7 C.F.R. § 253.2 – Definitions.

Disabled member means a member of a household who:

(1) Receives supplemental security income benefits under title XVI of the Social Security Act or disability or blindness payments under titles I, II, X, XIV, or XVI of the Social Security Act;
(2) Receives federally- or State-administered supplemental benefits under section 1616(a) of the Social Security Act provided that the eligibility to receive the benefits is based upon the disability or blindness criteria used under title XVI of the Social Security Act;
(3) Receives federally- or State-administered supplemental benefits under section 212(a) of Public Law 93-66;
(4) Receives disability retirement benefits from a governmental agency because of a disability considered permanent under section 221(i) of the Social Security Act;
(5) Is a veteran with a service-connected or non-service-connected disability rated by the Veteran's Administration (VA) as total or paid as total by the VA under title 38 of the United States Code;
(6) Is a veteran considered by the VA to be in need of regular aid and attendance or permanently housebound under title 38 of the United States Code;
(7) Is a surviving spouse of a veteran and considered by the VA to be in need of regular aid and attendance or permanently housebound or a surviving child of a veteran and considered by the VA to be permanently incapable of self-support under title 38 of the United States Code;
(8) Is a surviving spouse or surviving child of a veteran and considered by the VA to be entitled to compensation for a service-connected death or pension benefits for a non-service-connected death under title 38 of the United States Code and has a disability considered permanent under section 221(i) of the Social Security Act. “Entitled” as used in this definition refers to those veterans' surviving spouses and surviving children who are receiving the compensation or pension benefits stated or have been approved for such payments, but are not yet receiving them;
(9) Receives an annuity payment under: Section 2(a)(1)(iv) of the Railroad Retirement Act of 1974 and is determined to be eligible to receive Medicare by the Railroad Retirement Board; or section 2(a)(1)(v) of the Railroad Retirement Act of 1974 and is determined to be disabled based upon the criteria used under title XVI of the Social Security Act; or
(10) Is a recipient of interim assistance benefits pending the receipt of Supplemented Security Income, a recipient of disability related medical assistance under title XIX of the Social Security Act, or a recipient of disability-based State general assistance benefits provided that the eligibility to receive any of these benefits is based upon disability or blindness criteria established by the State agency, which are at least as stringent as those used under title XVI of the Social Security Act (as set forth at 20 CFR part 416, subpart I, Determining Disability and Blindness as defined in Title XVI).
Elderly member means a member of a household who is sixty years of age or older.
Exercises governmental jurisdiction means the active exercise of the legislative, executive or judicial powers of government by an Indian tribal organization.
Food distribution program means a food distribution program for households on Indian reservations operated pursuant to sections 4(b) and 1304(a) of Pub. L. 95-113.
Indian tribal household means a household in which at least one household member is recognized as a tribal member by any Indian tribe, as defined in paragraph (d) of this section.
Indian Tribal Organization (ITO) means:
(1) The recognized governing body of any Indian tribe on a reservation; or
(2) The tribally recognized intertribal organization which the recognized governing bodies of two or more Indian tribes on a reservation authorize to operate SNAP or a Food Distribution Program on their behalf.
Indian tribe means (1) any Indian tribe, Band, or other organized Indian group, for example, a Rancheria, Pueblo, or colony, and including any Alaska Native village or regional or village corporation (established pursuant to the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (85 Stat. 688)), and that is on a reservation and recognized as eligible for Federal programs and services provided to Indians because of their status as Indians; or (2) any Indian tribe or Band on a reservation holding a treaty with a State government.
Overissuance means the dollar value of USDA Foods issued to a household that exceeds the dollar value of USDA Foods it was eligible to receive.
Reservation means the geographically defined area or areas over which an ITO exercises governmental jurisdiction so long as such area or areas are legally recognized by the Federal or a State government as being set aside for the use of Indians.
State means any one of the fifty States, the District of Columbia, and the reservation of an Indian tribe whose ITO meets the requirements of the Food Stamp Act of 1977 for participation as a State agency.
State agency means:
(1) The agency of State government, including the local offices thereof, which enters into an agreement with FNS for the distribution of USDA Foods on all or part of an Indian reservation, and
(2) The ITO of any Indian tribe, determined by the Department to be capable of effectively administering a Food Distribution Program, which enters into an agreement with FNS for the distribution of USDA Foods on all or part of an Indian reservation.
(3) State agencies are also referred to as FDPIR administering agencies.

[44 FR 35928, June 19, 1979. Redesignated and amended by Amdt. 1, 47 FR 14137, Apr. 2, 1982; 59 FR 1449, Jan. 11, 1994; 64 FR 73382, Dec. 30, 1999; 75 FR 4473, Jan. 28, 2010; 89 FR 87254, Oct. 31, 2024; 89 FR 104393, Dec. 23, 2024]