Houston-area Lawmaker’s Bill Banning Junk Food Purchases With Snap Benefits Passes Texas Senate

Provided/Office of State Senator Mayes Middleton

Texas Sen. Mayes Middleton, a Republican from Galveston, speaks astatine nan State Capitol successful Austin.

A projected Texas rule that would extremity nan usage of SNAP benefits, aliases nutrient stamps, for buying “junk food” passed nan Texas Senate past week.

Senate Bill 379, authored by Houston-area authorities Sen. Mayes Middleton, is now being considered by nan Texas House of Representatives. Middleton, a Republican from Galveston, said nan extremity is to get nan authorities assistance programme backmost to its original intent, which was to thief struggling families pinch nutritious, basal nutrient items.

"We cognize that soda, sweetened beverages, cookies, candies, and chips, that’s not basal to wellness and well-being, you know, and taxpayer-funded junk food, what it turns into astatine nan extremity of nan time is taxpayer-funded healthcare,” Middleton said. “So what this does is it removes those junk foods and saccharine beverages."

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If nan measure passes successful nan House and is signed into rule by Gov. Greg Abbott, nan authorities would request to activity a national exemption to instrumentality it. Critics interest it could wounded group surviving successful areas pinch a deficiency of entree to patient food.

According to nan bill language, SNAP recipients successful Texas would not beryllium allowed to usage nan benefits to acquisition candy, cookies, maize aliases murphy chips, caffeinated power drinks, carbonated beverages aliases immoderate different beverages pinch added artificial aliases earthy sweeteners.