Amended bill lifting lifetime ban on food aid for Nebraskans with a past drug felony advances
LINCOLN — A measure to remove a lifetime ban on public food assistance for Nebraskans who have served sentences for drug felonies passed another hurdle Wednesday.
An amended Legislative Bill 319, designated as a priority by Bellevue State Sen. Victor Rountree, advanced on a 31-14 vote to final reading.
Current Nebraska law offers a narrow exception to the ban for people with one or two drug possession or drug use felony convictions. They can access Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, formerly known as food stamps, if they have completed a licensed and accredited treatment program.
Rountree's bill would open the door for other felony drug offenders who currently can't access SNAP benefits, as long as they've completed their sentence or are on parole or under post-release supervision.
An amendment that passed Wednesday, on a 32-14 vote, added a requirement that those with three or more felony drug convictions undergo a substance abuse treatment program to be eligible, unless a licensed health care provider determines that treatment is not necessary.
State Sens. Mike Jacobson of North Platte and Carolyn Bosn of Lincoln worked with Rountree on the amendment. Bosn said she did not think that food should be withheld as a form of punishment.
Jacobson said he felt strongly that a treatment component be included. He believes addiction is not a choice and is a disease that requires a constant and lifelong commitment to stay clean.
'If we want to try to keep them from reoffending, we need to give them every opportunity to try to be gainfully employed. And that starts with putting food on the table,' Jacobson said.
He said 152,000 Nebraskans currently receive SNAP benefits and the proposed legislation, if enacted, could add about 1,000 more. SNAP benefits are fully paid with federal funds, though administrative costs are split between the state and federal government.
A fiscal analysis said the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services could absorb the additional workload of administering the expansion without additional cost unless demand proved larger than anticipated.
State Sens. Kathleen Kauth of Omaha and Bob Andersen of Sarpy County were among those voicing continued opposition. On first reading April 10, the measure moved forward on a 32-5 vote. Kauth said a concern was taxpayers 'being on the hook' for chronic offenders.
'At some point we have to put a barrier up that says, 'If you continue to make these choices to engage in criminal activity, the taxpayers deserve to say no more,'' she said.
Andersen said the state pays for prosecution and incarceration. He added, 'At what point do we stop feeding the beast … At what point do we quit being enablers?'
State Sen. Rob Dover of Norfolk characterized himself as a conservative who does not promote rewarding people for bad behavior. He said, however, he believes punishment should not be prolonged after a person has paid their debt.
'If you think someone should suffer longer, increase the sentence then,' he said. 'It should not just go on and on and on.'
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The Hill
17 hours ago
- The Hill
Red states lead push for MAHA soda bans
Republican-led states are leading the charge to ban soda and candy from their food stamp programs, as Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s 'Make America Healthy Again' (MAHA) movement flips traditional partisanship on its head. Colorado is the only blue state to seek and have a soda ban waiver approved, and the only waiver state to propose expanding SNAP benefits in conjunction with limiting its scope. Both parties at times have expressed interest in eliminating soda from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), but the Trump administration is the first to encourage states to do so. Recent attempts at soda regulation have mostly been concentrated in blue cities. Former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg (D) infamously tried to ban the sale of supersized sugary drinks in 2013, prompting Republicans to decry his 'nanny state' tactics. With the healthy-eating push now under the MAHA branding, GOP states are jumping aboard. Kennedy doesn't run SNAP — that falls under the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). But as the face of MAHA, Kennedy has been alongside Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins to promote soda and candy bans. In just the first six months of the new administration, 12 state waivers have been approved by USDA that restrict SNAP recipients from purchasing some combination of soft drinks, sugary beverages, energy drinks and candy 'We all believe in free choice, we live in a democracy … if you want to buy sugary soda, you ought to be able to do that. The U.S. taxpayer should not pay for it,' Kennedy said during a recent press conference. The states that have claimed waivers are Arkansas, Colorado, Florida, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Louisiana, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Texas, Utah and West Virginia. SNAP dollars can be used to buy any food or beverage from a grocery store except alcohol, nutritional supplements or hot food. The idea of policing the shopping carts of low-income Americans has never sat well with anti-hunger advocates, who've argued it's paternalistic and stigmatizing for low-income Americans. Additionally, while federal data show sugary drinks are the leading source of added sugars in the American diet, nutrition experts said there is limited evidence that shows SNAP soda bans lead to better health outcomes. There's even less evidence that banning candy and dessert foods from SNAP can positively impact a person's diet. 'Claiming that implementing these restrictions will absolutely lead to a curb in diet-related diseases, you cannot confidently say that. There is no evidence to support that statement,' said Joelle Johnson, the deputy director for Healthy Food Access at the Center for Science in the Public Interest, a group that advocates for stronger nutrition regulation. The SNAP waivers are for pilot programs only, so they won't immediately lead to long-term policy changes. They are a chance for states to conduct the research that's been missing — if they want to find out. Barry Popkin, a professor of nutrition at the University of North Carolina School of Global Public Health, said he thinks waivers are toothless ways for states to show their MAHA bonafides. 'None of these states are doing more than pleasing MAHA, doing what's easy. They can do this internally. They don't have to go to the politicians [and pass laws],' Popkin said, 'Waivers do nothing except allow a state to say you can't buy junk food.' Experts said historically, Republicans who have wanted to ban soda from SNAP also viewed it as a way to trim spending on the program. Some advocates continue to view the latest push with skepticism. One of the groups pushing hard for state SNAP waivers is the Foundation for Government Accountability, a conservative think tank based in Florida that's been working for over a decade to reshape the nation's public assistance programs and significantly cut spending. Johnson said she is worried about a slippery slope. If fewer items are eligible for SNAP, she's concerned GOP leaders will use that as an excuse to cut back on people's monthly benefits. Priya Fielding-Singh, director of policy and programs at the George Washington University's Global Food Institute, said there could be benefits in trying to focus SNAP purchases on healthy food. But it's hard to look at a soda-and-candy ban in isolation, she said. The Agriculture Department slashed about $1 billion in funding that let schools and food banks buy food directly from local farms and ranchers. The White House is proposing deep cuts to fruit and vegetable benefits under the WIC program (Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children). The GOP's new tax cut law is projected to cut $186 billion from SNAP in the next decade and disqualify millions from eligibility. 'It's hard to separate the soda ban from the larger political efforts to shrink SNAP overall. So are these bans about promoting health or are they about shrinking SNAP? And I think the distinction really matters,' Fielding-Singh said. She added that any moves to restrict what people can buy with SNAP should be paired with efforts to give people the 'means and access and resources to eat more healthfully.' But so far, none of the red state waivers does that. Gov. Jared Polis (D) in a statement on Colorado's waiver, called it 'a big step towards improving the health of Coloradans, and reducing obesity rates, diabetes, and tooth decay' that 'will help to ensure that more Coloradans participating in SNAP have access to healthy foods.' The Trump administration has not yet given them the green light on a separate waiver to cover hot foods from grocery stores like rotisserie chicken or soup. Democratic Govs. Laura Kelly (Kan.) and Katie Hobbs (Ariz.) each vetoed bills that called for their states to submit waivers to ban candy and soda. 'I support the idea that Kansans should eat healthier. However, changes to the SNAP food assistance program should be made at the federal level, not on a patchwork, state-by-state basis,' Kelly wrote in her veto message. She also noted the language in the bill would have mandated businesses to stop accepting food assistance benefits for 'healthy' items like protein bars and trail mix while continuing to allow Twix, Kit Kat, and Twizzlers. Kennedy this week said he expects more blue states to be filing waivers. 'I was at the governors' conference in Colorado last week, and I met with a whole string of Democratic governors and they all committed to filing SNAP waivers,' Kennedy said. Kennedy also said those governors also committed to put forward other 'MAHA legislation' but he acknowledged they may not want to be associated with the term because it's become 'kind of a partisan brand.' As she signed Colorado's waiver, Rollins said healthy eating should be bipartisan. 'This is not red or blue, Republican or Democrat,' Rollins said. 'We are discussing and working with every state, so really excited to continue to work with Gov. Polis.'
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Yahoo
Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds celebrates SNAP waivers approval in Washington, D.C.
Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds speaks at an event Aug. 4, 2025, in Washington, D.C., where U.S. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins signed six Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) state waivers, approving restrictions on certain food purchases. (Screenshot via C-SPAN) Gov. Kim Reynolds on Monday joined a news conference in Washington, D.C., to praise the U.S. Department of Agriculture under the Trump administration for allowing Iowa to restrict certain foods under a federal aid program and implement an alternative summer nutrition program for children. Reynolds spoke at a news conference focused on Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) that was hosted by U.S. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins and Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. The Trump administration officials discussed approving new waivers for restrictions on what food can be purchased through the public assistance program. Rollins signed six SNAP state waivers — for Colorado, Florida, Louisiana, Oklahoma, Texas and West Virginia — at the event, approving restrictions on food purchases under the program. These waivers will allow states to limit the purchase of certain items, like candy or soda, using food benefits. She said these waivers are part of the administration's larger 'Make America Healthy Again' work, championed primarily by Kennedy. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX 'The SNAP waivers are just one piece of the MAHA effort,' Rollins said. 'We work so closely together to encourage voluntary commitments to remove artificial food dyes, among other things, from our food supply. And together, we are crafting sensical dietary guidelines for Americans that prioritize whole, healthy and nutritious foods.' Though the press conference highlighted approval of new waivers, the USDA had signed off in May on Iowa's SNAP waiver. The new restrictions take effect beginning Jan. 1, 2026, and will last for two years. Reynolds thanked Rollins for 'enabling Iowa to help lead the nation in SNAP reform.' In Iowa, she said, allowing people to purchase items like sweetened drinks, desserts and salty snacks through SNAP 'truly isn't helping low-income families,' but is worsening problems with obesity. 'Thirty-seven percent of our adults and 17 percent of our youth, ages 6 through 17, are suffering from obesity,' Reynolds said. 'And that's something that as the governor of this great state I can't accept. And it's why that we've really begun to strategically reform our efforts to help address food insecurity and nutrition.' Another way Iowa is working to address obesity, she said, is through the Healthy Kids Iowa demonstration project, also approved by the USDA in May. Iowa had declined to participate in 2024 and 2025 in the SUN Bucks program, the federal summer nutrition program also known as Summer EBT, that provides an extra $120 per child to eligible low-income families each month when school is not in session. Critics and hunger advocates said the governor had chosen to leave money on the table that could have gone to families in need, but the governor said she opposed the program over concerns about unhealthy food purchases. Instead, Reynolds sought federal approval to pursue an alternate program, providing a premade box of food worth $40 each month from 500 access points. The waiver for Healthy Kids Iowa was denied in 2024 under the Biden administration, but approved under Trump. Though there were 500 sites approved in the initial waiver, there are currently 264 locations providing the food boxes to program participants. Hunger advocates have said this program is more difficult for families in need to access food, as transportation to these locations can be more difficult than going to a retailer that accepts SNAP through the Summer EBT program. But Reynolds said the state has leveraged Iowa's existing network of food pantries to distribute these boxes in all 99 counties — and that the program provides food at a lower cost than through Summer EBT. 'Some of the food banks that weighed in, and our partners in this effort, said that they can actually buy up to six times more food than a person using that SUN Bucks program at retail prices,' Reynolds said. Luke Elzinga, board chair for the Iowa Hunger Coalition, said some of the promises made about the Health Kids Iowa program, like allowing families to choose food items that meet their preferences and 'cultural and dietary needs,' have not happened as the program was rolled out this summer. He also said fewer children received food through the program than projected. 'When you compare it just what we could have seen with summer EBT, you know, that's only about 15% of the kids who could have been assisted through summer EBT that are being served through this Healthy Kids Iowa program,' Elzinga said. 'So I don't think it's an example for other states.' The news conference was part of a larger 'MAHA Monday' event on the National Mall, which included a 'Great American Farmers Market.' Kennedy said restrictions on SNAP, and other 'MAHA' efforts under Rollins' leadership, were vital to making Americans healthier and solving the country's 'chronic disease crisis.' He claimed 10% of SNAP purchases were made on soda, and that an additional 3% to 7% went to candy — purchases he said should not be made using public funds. 'We all believe in free choice,' Kennedy said. 'We live in a democracy. People can make their own choice about what they're going to buy and what they're not going to buy. If you want to buy a sugary soda, you ought to be able to do that. U.S. taxpayers should not pay for it.' SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE Solve the daily Crossword
Boston Globe
2 days ago
- Boston Globe
In one of the country's poorest states, crippling budget cuts loom
Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up 'You couldn't design a budget-reconciliation package that would be worse for the state of New Mexico,' Sen. Martin Heinrich said at a health care forum. Advertisement But after years of robust federal spending in the state, some Republican legislators, who are in the minority in both chambers, are predicting that the new domestic policy bill will help root out waste and provide some tax relief. 'Just take a deep breath,' said state Rep. Mark Duncan, a Republican who sits on a new legislative subcommittee on federal funding. 'This is not going to happen tomorrow, for the most part.' The state estimates that it will lose $2.8 billion annually in Medicaid funding, and as much as $352 million from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, which helps low-income families buy groceries. Six to eight rural hospitals could close within the next 24 months. Advertisement And out of roughly 22,000 jobs in state government, more than 2,000 are wholly funded by the federal government, while an additional 3,800 are partially funded, Wayne Propst, secretary of the Department of Finance and Administration, told the funding subcommittee. To be sure, state budgets around the country have been generally strong of late thanks to billions in COVID-19 relief money and a record-breaking stock market. New Mexico has also been buoyed by robust oil and gas revenues. But few sectors of the state will be untouched. The Santa Fe Farmers' Market. MERIDITH KOHUT/NYT Manny Encinias, a cattle rancher and longtime vendor at the Santa Fe Farmers' Market, said some of his customers paid with SNAP food tokens. 'Suddenly, the rug has been pulled out from beneath us,' he said. For now, here's how some New Mexicans are sizing up the new normal: Medicaid and SNAP The New Mexico Health Care Authority, which administers Medicaid and SNAP, estimates that 88,000 residents could lose Medicaid, and 58,000 could lose SNAP. Many officials are worried about bureaucratic snarls and widespread confusion. Paulina Verduzco, 20, a restaurant host in Santa Fe, is already experiencing whiplash. After being uninsured for two years, Verduzco was recently approved for Medicaid. But a few weeks ago, she received a $300 bill for a one-hour intake call, done over Zoom. Panicked, she talked to a case worker and was told it was a mistake. She was also approved for SNAP, and on a recent Saturday at the Santa Fe Farmers' Market, she used her food tokens for the first time. She and her aunt purchased plants for cherry tomatoes, poblano peppers and lemon cucumbers to grow in their own tiny garden. Advertisement But two weeks later, Verduzco received a text informing her that she would no longer be receiving SNAP because she wasn't working enough hours -- even though she has been asking her employer for more hours. She is not sure if the cutoff was a result of the new federal policy, but work requirements are about to become even more stringent. 'You aren't making enough money to receive government money -- make that make sense,' Verduzco said. Gutting SNAP could squeeze the state's Double Up Food Bucks initiative, which enables recipients to buy fresh local produce at half the price, and bolsters ranchers and farmers, said Encinias, who owns Trilogy Beef and Buffalo Creek Ranch in Moriarty, and is also executive director of the Santa Fe Farmers' Market Institute. 'We're going to be impacted significantly,' he said. Nonprofit groups, which have often provided aid that supplemented government programs, are also under pressure. A recent survey of 200 nonprofits commissioned by three New Mexico foundations reported that 20% received at least half of their funding from federal grants -- grants that are now in jeopardy. The Food Depot, which serves northern New Mexico, has already announced that its Regional Farm to Food Bank program is ending. 'Make absolutely no mistake,' Jill Dixon, the group's executive director, said at a recent community meeting. 'The charitable food system cannot compensate for the loss that we are facing.' US Senator Martin Heinrich, Democrat of New Mexico. Kayla Bartkowski/Getty Public Lands In a state nicknamed the Land of Enchantment for its striking landscapes and cultural history, outdoor recreation provided 29,000 jobs and generated $3.2 billion in economic impact in 2023. Advertisement To operate on lands controlled by the Bureau of Land Management or the Forest Service, it is necessary to have permits, adequate access points and working restrooms and campgrounds, said Nick Streit, whose father opened the Taos Fly Shop in 1980. But among the federal workers who lost their jobs in the first rounds of layoffs were several who worked on recreation and permitting. Those workers, Streit said, usually bought their waders and other outdoor equipment at local businesses and supported the local guide industry by maintaining standards. 'Those permits are important, because when members of the public come and they hire somebody, they know they're safe, they have insurance, they have training,' said Streit, who is also the executive director of Friends of the Rio Grande del Norte National Monument. Will Blackstock, who owns Far Flung Adventures, which offers white-water rafting trips on the Rio Grande, said that at the beginning of this summer, 'things were looking very bleak' as a result of the federal budget and staffing cuts, with a significant reduction in the number of river rangers who patrol the nearby Rio Chama, a major tributary of the Rio Grande. One more ranger has been added back since then. 'It's far less than the river program needs, but it is better than we thought it was going to be,' Blackstock said. Conservation group leaders said they were relieved that a plan by Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, to sell millions of acres of public lands was abandoned after intense pushback, including from many of Trump's supporters. Advertisement But Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins did rescind a long-standing rule prohibiting road construction and timber harvesting in remote areas of federal forests, which conservationists fear will threaten vulnerable species and compromise wilderness values on public lands. The announcement was made in Santa Fe. 'We are so on edge right now, I can't even tell you,' said Garrett VeneKlasen, the northern conservation director of the New Mexico Wilderness Alliance. Natural Disasters In New Mexico, concerns often turn to the basics: fire and water. Summers are drier now and extreme heat more frequent, heightening wildfire concerns. Jane Lumsden, whose family has long owned a natural foods store in Las Vegas, New Mexico, lost her custom-built home in the devastating Calf Canyon-Hermit's Peak blaze in 2022. But she is grateful to the experts who predicted the fire's path and to the emergency responders who kept residents regularly apprised of fire dangers. Otherwise, she said, 'People most certainly would have died.' Now, as her family incorporates timber salvaged from their burned home to rebuild across the street, she is worried that the federal cuts could affect reforestation efforts and could make it more difficult to fill thousands of vacant firefighter jobs. The Federal Emergency Management Agency has also lost a quarter of its full-time staff since Trump took office. 'Climate and natural disasters are accelerating and without these kinds of warning systems and support, we will be at risk,' she said. 'Look what happened in Texas.' About 60 miles to the northwest in Chimayo, Champe Green, an elected member of the Santa Fe-Pojoaque Soil and Water Conservation District, worries often about the earthen Cañada De Ancha Dam, one of the state's most dangerous. Advertisement Champe Green near the earthen Canada De Ancha Dam in Chimayo, N.M. MERIDITH KOHUT/NYT Built 60 years ago, the dam has retention ponds that are now so choked with sediment that any significant rainfall could cause overflowing or breaching. An estimated 1,000 people, many of them poor and working-class, live within the potential flood area, according to the federal Department of Agriculture. The state has pledged $8 million to remove the sediment. That funding is contingent, however, on a federal match of roughly $11 million. Congress is considering the appropriation of up to $7 million in watershed rehabilitation funding for the next fiscal year -- for the entire country. 'There's not enough to pay for our one little project, much less all the projects around the country,' said Green, a retired biologist and ecologist with the U.S. Forest Service and the Army Corps of Engineers. And now it is monsoon season. 'If we got 2 inches in an hour, that would be scary,' he said. 'If we had 4 inches in 24 hours, I'd be scared to death.' Arts, Culture and Native Americans Robert K. Meya, general director of the Santa Fe Opera, has his own concerns related to wildfire threats. The opera's annual insurance rates doubled from 2024 to 2025. With its open-air productions each summer, performed against a breathtaking desert backdrop, the opera has installed air-quality sensors to gauge whether it is safe to perform. 'If you cut off the funding for the Forest Service and you're not maintaining these forests correctly,' Meya said, 'then the possibility for a fire will only increase significantly.' Apprentices rehearsed at the Santa Fe Opera. MERIDITH KOHUT/NYT In recent months, a $55,000 federal grant for this summer's premiere of Richard Wagner's 'Die Walküre' has been rescinded (though it is being appealed). And $100,000 spent on installing solar panels, which previously would have been eligible for tax credits under the Inflation Reduction Act, may never be recouped. Similar concerns weigh on organizations catering to the arts, education and Native Americans. Rose Eason, a board member of Creative New Mexico, an arts advocacy nonprofit, said at least $1.5 million in federal grants earmarked for two dozen organizations statewide had been terminated. Southwestern Indian Polytechnic Institute -- one of only two federally run colleges for Native Americans -- is facing a proposed 83% cut in federal funding. And the impending cuts to public broadcasting could shrink funding by 20% for KSUT, one of the country's first tribal radio stations. It provides Indigenous news, music and emergency alerts to rural northwestern New Mexico. 'It's one giant ecosystem,' Meya said. 'No one is immune.' This article originally appeared in
