The National Grocers Association (NGA) is applauding members of Congress for safeguarding the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) in the FY 2025 agriculture appropriations bill by removing a provision that would have led to widespread disruptions and undermined SNAP’s effectiveness.
A proposal dropped from the final bill would have created a five-state pilot to limit the types of foods covered under SNAP, forcing grocers to examine hundreds of thousands of food items to determine which qualify. The proposed pilot program would have allowed five state governments to pick winners and losers in the grocery sector, harming the 42 million SNAP participants who have diverse nutritional needs.
“Fortunately, members of Congress realized that a proposal that looked simple on paper would have created confusion for program participants and resulted in a costly bureaucratic nightmare for small businesses around this country,” said Stephanie Johnson, NGA’s VP of government relations.
“The strength of SNAP lies in its efficient and flexible design. We are proud to support the continuation of an effective and impactful program for families and local economies.”
The successful amendment, offered by Congressman Sanford Bishop, chairman of the U.S. House Appropriations Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration and Related Agencies, removed a pilot project that would have restricted SNAP purchases of “non-nutritious food or beverage items” in five states, a potentially disastrous policy that would have turned grocers into the food police. Members Bishop, Rosa DeLauro, Adriano Espaillat and Bonnie Watson-Coleman spoke in favor of keeping SNAP Choice, the current policy providing participants the freedom to purchase what is right for their families. The amendment passed via voice vote after a robust lobbying effort from NGA.
NGA is also pleased with the Senate passage of an agriculture appropriations bill without any new restrictions on SNAP purchases.
This victory follows NGA’s commitment to making SNAP choice a key issue during its Fly-In for Fair Competition. Credit also goes to the NGA Grocery Guard, whose members reached out to House appropriators urging support for the amendment.
