies including each case found to be in error by quality control reviews and those deficiencies requiring corrective action only at the project area level. Moreover, when a substantial number of deficiencies are identified which require State agency level and/or project area/management unit corrective action, the State agency and/or project area/management unit shall establish an order of priority to ensure that the most serious deficiencies are addressed immediately and corrected as soon as possible. Primary factors to be considered when determining the most serious deficiencies are:

(1) Magnitude of the deficiency as defined in § 275.15(c)(3) of this part;

(2) Geographic extent of the deficiency (e.g., Statewide/project area or management unit);

(3) Anticipated results of corrective actions; and

(4) High probability of errors occurring as identified through all management evaluation sources.

(d) In planning corrective action, the State agency shall coordinate actions in the areas of data analysis, policy development, quality control, program evaluation, operations, administrative cost management, civil rights, and training to develop appropriate and effective corrective action measures.

(a) State agencies shall prepare corrective action plans addressing those deficiencies specified in § 275.16(b) requiring action by the State agency or the combined efforts of the State agency and the project area(s)/management unit(s). This corrective action plan is an open-ended plan and shall remain in effect until all deficiencies in program operations have been reduced substantially or eliminated. State agencies shall provide updates to their corrective action plans through regular, semiannual updates. These semiannual updates shall be received by FNS by May 1st and November 1st respectively. Such updates must contain:

(1) Any additional deficiencies identified since the previous corrective action plan update;

(2) Documentation that a deficiency has been corrected and is therefore being removed from the plan; and

(3) Any changes to planned corrective actions for previously reported deficiencies.

(b) Content. State corrective action plans shall contain, but not necessarily be limited to, the following, based on the most recent information available:

(1) Specific description and identification of each deficiency;

(2) Source(s) through which the deficiency was detected;

(3) Magnitude of each deficiency, if appropriate, as defined in § 275.15(c)(3) of this part;

(4) Geographic extent of the deficiency (e.g., Statewide/project area or management unit—specific project areas in which the deficiency occurs);

(5) Identification of causal factor(s) contributing to the occurrence of each deficiency;

(6) Identification of any action already completed to eliminate the deficiency;

(7) For each deficiency, an outline of actions to be taken, the expected outcome of each action, the target date for each action, and the date by which each deficiency will have been eliminated; and

(8) For each deficiency, a description of the manner in which the State agency will monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of the corrective action in eliminating the deficiency.

(c) FNS will provide technical assistance in developing corrective action plans when requested by State agencies.

(d) State agencies will be held accountable for the efficient and effective operation of all areas of the program. FNS is not precluded from issuing a warning as specified in part 276 because a deficiency is included in the State agency's corrective action plan.

(a) The State agency shall ensure that corrective action plans are prepared at the project area/management unit level, addressing those deficiencies not required to be included in the State corrective action plan. State agencies may elect to prepare these plans for or in cooperation with the project area. These project area/management unit corrective action plans shall be open-ended and shall remain in effect until all deficiencies in program operations have been reduced substantially or eliminated. Any deficiencies detected through any source not previously reported to the State agency which require incorporation into the Project Area/Management Unit Corrective Action Plan shall be submitted to the State agency within 60 days of identification. As deficiencies are reduced substantially or eliminated, the project area/management unit shall notify the State agency in writing. The project area/management unit shall be responsible for documenting why each deficiency is being removed from the Plan. The removal of any deficiency from the Plan will be subject to State agency and FNS review and validation.

(b) Content. Project area/management unit corrective action plans shall contain all the information necessary to enable the State agency to monitor and evaluate the corrective action properly. Also, State agencies shall establish requirements for project area/management units in planning, implementing and reporting corrective action to assist the State agency's efforts to fulfill its responsibilities for determining which deficiencies must be addressed in the State corrective action plan. States should consider requiring project area/management unit plans to include the following, based on the most recent information available:

(1) Specific description and identification of each deficiency;

(2) Source(s) through which the deficiency was detected;

(3) Magnitude of each deficiency, if appropriate, as defined in § 275.15(c)(3) of this part;

(4) Geographic extent of the deficiency (throughout the project area/management unit or only in specific offices);

(5) Identification of causal factor(s) contributing to the occurrence of each deficiency;

(6) Identification of any action already completed to eliminate the deficiency;

(7) For each deficiency, an outline of actions to be taken, the expected outcome of each action, the target date for each action, the date by which each deficiency will have been eliminated; and

(8) For each deficiency, a description of the manner in which the project area/management unit will monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of the corrective action in eliminating the deficiency.

(a) The State agency shall establish a system for monitoring and evaluating corrective action at the State and project area levels. Monitoring and evaluation shall be an ongoing process to determine that deficiencies are being substantially reduced or eliminated in an efficient manner and that the program provides responsive service to eligible households.

(b) The State agency shall ensure that corrective action on all deficiencies identified in the State Corrective Action Plan and Project Area/Management Unit Corrective Action Plan is implemented and achieves the anticipated results within the specified time frames. The State agency shall monitor and evaluate corrective action at the State and project levels through a combination of reports, field reviews, and examination of current data available through program management tools and other sources.

(c) In instances where the State agency and/or the project area/management unit determines that the proposed corrective action is not effective in reducing substantially or eliminating deficiencies, the State agency and/or the project area/management unit shall promptly reevaluate the deficiency, causes, and the corrective action taken, and develop and implement new corrective actions.