In accordance with Sections 35A-1-103 and 35A-3-103, the Department administers SNAP in accordance with federal statutes (7 U.S.C. 2011 et seq.) and regulations (including, the most relevant for these proposed rule changes, 7 CFR Part 273). The Department's responsibility for SNAP administration includes determining applicant eligibility, assessing overpayments and disqualifications from SNAP, and providing appeal hearings related to these matters. On, or about, 08/24/2017, the United States Department of Agriculture's Food and Nutrition Service (FNS), which regulates the state agencies that administer SNAP, issued findings stating that the Department's hearing procedures for persons facing potential disqualification from SNAP due to an intentional program violation (IPV) were not in compliance with federal requirements. Specifically, FNS determined that the Department is required to hold a live ADH for each person accused of an IPV prior to imposing a disqualification from SNAP, regardless of whether the person has requested a hearing. These proposed rule changes address the FNS findings by creating separate hearing procedures for ADHs and making clear that, unlike other types of public assistance hearings, a live ADH is held for every IPV, even if the person accused of the IPV does not request it. In connection with reviewing and amending the hearing procedures to address the FNS findings, the Department has undertaken a broader review of the general public assistance hearing rules with an eye toward simplifying hearing procedures for clients, Department personnel, and other affected persons. Accordingly, these proposed rule changes contain various technical changes intended to clarify existing hearing procedures and remove redundancies and unnecessary matters. The Department has specific authority to make rules to implement these changes under Sections 35A-1-104, 35A-1-302, 35A-1-303, 35A-1-306, 35A-3-103, 35A-3-111, 35A-3-302, 35A-3-603, and 35A-3-604.