On Wednesday, the state House passed Senate Bill 57, a bill that will require the Alabama Department of Human Resources to apply for a waiver excluding candy and soda from the list of foods that SNAP benefits can be spent on.
“To tell you that we’re one of the most unhealthier states in the union is an understatement,” Representative Reed Ingram, R-Montgomery, said at the start of the discussion. “We’re the third worst healthiest state in the country, with obesity, diabetes, and heart disease, and the federal government has instructed all the states to come up with a better plan on healthier food and to look at our SNAP program.”
After Ingram introduced the bill and requested the budget isolation resolution, Representative Thomas Jackson, D-Thomasville, asked if Ingram knew how much people on public assistance receive. Ingram said he did not.
“So you’re not sure and you don’t know, or maybe you don’t care,” Jackson said.
“No, I do care,” Ingram said.
“Do you know they don’t get enough to go to Publix and buy groceries but one time? Do you know that? And they can’t get a full meal on that particular check that they get,” Jackson continued.
In Alabama, the average monthly benefits per household member in 2023 was around $184, per a recent USDA report. That translates to roughly $2 per meal.
After Jackson questioned whether SNAP was responsible for Alabama families’ health problems, Ingram then claimed that “the number one purchase on SNAP right now is soft drinks.” He specifically said that “62 percent of the purchases are soft drinks.”
A 2016 study from the USDA looking at point of sale data found that SNAP households do spend a slightly higher percentage of their grocery budget on sweetened beverages than non-SNAP households, but it was only a 2 percentage point difference. SNAP households spent about 9 percent of their groceries budget on sweetened beverages, compared to 7 percent for non-SNAP households.
The category that accounted for the largest share of both SNAP and non-SNAP household spending was “meat, poultry and seafood.” Other studies have also shown that households receiving SNAP benefits tend to spend money on groceries similarly to non-SNAP households.
“I know your intentions are good, I understand what you’re doing, but I have problems with the big picture,” Representative Pebblin Warren, D-Tuskegee, told Representative Ingram after the House briefly recessed and the first floor amendment passed.
“It seems as though we’re trying to keep our kids healthy, we’re trying to teach good eating habits, but at the same time, we’re discriminating,” she said. “We’re not really concerned about the children as a whole. We’re only concerned about the children who are getting SNAP program. That to me defeats the purpose of trying to help children.”
Several other Democratic legislators also spoke against the bill, expressing concerns about its potential effects on both small businesses and poor families.
Representative Kevin Datcher, D-Birmingham, explained that “part of it is a dignity factor.” He explained that when he was growing up, his single mother had relied on food stamps and he “knew that my mom was responsible with those choices” of what to buy.
“I’m kind of worried about the mom who does the same thing, but you know those checkout aisles are filled with candy and all that stuff,” Datcher said. “Maybe that kid has made straight A’s, or maybe that kid has had a great day, and they ask for a Hershey bar or something, and that mom can’t get it in that moment.”
“Right, not that that candy’s been sustenance but just kind of a treat for them in that moment,” he continued. “And that parent can’t make that decision, we’re making that decision for them. That gives me pause.”
In an interview with APR earlier this year, Alabama Arise Senior Policy Analyst Carol Gundlach warned that removing soft drinks and candy from the list of foods approved for SNAP would be “really, really, really complicated and is going to be a pain for everybody.” She said instead the state should invest in programs to help SNAP recipients purchase produce and access information about nutrition and healthy habits.
On Thursday, the Senate concurred with the floor amendments the House approved the day prior. SB57 has been sent to Governor Kay Ivey’s desk for her signature.
