The Tennessee House of Representatives passed a bill on Monday that would prohibit the purchase of soft drinks and candy with Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits.
The Tennessee Health SNAP Act, filed as HB 1236/SB 1154, is being sponsored by State Representative Jason Zachary (R-Knoxville) and State Senator Rusty Crowe (R-Johnson City).
Tennessee is leading the way aligning public policy with public health.
We passed my bill on the House floor to prohibit soda and candy from SNAP.
Now up the Senate. #MAHA pic.twitter.com/lLUfjnt00Q— Rep. Jason Zachary (@JasonZacharyTN) March 10, 2025
The bill, which passed the House by a 69-23 vote, would require the Tennessee Department of Human Services to submit a request for a waiver from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s food and nutrition service to seek authorization to prohibit the use of SNAP benefits for the purchase of candy and soft drinks.
In the case the U.S. Department of Agriculture approves the waiver, the Department of Human Services then must implement the restrictions on candy and soft drinks from SNAP benefits within one year of receiving federal authorization.
With approval from the House, the bill awaits further action by the Senate Health and Welfare Committee.
In fiscal year 2024, 711,200 residents, or approximately 10 percent, of Tennessee’s population benefited from SNAP.
A 2016 report published by the Department of Agriculture showed that “sweetened beverages” and “prepared desserts” were the second- and fifth-most purchased types of items by SNAP recipients at the time.
Tennessee lawmakers’ push to disqualify soft drinks and candy from SNAP benefits comes as U.S. Health and Human Services Director Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins are leading the push at the national level to prohibit soda and processed foods from being eligible for purchase under SNAP.
“The one place that I would say that we really need to change policies is food stamps and school lunches…We shouldn’t be subsidizing people to eat poison,” Kennedy said in an interview on Fox News last month.
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Kaitlin Housler is a reporter at The Tennessee Star and The Star News Network. Follow Kaitlin on X / Twitter.
