Gov. Phil Scott’s administration may soon ban people from using food stamps to purchase products that the state deems unhealthy.
The governor has directed the Agency of Human Services to seek a federal waiver that would allow it to exclude a list of yet-to-be-determined foods and drinks from the state’s version of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, known as 3SquaresVT.
Such bans have become a key piece of the Trump administration’s Make America Healthy Again campaign, led by Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. He and other proponents of the so-called “junk food” bans argue that federal dollars should not be spent on products such as soda, candy and other items associated with obesity and chronic diseases.
Eighteen states have received waivers in the past year, five of which — Iowa, Indiana, Nebraska, Utah and West Virginia — debuted their new restrictions on January 1. The list of items banned in those states widely varies, ranging from fruit snacks and Twix candy bars to soda and Gatorade.
Vermont is among roughly a dozen other states now considering the idea, according to the National Grocers Association.
The state is planning to host public meetings on the proposal this spring before submitting an application, which could take up to six months to be approved, according to Miranda Gray, deputy commissioner of the Vermont Agency of Human Service’s Economic Services Division, which oversees 3SquaresVT.
“We’re at the beginning stages and are going to explore what might make sense for Vermont,” Gray said.
A spokesperson for Scott said in a statement that the governor believes encouraging people to buy healthier foods through restrictions would “improve the health of Vermonters.”
But anti-hunger advocates are already raising concerns. They say the bans limit choices for low-income people without enough evidence to show that they will successfully lead to better health outcomes.
“What Vermonters actually need is stability and autonomy and greater financial access to healthy foods, not restrictions that suggest that they can’t be trusted to feed their own families or make their own decisions,” said Ivy Enoch, policy and advocacy director at Hunger Free Vermont.
Any changes to 3SquaresVT would also have ramifications for small grocers and retailers, whose employees will be forced to police purchases at the point-of-sale.
Retailers in states with the new restrictions have struggled at times to interpret what can be vague banned categories, such as “candy” or “soda,” the New York Times reported last month.
The feds have warned that retailers could face consequences — including removal from the SNAP program — if they violate the restrictions more than once. (The Vermont Retail & Grocers Association did not respond to multiple requests for comment.)
Historically, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which administers SNAP benefits, has denied state requests for tighter restrictions on the program, including during Trump’s first term.
The department has previously said that there’s a lack of evidence to support the bans. Research shows that beneficiaries do not exhibit drastically different shopping patterns than the rest of the public. Many recipients purchase healthier foods immediately after receiving their monthly benefits, then are more likely to purchase cheaper, less healthy foods later in the month.
But the Ag Department has sharply reversed its stance during Trump’s second term.
Ag Secretary Brooke Rollins and Kennedy said in a joint op-ed last year that they felt a duty to address America’s obesity and chronic disease epidemics. They called on governors to pursue SNAP waivers that promote access to “wholesome foods.”
Governors were further encouraged through the Rural Health Transformation Fund, a five-year, $50 billion program approved by Congress last year to partially offset Medicaid cuts. State applications were judged in part on how well their health policies aligned with the federal government’s. Those pursuing SNAP “junk food” waivers received a boost in their scores.
Vermont — whose application noted that it would seek to submit a SNAP waiver by the end of 2027 — was awarded nearly $200 million in the fund’s first year, far more than officials had expected.
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