The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) contracted with MEF Associates and its subcontractor, Mathematica, to conduct a study to better understand how States determined whether individuals were exempted from work requirements or have good cause for not meeting work requirements due to a physical or mental limitation. Although FNS provided guidelines to States on how to make these determinations, FNS sought to learn more about how States implemented those guidelines. The study included a review of State documents; a survey of 53 State agencies including the District of Columbia, the United States Virgin Islands, and Guam; and case studies of four States, which included site visits to the states and analysis of their administrative data.
