Nebraska will become the first state to receive a federal waiver that would let it bar the purchase of soda and energy drinks with SNAP benefits, U.S. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins announced Monday, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The state’s change would be carried out through SNAP, a federal food-aid program for low-income Americans that is administered by states.
Rollins said the waiver would take effect Jan. 1, though the agency did not immediately provide details on which products would be covered or how the ban would be implemented, the Associated Press reported. The USDA estimated it would affect about 152,000 people in Nebraska enrolled in SNAP.
Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen framed the move as a nutrition and accountability step. In a statement, Pillen said, “There’s absolutely zero reason for taxpayers to be subsidizing purchases of soda and energy drinks.” He added that SNAP is “about helping families in need get healthy food into their diets, but there’s nothing nutritious about the junk we’re removing with today’s waiver.”
The policy is part of a broader effort the USDA described as focused on restricting certain foods and drinks from SNAP. The AP reported that the push to ban sugary drinks, candy and more has been a key focus of Rollins and Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
The federal SNAP rules, as laid out in the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008, generally allow benefits to be used “for any food or food product intended for human consumption,” with exceptions that include alcohol, tobacco and hot foods intended for immediate consumption. The AP reported that for years, lawmakers in several states have proposed similar restrictions that would cut off SNAP purchases ranging from bottled water and soda to chips, ice cream, and “luxury meats” like steak.
Until now, the USDA rejected such waiver requests, saying it lacked clear standards for defining certain foods as good or bad and that restrictions would be difficult to implement, complicated and costly. The agency also said restrictions would not necessarily change recipients’ buying behavior or reduce health problems such as obesity, the AP reported.
Anti-hunger advocates criticized Nebraska’s waiver, arguing that the approach adds burdens and stigma for people facing food insecurity. Gina Plata-Nino, a deputy director at the Food Research & Action Center, said in a statement that the waiver would “ignore decades of evidence showing that incentive-based approaches — not punitive restrictions — are the most effective, dignified path to improving nutrition and reducing hunger.”
The USDA said six other states—Arkansas, Colorado, Kansas, Indiana, Iowa and West Virginia—have submitted requests for waivers involving bans on certain foods and drinks or, in some cases, expanding access to hot foods for SNAP participants. The AP reported that the agency’s details on those requests were not immediately provided.