A pair of state Senate Republicans wants to ban the use of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits for junk food.

Just over 2 million Pennsylvanians, 15% of the state population, receive SNAP benefits.

“Research has shown that high sugar, and ultra-processed diets contribute to obesity, diabetes, heart disease, inflammation, and other chronic, preventable conditions that disproportionately impact low-income communities. In children, these products are linked to developmental problems, attention deficits,

and poor academic and behavioral performance,” state Sen. Michele Brooks, R-Mercer, and state Sen. Doug Mastriano, R-Franklin, said in a memo seeking support from other lawmakers. “These harms impose growing costs on the Commonwealth, not just in reduced quality of life, but also in the rising burden on taxpayer-funded health care programs, which now spend over a billion dollars on costly weight loss medications.”

It’s an effort that President Donald Trump’s administration and Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. have promoted.

Earlier this month, the U.S. Department of Agriculture granted waivers allowing six states to exclude junk food from SNAP benefits.

“For years, SNAP has used taxpayer dollars to fund soda and candy — products that fuel America’s diabetes and chronic disease epidemics,” Kennedy said at the time. “These waivers help put real food back at the center of the program and empower states to lead the charge in protecting public health.”

A dozen states have obtained waivers from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to bar the use of SNAP benefits for junk food. They are Arkansas, Colorado, Florida, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Louisiana, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Texas, Utah and West Virginia.

Several other states are seeking waivers. Tennessee has applied for a waiver to exclude junk food from SNAP purchases, a move Gov. Bill Lee said would provide “financial stewardship” while promoting nutritional food choices.

Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine used a line-item veto to reject language that would direct the state to seek federal approval to bar junk food from SNAP benefits. DeWine indicated he supports the idea of cracking down on the use of SNAP benefits for unhealthy food but said he feared the specific budget language would have hampered the pursuit of a waiver.

DeWine has formed a working group to chart the path for the state’s attempt to ban junk food purchases using SNAP benefits. That group is expected to hand down its recommendations by Sept. 28.

Incentive proposal

In addition to proposing limits on the use of SNAP benefits, lawmakers in the state House earlier this year advanced legislation to create financial incentives to purchase healthy food using SNAP benefits.

House Bill 1096 would provide 40 cents in bonus benefits for every $1 of SNAP benefits spent on fresh produce.

The legislation was approved by the state House with bipartisan support.

HB 1096 was referred to the Senate Agriculture and Rural Affairs Committee, which has not yet taken up the bill.