Story perspectives

Judge Blocks USDA SNAP Sugar Waivers in Five States

6/24/2026

Summary

Story summary

Judge Amy Berman Jackson ruled USDA exceeded authority and omitted required public notice for SNAP food-restriction waivers.
The ruling blocked the waivers, keeping soda, candy and other sugary items purchasable with SNAP in five states.
Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins and Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. promoted the waivers while the National Center for Law and Economic Justice sued for SNAP recipients with health-related dietary needs.

History

Historical Context

Congress passed the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act in August 1996, replacing AFDC with TANF and renaming food stamps SNAP, capping average household benefits at roughly $1,400. Decades later, Secretary Brooke Rollins sought USDA waivers to bar soda and candy from SNAP, but Judge Amy Berman Jackson blocked them, reviving the 1996 welfare-reform debate.

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Story summary

Judge Amy Berman Jackson ruled USDA exceeded authority and omitted required public notice for SNAP food-restriction waivers.
The ruling blocked the waivers, keeping soda, candy and other sugary items purchasable with SNAP in five states.
Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins and Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. promoted the waivers while the National Center for Law and Economic Justice sued for SNAP recipients with health-related dietary needs.

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