Information Collection: 0584-0512 Expiration date: 3/31/2029

Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program

Healthy Fluid Milk Incentives – Cooperative Agreement

Fiscal Year 2026 Request for Applications (RFA) Assistance Listing Number (ALN): 10.530

Release Date: June 16, 2026

Application Due Date: July 16, 2026; 11:59 pm, Eastern Daylight Time

(EDT)

Anticipated Award Date: September 2026

This information is being collected to assist the Food and Nutrition Administration in evaluating applications for the Healthy Fluid Milk Incentive Grant. This is a voluntary collection and FNA uses the information to rank and fund applicants for the Healthy Fluid Milk Incentive Grant. This collection does not request any personally identifiable information under the Privacy Act of 1974.

According to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, an agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a valid OMB control number. The valid OMB control number for this information collection is 0584-0512. The time required to complete this information collection is estimated to average 50 hours per response, including the time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the collection of information. Send comments regarding this burden estimate of any other aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing this burden, to: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Food and Nutrition Administration, Office of Policy Support, 1320 Braddock Place, 5th Floor, Alexandria, VA 22314 ATTN: PRA (0584-0512). Do not return the completed form to this address.

Form RFA 01-2026

Application Checklist

This Application Checklist provides applicants with a list of the required actions and documents that must be completed. However, FNA expects that applicants will read the entire RFA prior to the submission of their application and comply with all requirements outlined in the solicitation.

The Application Checklist is for applicant use only and should not be submitted as part of the Application Package.

Complete the following at least four weeks prior to submission:

Obtain a Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) number;

Register the UEI number in the System for Award Management (SAM); and, Register in Grants.gov.

When preparing your application, ensure:

Application format and narrative meet the requirements included in Section 6 –

Application Submission Information. This includes page limits, priorities outlined in Section 5 – Application Review Information, and all necessary attachments.

When preparing your budget, ensure the following information is included:

All key staff proposed to be paid by this grant.

The percentage of time the Project Director will devote to the project in full-time equivalents (FTEs).

Your organization’s fringe benefit rate and amount, as well as the basis for the computation.

The type of fringe benefits to be covered with Federal funds.

Itemized travel expenses (including type of travel), travel justification, and basis for lodging estimate.

Types of equipment and supplies, justifications, and estimates, ensuring that the budget is in line with the project description.

Information for all contracts and justification for any sole-source contracts Justification, description, and an itemized list of all consultant services.

Indirect cost information. Provide either a copy of a Negotiated Indirect Cost Rate

Agreement (NICRA) or if no agreement exists, the applicant may charge up to 15% de minimis. If an applicant is requesting the de minimis rate or indirect costs are not required, please state this in the budget narrative.

When submitting your application, ensure you have submitted the following:

SF-424 – Application for Federal Assistance (fillable PDF in Grants.gov) SF-424A – Budget Information and Instruction Form (fillable PDF in Grants.gov) SF-424B – Assurances for Non-Construction Programs (fillable PDF in Grants.gov) SF-LLL – Disclosure of Lobbying Activities FNS-906 – Grant Program Accounting System & Financial Capability Questionnaire (fillable

PDF in Grants.gov).

Negotiated Indirect Cost Rate Agreement (PDF - Upload using the “Add Attachments” button under SF-424 item #15).

Resumes of key staff.

Letters of support/commitment from key staff and partners.

Proposal Narrative.

http://www.grants.gov/ https://apply07.grants.gov/apply/forms/sample/SF424_4_0-V4.0.pdf https://apply07.grants.gov/apply/forms/sample/SF424A-V1.0.pdf https://apply07.grants.gov/apply/forms/sample/SF424B-V1.1.pdf https://apply07.grants.gov/apply/forms/sample/SFLLL_2_0-V2.0.pdf

Budget Narrative.

A line-item budget in a spreadsheet format (e.g. Microsoft Excel).

All non-profit organizations must include their 501(c)(3) determination letter issued by the

Internal Revenue Service (IRS).

A signed letter of commitment to work closely and cooperatively with FNA and its other partners in support of the grant objectives. To demonstrate that the applicant and its partners possess strong capability to work together and successfully fulfill the obligations of this agreement in a timely, efficient, and effective manner, applicants are required to provide supportive documentation in their proposal. Letters of support must be submitted with the application through Grants.gov. Please note that letters submitted via email will not be considered.

Signed letters of commitment from each retailer banner or location that will participate in the project.

Additional attachments as required.

Table of Contents

1. Program Description and Objectives

Executive Summary Program Description Key Objectives Project Design Cooperative Agreement

2. Federal Award Information Allowable Costs Unallowable Costs

3. Eligibility Information Eligible Applicants Ineligible Applicants Cost Sharing or Matching Considerations Pre-Award Screening Requirements Acknowledgement of USDA Support

4. Application Content Information Content and Form of Application Submission

Special Instructions:

Cover Sheet Table of Contents Application Project Summary Project Narrative Activities/Indicators Tracker Application Budget Narrative Indirect Cost Rate Required Grant Application Forms

5. Application Review Information Review Criteria

Project Design (35 points) Implementation and Monitoring (15 points) Sustainability (10 points) Budget Appropriateness and Economic Efficiency (25 points) Staff Capability and Management (15 points)

FY26 Funding Priorities (Bonus Points) (up to 15 points)

FY2026 Agency Priorities Review and Selection Process

6. Application Submission Information Submission Date Preparing for Electronic Application Submission through Grants.gov How to Submit an Application via Grants.gov Grants.gov Receipt Requirements and Proof of Timely Submission Funding Restrictions

7. Federal Award Administration Information Federal Award Notice Administrative and National Policy Requirements

Confidentiality of an Application Conflict of Interest and Confidentiality of the Review Process Administrative Regulations Code of Federal Regulations and Other Government Requirements

Reporting Requirements Financial Reports Performance Progress Reports (PPR)

8. Federal Awarding Agency Contacts

9. Other Information

Debriefing Requests Appendix

RFA Budget Narrative Checklist FNS-908 Performance Progress Report (PPR)

1. Program Description and Objectives

Executive Summary

The USDA’s Food and Nutrition Administration (FNA) works to nourish those in need through financially sound programs that promote health and work, as well as champion the productivity of American agriculture. FNA requests applications for the Healthy Fluid Milk Incentives (HFMI) Cooperative Agreement Project for Fiscal Year (FY) 2026. The goal of these grants is to increase the purchase of fluid milk among low-income consumers participating in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) by providing incentives at the point of purchase. In line with the United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) strategic goals to provide Americans with access to healthier food systems to build healthier families, the HFMI project both develops and implements modernized systems, as well as strengthens existing strategies to encourage healthy choices, healthy outcomes, and healthy families.

Congress appropriated $4,000,000 to FNA for FY 2026 funding of this project. Government agencies (State, local, territory, or tribal agencies) and non-profit organizations are eligible to apply for this funding. The anticipated period of performance for this project is from September 2026 to September 2029.

Program Description

FNA supports low-income households in accessing a nutritious diet by providing benefits through SNAP. SNAP is the Nation’s largest nutrition assistance program and served an average of 42.1 million participants per month in Federal FY 2025. FNA also authorizes and oversees retailers that accept SNAP benefits, and in FY 2025 about 250,000 retailers were approved to do so.

Section 4208 of the Agricultural Improvement Act of 2018 (P.L. 115-334), as amended, authorizes USDA, on a competitive basis, to enter into cooperative agreements with governmental entities or nonprofit organizations to carry out HFMI projects. The Continuing Appropriations, Agriculture, Legislative Branch, Military Construction and Veterans Affairs, and Extensions Act, 2026, (P.L.

119-37) provides $4,000,000 for HFMI for FY 2026.

The primary purpose of the HFMI project is to develop and test effective methods to increase the purchase and consumption of qualifying fluid milk by SNAP households. To achieve this goal, the project provides SNAP participants with an incentive at the point of purchase at authorized retailer locations.

“Qualifying fluid milk” includes all varieties of pasteurized cow’s milk that (1) is without flavoring or sweeteners, (2) is consistent with the most recent dietary recommendations, (3) is packaged in liquid form, and (4) contains vitamins A and D at levels consistent with the Food and Drug Administration, State, and local standards for fluid milk. Per the updated Dietary Guidelines for Americans, healthy fluid milk includes full-fat (whole), reduced-fat (2%), low-fat (1%) and non-fat (skim) milk. Additionally, through this project, FNA aims to identify new strategies and strengthen existing ones to promote healthy choices, improve health outcomes, and support healthy families.

In line with USDA’s strategic goal to put farmers first and FNA’s mission to increase food security, FNA will give priority to projects that partner directly with dairy farmers who sell qualifying fluid milk, and projects that target SNAP households in high food insecure areas. Applicants who incorporate the priority areas, partnerships, or both into their project design will receive bonus points to their score. See Section 5 – Application Review Information - FY26 Funding Priorities, for more details.

Key Objectives

Below is a list of the required Program Objectives. As noted in Section 4, within the “Activities/Indicators Tracker,” proposed activities should be clearly aligned to these objectives and their associated activities and indicators.

If awarded, the grantee must use the FNS-908 Performance Progress Report to report on progress towards activities aligned with the required objective(s).

At minimum, proposals must include all the objectives identified below.

# Required Objectives

1. Increase the purchase and consumption of qualifying fluid milk by SNAP households by providing a financial incentive at the point of purchase using Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) integration or automatic discounts.

2. Partner with selected SNAP-authorized retailer(s) to operate the point of purchase incentive solution in compliance with all relevant SNAP regulations and requirements.

3. Communicate and promote HFMI incentive availability and information to SNAP households.

4. Provide training and technical support to participating SNAP-authorized retailers in administering the incentives.

5. Facilitate participation in the HFMI evaluation through data collection and sharing.

6. Provide education on the nutritional value of cow’s milk in accordance with the latest

Dietary Guidelines for Americans. Also explain how this information relates to the availability of HFMI incentives at the participating locations.

Project Design

The grantee(s), and its partners (e.g., including retailers, and optionally other community partners), must develop and operate the projects to provide incentives for the purchase of fluid milk at the point of purchase. Grant funds must be used to fund new projects.

Below are the required design parameters.

1. Target Foods

HFMI is intended to increase the purchase and consumption of healthy fluid milk by SNAP households. Qualifying fluid milk under HFMI is defined as all varieties of pasteurized cow’s milk, including lactose-free, that is:

• Without flavoring or sweeteners,

• Packaged in liquid form,

• Consistent with the Food and Drug Administration, State, and local standards for fluid milk

Vitamin A and D levels, and

• Consistent with the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2025-2030. Per the updated Dietary Guidelines for Americans, healthy fluid milk includes full-fat (whole), reduced-fat (2%), low-fat (1%) and non-fat (skim) milk.

2. Incentive Models

Applicants must propose one of the following models in their application:

Model 1 (Automatic Discount):

Fluid milk is eligible for an immediate point-of-purchase discount.

SNAP households must purchase qualifying fluid milk, as defined in parameter number one, using their SNAP benefits to receive an automatic discount or specified dollar-off incentive at the time of the qualifying purchase.

• An automatic discount incentive does not require a subsequent purchase for the discount to apply; it is applied immediately at the point-of-purchase.

Model 2 (EBT Integration):

Fluid milk incentives are provided directly to eligible SNAP households through their EBT accounts. SNAP households must purchase qualifying fluid milk (defined in parameter one) using their SNAP benefits to receive a set amount or percentage of the qualifying purchase back into their EBT account (i.e., EBT Integration) to be used on a subsequent shopping trip for the purchase of any SNAP eligible item at any SNAP-authorized store.

This model is based on the SNAP Electronic Healthy Incentives Project (eHIP) which allows the incentive amount to be redeemed subsequently in the same manner as any SNAP EBT transaction for any SNAP-eligible food. SNAP eHIP is an FNA grant that was awarded in June 2023.

Applicants may also propose limiting the use of earned incentives for the purchase of additional healthy fluid milk or dairy food items if the applicant or applicant’s State partner has that capability.

For Model 2, if the HFMI applicant is not a State agency responsible for administering SNAP, then the HFMI applicant will need to establish a partnership with a State that has or is in the process of developing the EBT-integrated infrastructure to implement this model within the project’s period of operation. Requirements for a letter of commitment demonstrating partnership with a State are outlined in parameter 8. Due to current EBT system limitations, States that have already implemented EBT-integrated incentives and whose incentives are active will not be able to operate HFMI via EBT in parallel.

https://www.fns.usda.gov/snap/hip

Prior to applying for this grant, applicants must verify with selected partnering retailers, their third-party processor (TPP), and any additional partners that their proposed solution is viable and that the associated costs are acceptable.

Model 3 Coupon (only in special cases and in tandem with Model 1 or Model 2):

FNA may review and consider proposals that utilize a coupon model, provided that the applicant can demonstrate it is the most efficient or familiar method for both the retailer and the target community. For instance, if the proposed partner retailers have already implemented and operated a successful incentive program within the community, such as the Gus Schumacher Nutrition Incentive Program (GusNIP), this may serve as evidence supporting the coupon model’s viability. Applicants proposing coupon models need to fully describe them in their application. Once the project is awarded, the proposed model cannot be altered. Additionally, the coupon model cannot serve as the primary model for the project. Therefore, the project’s main model must either be Model 1 (Automatic Discount) or Model 2 (EBT Integration).

Alternative incentive models not specified in this solicitation are not allowed, even if the retailer later determines that the proposed solution is not practicable.

Incentives must be offered to every SNAP household shopping at the partnering retailer locations.

Applicants may propose implementing different models and/or discount levels at participating stores. If an applicant elects to implement different models and/or discount levels, proposals must include a: 1) justification, and 2) confirmation from the retailer(s) confirming the feasibility of programing different incentive scenarios into their point of sale (POS) system, and a 3) management plan explaining how the grantee plans to manage communication and promotional activities for varying incentive models.

3. Incentives Amounts

Applicants must indicate the following:

• Whether the incentives will be a percentage-off discount, dollar-off discount, or a dollar-for-dollar match;

• The incentive dollar amount or percentage that will be discounted;

• The maximum incentive amount, if any, that a household may earn per transaction/day/week/month, etc.;

• When the incentive will be available for redemption (i.e., immediately, next day, within 24 hours, etc.); and

• The expiration date for all non-automatic discount incentives. An expiration date is required for all non-automatic discount incentives and cannot be less than 30 days.

4. Site Selection

Proposed project site(s) may include State or sub-State areas, such as county, community, or group of contiguous communities, and/or Tribal Lands.

Priority will be given to applicants who target communities in priority areas, listed under Section 5

– Application Review Information - FY26 Funding Priorities, and project areas that have not yet been targeted in prior HFMI initiatives.

5. Retailer Selection

Applicants must establish partnerships with SNAP-authorized retailers located in the project site(s) and must submit a letter of commitment from each partnering retailer as part of the application package.

Selected grantee(s) will be required to provide the retailer’s FNA authorization numbers in a secured format within two weeks of award. Applicants should confirm that selected retailers are authorized to accept SNAP benefits.

Ideally, project site(s) would include some combination of supermarket chains, independent retailer grocers of all sizes, and convenience stores. Also, the SNAP-authorized retailer partners should offer a range of qualifying fluid milk.

Applicants must indicate the number of retailers they plan to partner with. They must also provide a detailed justification explaining the likelihood that grant funds designated for the incentives will be redeemed by SNAP households at each retailer over the project period.

Indicate whether the selected retailers offer other incentives (e.g., fruits and vegetables incentives) and whether the other incentives are operating under a GusNIP or an FNA-approved incentive waiver.

If a grantee wishes to add additional retailer banners and locations that were not included in the initial proposal, the grantee will be required to submit a written request to FNA, including justification, store name(s), addresses, and FNA numbers. If the grantee is partnering with a new retailer banner or location, the grantee will be required to attach a letter of commitment from each retailer banner or location.

Ineligible retailers: Retailers that are not eligible to participate in an incentive project under this grant include:

• Retailers that are not authorized to accept SNAP benefits.

• SNAP-authorized retailers that do not typically sell qualifying foods to households, such as bakeries or meat/seafood specialty stores.

• Wholesalers, restaurants, and meal services, such as drug/alcohol treatment programs, battered women’s shelters, communal dining facilities, group living arrangements, homeless meal providers, meal delivery services, and senior and other residential centers.

Funding System Software Upgrades for Retailers in Priority Areas: Applicants may propose using grants funds to make software updates that enable the provision and/or redemption of HFMI incentives for independent retailers that sell sufficient quantities of qualifying fluid milk and are located in the priority areas listed in Section 5 – Application Review Information - FY26 Funding Priorities. These updates may include changes needed to display information about earned incentives on SNAP receipts. Grant funds may not be used for retailers to purchase hardware, such as the POS devices. See Section 2 – Federal Award Information - Unallowable Costs.

6. Incentive Delivery Mechanism

FNA is seeking applicants who, in collaboration with their partners, choose an incentive delivery method(s), that either 1) places incentives into a SNAP household’s EBT account through integration with State EBT systems, or 2) provides households with an automatic discount at the point of purchase, as described under Section 1 – Program Description and Objectives – Project Design.

Applicants must describe the incentive delivery method(s) in high-level detail, including any proposed system enhancements.

Retailers with integrated electronic cash register (IECR) systems that include scanners and POS interfaces will need to reprogram their systems to identify targeted foods, calculate and transmit the value of the incentive, and print resulting incentive values on the SNAP EBT card receipt.

Retailers operating standalone (side-by-side) POS terminals must visually identify target foods, create a separate subtotal for these items, and manually enter this value into the system.

Retailers may not have the technical enhancements to allow their POS systems to support automatic discounts. The grantee must maintain records of the value of the incentive discounts given.

7. Household Earnings Information

Proposals should include how the retailer will notify households of 1) the incentive amount or discount earned 2) the remaining accumulated value of incentives, and 3) the expiration date for unused incentives.

Proposals for the EBT Integration model (Model 2 above) projects must:

• Specify that incentives will be assigned a hierarchy level that maintains first in, first out redemption of benefits;

• Specify that the Automated Response Unit (ARU) will report incentive transactions and balances just like other transactions when the callers choose to hear recent transactions or request a two-month statement by mail; and

• At point of purchase Include the printed incentive values and the expiration date on the SNAP EBT card receipt.

Proposals using the Automatic Discount model (Model 1 above) should include the discounted amount on the printed receipt. Please also include the feasibility and any limitations for including this on the receipt for each partnering retailer.

Technical assistance from FNA will be available to the grantee on their project as needed (if awarded).

8. Letters of Commitment

Applicants proposing the Automatic Discount model (Model 1 above) or Coupon model (Model 3 above) must submit letters of commitment from each retailer banner or location that will participate in the project.

At a minimum, the letters of commitment from retailer banners or locations must include the following as applicable to each partner:

• Confirmation that the proposed solution is viable and that costs are acceptable, including retailer costs associated with:

o Recognizing qualifying foods and totaling their value;

o Applying an automatic discount, if applicable;

o Printing the incentive value and expiration date on the receipt, if applicable; and o Meeting reporting and accounting requirements.

• Confirmation that the selected retailer(s) systems can provide data that reflects SNAP EBT transactions separate from other EBT transactions (i.e., TANF, WIC, etc.) to meet the reporting and accounting requirements.

• A description explaining partnering retailers’ Third-Party Processor (TPP) provider, the type of POS system the retailer uses, any changes that will be made to the POS system, and documentation that shows the retailer has discussed the needed changes and cost with their service providers.

o Retailers with IECR systems: Confirmation that the selected retailer(s) can program their systems to offer incentives or the commitment to upgrade their systems to offer incentives using the proposed project design.

o Retailers with side-by-side POS terminals: Confirmation that the selected retailer(s) has 1) a process in place to identify qualifying milk purchases at the point of purchase, and 2) a system to offer and track incentives using the proposed project design.

Applicants proposing the EBT Integration model (Model 2 above) must submit letters of commitment from:

1. Each retailer banner or location that will participate in the project;

2. Each SNAP State agency where the project will operate (if applicant is not the SNAP State agency); and

3. Each State’s EBT contractor for the proposed EBT system changes.

Letters of commitment for EBT Integration models must also include confirmation from the applicable partner that the EBT and/or retailer system is able to:

• Validate participating HFMI stores;

• Properly calculate and post incentives earned;

• Identify incentives separately from SNAP transactions in order to debit and post incentives, and for back-end accounting and tracking purposes;

• Transmit the information in the authorization request to the EBT system in a manner compliant with current American National Standard Institute (ANSI) message standard X9.58, modified as necessary to transmit HFMI data in a standard manner for all retailers participating in the project (this will require collaboration with FNA, participating integrated retailers and their TPPs, and standalone terminal providers);

• Generate appropriate approval messages to retailers;

• Print incentive values earned on EBT receipts;

• Apply a cap to the monthly amount of incentive that can be earned by any one household;

• Remove incentive amounts from the available balance after the expiration date;

• Ensure that SNAP households no longer receiving SNAP benefits are not continuing to earn incentives;

• Continue to verify the retailer’s FNA authorization number, account number, and PIN, and ensure the account status is active and has sufficient funds; and

• Meet the reporting and accounting requirements.

9. Retailer Training and Technical Support Plan

Applicants must provide a plan for training cashiers and other on-site staff of participating retailers (also known as firms) on the mechanics, requirements, and limitations of HFMI. The proposal must describe the process for addressing and resolving any technical, policy or operational issues that may arise at retailer locations during project implementation and ongoing operations. It must also explain how that process will be communicated to participating retailers.

A detailed description of the resolution process should include information on the organizations/partners responsible for such activities, including hours of availability and expected response timeframes.

10. Communication/Outreach Promotion

Applicants must include a detailed plan in their proposals for communicating information about and promoting HFMI incentives to SNAP households.

The grantee must ensure the following is communicated to SNAP households:

• Availability of incentives and the conditions for receiving the incentives;

• Which qualifying fluid milk purchases earn incentives and which foods may be purchased with earned incentives;

• Location of participating retailers;

• Cap amounts (purchase/daily/weekly/monthly), if applicable, and how to track the amount of incentives earned;

• How to use the incentives earned;

• The expiration date of the incentives earned; and

• How to find out more about HFMI.

Examples of State SNAP agency promotional activities include:

• Providing HFMI promotional materials at local SNAP offices;

• Playing promotional videos at local SNAP offices;

• Creating promotional materials for social media accounts; or

• Partnering with the State agency to send promotional materials through direct mail to

SNAP recipients in the participating retailer’s area. State agencies may not provide outside entities with a list of SNAP recipients’ mailing addresses, even under a memorandum of understanding.

11. Nutrition Education Component

Incentives are available to all SNAP households, regardless of whether the SNAP client is aware of the HFMI program. To further encourage positive behavioral change and increase the purchase and consumption of healthy milk options through HFMI, FNA requires the incorporation of a nutrition education component. Proposals should include a description of planned activities and any potential partnerships or collaborations to meet this requirement.

As a reminder, all proposals must clearly describe any planned partnerships or collaborations (e.g., increased collaboration with SNAP-implementing agencies and other stakeholder programming).

Applicants must include a signed letter of commitment to work closely and cooperatively with FNA and its other partners in support of the grant objectives.

12. Data Collection and Evaluation

FNA will conduct an outcome evaluation using data provided by the grantee. FNA will develop and monitor indicators of progress towards objectives by examining HFMI project activities in terms of

(1) the project’s administrative costs, (2) the number of incentives or discounts issued, and (3) sales of fluid milk by tender type. Data should be reported separately by retailer outlets (e.g., individual store/market locations). The grantee may not change the amount of the incentive or discount provided by an individual retailer outlet without FNA approval.

The grantee is required to have a Data Use Agreement with each retailer that guarantees each retailer will be able to do the following:

• Identify and account for any SNAP funds used for the incentive program and for administrative costs separately from any other funding that may be used to support this project; and

• Breakout SNAP grant funding spent on administrative costs versus incentives to SNAP participants.

Data Use Agreements shall also guarantee that each retailer will provide the following required data elements related to incentive issuance and sales, at a minimum:

• Amount of incentives issued to SNAP participants, in dollars and number of transactions;

and

• Sales of qualifying fluid milk by tender type1. Sales completed with non-SNAP EBT tenders may be aggregated and do not need to be broken out by tender type.

The grantee will be required to submit this data to FNA monthly.

1 WIC EBT sales should be included with “other tenders”, distinguished from SNAP EBT sales.

All data elements related to incentive issuance and sales shall be aggregated at the weekly level, with a week defined as Sunday to Saturday. Each week shall be presented as a row in a cumulative spreadsheet. The updated spreadsheet shall be shared with FNA by the first Wednesday of each month. These submissions shall include any information on unusual circumstances affecting sales data for any retailer (e.g., natural disaster, systems outage, broken dairy case, supply chain issues, special milk/ dairy promotion unrelated to this project, etc.) as well as the week(s) each circumstance occurred. Applicants may propose collecting and providing other data elements, e.g., the number of unique SNAP participants earning incentives or discounts.

If applicable, applicants shall describe the feasibility of this data collection.

To assist FNA in examining the impact of the incentive program, the grantee is required to obtain either (1) historical data from participating retailer outlets or (2) current data from comparison retailer outlets. Historical data refers to data from at least 3 months preceding incentive program implementation and include SNAP EBT and all other sales of fluid milk by tender type. Comparison retailer outlets refer to stores (not participating in the incentive program) that are similar to participating outlets in terms of SNAP EBT sales volume, geographic location, and other characteristics. Applicants shall propose a strategy for selecting and obtaining data for comparison retailer outlets.

Along with providing data for the outcome evaluation to FNA, the grantee shall conduct a process evaluation to understand implementation of the incentive program. Applicants shall propose an approach to evaluate: 1) store staff training, 2) promotion and marketing activities, and 3) other aspects of implementation. Any data collection activities that involve human subjects must be approved by the grantee’s Institutional Review Board. Time required to receive such approval shall be built into the proposed timeline.

Proposals should discuss any opportunities and challenges with the data collection requirements and how they will be addressed. Proposals should also describe any previous process evaluation experience with SNAP participants, food retailers, or nutrition incentive programs. The proposal should demonstrate the capacity and willingness to comply with the data collection and evaluation requirements.

13. Key Timeframes

The period of performance for the FY 2026 SNAP HFMI Cooperative Agreement will not exceed 4 and a half years. The grantee will be expected to launch the project in a fully operational form within 18 months of executing a signed cooperative agreement. During this 18-month period, the grantee will be expected to make and test all administrative and accounting systems adjustments to set HFMI up for operations. Once launched, the project operations may last for the remainder of the grant’s period of performance. The grantee will be responsible for the monthly collection and reporting of specified incentive issuance and redemption data for the entire period of performance.

First-time HFMI grantees will be required to participate in biweekly conference calls with FNA during the initial implementation. Thereafter, all current grantees will be required to participate in conference calls as needed to report on project progress/status to FNA. Formal progress and financial reports are due quarterly.

14. Proposed Project Enhancements

In addition to meeting the basic requirements of this RFA, applicants are encouraged to include in their proposal enhancements that exceed the project requirements. Enhancements may be submitted in the application if these do not detract from or interfere with the goals, rigor, and integrity of the project, or contradict the project design requirements. Such enhancements may include, but are not limited to, partnership with other entities which offer additional, or matching, funding, or nutrition education. Any enhancements should be presented separately from the core proposal in the application and should include an accompanying budget proposal that is separate from the core proposal budget.

The enhancement section will not be scored separately, but it may contribute to the scores of relevant sections and influence selection decisions.

Cooperative Agreement

This grant will be awarded in the form of a cooperative agreement. This agreement is a legal instrument reflecting a relationship between the Federal government and the grantee. Substantial involvement is expected between the Federal government and the grantee when carrying out the activity in the agreement. Cooperative agreements are subject to the same administrative requirements as grants.

Project Roles and Responsibilities

FNA will provide direction and technical assistance to the grantee. FNA will approve major aspects of the project before implementation in a manner and timeframe mutually agreed upon by both the grantee and FNA. FNA will establish a funding mechanism consistent with the terms of the cooperative agreement and provide the grantee with detailed directions regarding the process for claiming and accounting for HFMI funds. FNA will evaluate quarterly progress reports and financial reports to ensure objectives, terms, and conditions of the agreement are met. FNA will participate in periodic collaborative meetings with the grantee to discuss project updates.

The grantee holds primary responsibility for project planning, implementation, and operations in cooperation with retailers and other partners as designated by the grantee. FNA encourages consultation and partnering with agencies who have experience teaching SNAP households how to make healthy meals and how to stretch their SNAP dollars. The grantee shall:

• Select/hire personnel with appropriate credentials to manage and operate the project;

• Delegate responsibilities to retailers and other partners as appropriate;

• Recruit and train retailers in all relevant aspects of HFMI and oversee their activities to ensure project integrity and effectiveness, including:

o Amending the retailer’s point-of-sales service provider agreements, as needed, to support system and procedural changes at participating retailers;

o Developing a plan for the tracking and use of incentives that ensure project integrity;

o Developing memoranda of understanding with participating retailers that have the capability to identify HFMI target foods and understand their responsibilities to meet milestones of the HFMI management plan;

o Informing and educating SNAP recipients on HFMI incentives and how to use them;

o Collecting, recording, and reporting required data; and o Providing necessary support, resources, and oversight.

• Seek FNA approval to add additional retailer banners and locations that were not included in the initial proposal. The grantee will be required to submit a written request to FNA, including justification, store name(s), addresses, and FNA numbers. If the grantee is partnering with a new retailer banner or location, the grantee must provide a letter of commitment from each retailer banner or location;

• Train other partners, as applicable, on the requirements and limitations of HFMI to ensure compliance;

• Maintain records on project costs;

• Seek FNA approval on post-award requirements such as the management plan, budget plan, training plans, EBT contractor’s design and implementation plan (if applicable), and retailer accountability plans that are submitted in preliminary form in the application;

• Seek FNA approval before disseminating data, reports, project summaries or related publications about the HFMI grant;

• Meet specific obligations and approval points that will be further delineated by FNA in terms of the cooperative agreement between FNA and the grantee;

• Submit timely progress reports, financial reports, and data reports during the project. At the end of the project, the grantee must submit a final progress report and a final financial report;

• Participate in periodic collaborative meetings during the project, as well as orientation and close-out meetings with FNA; and

• Account for HFMI funds separately from SNAP administrative funds (i.e., SNAP State agencies), any other grant award funds, or funds provided by any other partner, and establish financial and management reporting and controls to ensure that HFMI funds are used as required.

2. Federal Award Information The following information is intended to provide applicants with information to help make informed decisions about proposal submissions.

• Total amount of funding expected to award: $4,000,000

• Anticipated number of awards: 1

• Minimum award amount (award floor): $1.00

• Maximum award amount (award ceiling): $4,000,000

• Anticipated award announcement date: September 2026

• Anticipated period of performance (start and end date of the award): September 2026 –

September 30, 2029

• Application due date: July 16, 2026 (11:59 PM, Eastern Daylight Time (EDT))

Please note:

• Grant awards are subject to the availability of funding and/or appropriation of funds, and FNA reserves the right not to make awards.

• Applications and all proposed activities must comply with applicable laws, regulations, and executive orders. FNA reserves the right to exclude from consideration any applications proposing activities in contradiction of these requirements.

FNA reserves the right to use this solicitation and results of this competition to award additional grants in the next fiscal year should additional funds be made available.

Allowable Costs

Incentives Funds provided under HFMI must primarily provide financial incentives at the point of purchase to encourage SNAP recipients to purchase more fluid milk. As a result, the Agency will give priority to applicants who propose to spend at least 65% (with a minimum of 50%) of the total requested grant funds on incentives.

If an applicant proposes to integrate healthy fluid milk incentives into a State’s EBT system that has or is currently in the process of implementing EBT Integration for incentives, grant funds may be used to pay for EBT system software upgrades required to incorporate HFMI into the existing EBT processing system(s).

Funds may provide necessary retailer system software changes or upgrades for independent partnering retailers located in one of the targeted priority areas for the purpose of providing and/or redeeming HFMI incentive under this grant.

Promotional Items The purchase of promotional items is allowed if they are directly related to the grant proposal’s objective, and the need must be clearly described in the application. Any cost associated with such promotions must be reasonable in comparison to the grant funding.

Promotional activities must be limited to factual statements and HFMI grantees must generally avoid emotional appeals in their promotional activities. Promotional activities funded with Federal and/or match funds:

• Must present factual statements intended to inform, not to persuade;

• May include locational information about retailers (i.e., the address of retailers participating in the grantee's project);

• May also specify that retailers accept SNAP and EBT (this includes appropriate logo use as outlined in the SNAP Logo Guidance; and

• May include information describing the mechanics of the grantee's project (e.g., spend $1 on milk and earn $1 to spend on other dairy products).

The following example would be considered an allowable promotional expense:

“Thanks to the Healthy Fluid Milk Incentive program, when you use your SNAP benefits to purchase any qualifying cow’s milk at any of the retailers listed below, you will receive 50% off.”

Costs that are indirect in nature and included in entities’ indirect cost pool fall under the indirect cost rate.

Equipment and Supplies Expenditures for equipment (i.e., items of personal property having a useful life of more than one year and a cost of $10,000 or more) are allowable expenses with prior approval by FNA. FNA reserves the right to approve/disapprove these expenditures based on needs as expressed by the proposed project. Supplies do not require a separate specific prior approval outside of the budget/proposal approval process.

https://www.fns.usda.gov/snap/logo-guidance

All costs proposed in the budget and detailed in the budget narrative must be allowable, reasonable, necessary, and allocable. Refer to 2 CFR Part 200 Subpart E – Cost Principles for a detailed description of all allowable and unallowable costs.

A complete listing of selected items of costs is located at 2 CFR 200.420 – 200.476.

Unallowable Costs

Funds awarded under this grant may not be used for any purpose that limits the use of benefits provided under the Act. Similarly, funds awarded may not be used for the purpose of providing access to ineligible items under the Act. Examples include, but are not limited to, giveaways of alcohol, tobacco, firearms, and lottery tickets.

Under no circumstances may HFMI grantees engage in any activities intended to persuade or recruit individuals to apply for SNAP benefits. The use of Federal funds to employ personnel tasked with enrolling individuals in SNAP is strictly prohibited (no supplanting).

Regardless of format, the following example would be an unallowable expense:

"Sign up to receive SNAP benefits and then you can also get 50% off a gallon of milk at Main Street Grocers! Drinking milk will keep you and your family healthy and happy, so come on down on the corner of Maple and Elm Streets!"

Funds awarded under this grant may not be used for the purchase of hardware equipment, including POS devices, for partnering retailers. All equipment costs require prior written approval.

Entertainment: Costs of entertainment, including amusement, diversion, and social activities and any associated costs (such as mascot costumes, promotional items, etc.) are unallowable unless there is a programmatic purpose and prior approval is granted by FNA.

A complete list of selected items of costs is located at 2 CFR 200.420 – 200.476.

All costs proposed in the budget and detailed in the budget narrative must be allowable, reasonable, necessary, and allocable. Refer to 2 CFR Part 200 Subpart E – Cost Principles for a detailed description of all allowable and unallowable costs.

Non-Supplantation Grants must be used to supplement, not supplant, non-Federal funds that would otherwise be available for expenditure on incentive program activities. Grant funds must be used to fund new projects. They may not be used to replace State or local funds that would, in the absence of Federal aid, be available or forthcoming for incentive programs.

3. Eligibility Information

Eligible Applicants

Entities that do not meet the eligibility definitions will be deemed ineligible and removed from competition without further consideration. The following are eligible entities, which are described in more detail below:

• Governmental entities (State, local, territory, or tribal agencies) https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-2/subtitle-A/chapter-II/part-200/subpart-E https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-2/subtitle-A/chapter-II/part-200/subpart-E

• All non-profit organizations must include their 501(c)(3) determination letter issued by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).

A government entity is a State, local, territory, or tribal agency. A nonprofit entity is any organization or institution with IRS 501(c) status or accredited institutions of higher education, where no part of the net earnings benefit any private shareholder or individual. All applicant organizations must be domestic entities and shall be owned, operated, and located within the 50 United States, the District of Columbia, Guam, or the United States Virgin Islands. All applicants must demonstrate in their application that they are a domestic entity and either a government agency or a 501(c) non-profit organization. Each eligible applicant may only submit one application in response to this grant solicitation. Suspended or debarred organizations are ineligible to apply.

FNA will prioritize applicants who possess the following qualifications:

(1) have experience in: (i) working to reduce food insecurity in the community, including food distribution, improving access to services, or coordinating services and programs; or (ii) familiarity with SNAP;

(2) have demonstrated competency to implement a project, provide fiscal accountability, collect data, and prepare reports and other necessary documentation; and

(3) possess a demonstrated willingness to share information with researchers, evaluators, practitioners, and other interested parties, and have a plan for disseminating results to stakeholders.

Partners and Collaborators: Applicants are encouraged to seek and create partnerships with 1) public or private, non-profit or for-profit entities, and/or other appropriate professionals; 2) community-based organizations; and 3) local government entities; and/or partnering entities for the purposes of providing additional resources and strengthening under-resourced communities.

Only the applicant, not partners and collaborations, must meet these requirements for grant eligibility. The grantee may collaborate with organizations not eligible to apply for this grant, provided such organizations are necessary for the successful completion of the project.

Note: In cases where an applicant is deemed nonresponsive for failing to submit required elements or documents associated with this RFA, they will be considered ineligible and removed from consideration.

IN ADDITION: Those applicants who fail to submit any required documents or forms will be deemed NONRESPONSIVE and therefore will be INELIGIBLE to participate in the competition and removed from further consideration.

Ineligible Applicants

• International (non-U.S. or non-U.S. territories) entities are not eligible to apply.

Cost Sharing or Matching Considerations

There are no cost sharing or matching requirements for this program. However, FNA supports collaboration among local, State, regional, or national partnerships that leverage assets to most effectively reach the goals associated with this solicitation.

Pre-Award Screening Requirements

In reviewing applications in any discretionary grant competition, prior to making a Federal award, Federal awarding agencies, in accordance with 2 CFR 200.206, are required to review information available through any OMB-designated repositories of government-wide eligibility qualifications or financial integrity information. Additionally, Federal awarding agencies are required to have a framework in place for evaluating the risks posed by applicants before they receive Federal awards.