A near-majority of the Senate told the USDA to rewrite a proposal for stores that participate in the food stamp program. The agency’s proposal would require stores to stock a greater variety of healthy foods and would bar retailers that sell a lot of hot food. In a letter, 47 senators said the USDA should “revise the rule to better balance” the role of convenience stores, drugstores and neighborhood shops in providing food to low-income Americans.
Some 106,500 “small-format” retailers redeem food stamps. “The cost and burden of complying with the proposed rule could be too high for these retailers to continue participating,” said the senators. The letter was organized by the leaders of the Senate Agriculture Committee, which oversees the $74 billion-a-year program, the premier U.S. anti-hunger effort. At latest count, 43.6 million Americans received food stamps.
The letter was the latest sign of strong congressional opposition to the rule proposed last Feb. 17. The House and Senate Appropriations committees approved riders to stop the USDA from proceeding with the rule. Because of election-year gridlock, opponents may need a new vehicle for expressing their views, such as letters to the administration or a rider on an omnibus government funding bill later this year.
Under the USDA proposal, retailers would have to offer a wider and deeper array of healthy foods — 168 items in all — than they do now. The rule would disqualify stores that collect more than 15 percent of their total food sales from foods cooked or heated before or immediately after purchase; the limit now is 50 percent. Food stamps are intended to supply food for meals at home, said the USDA, so the 15 percent limit would keep restaurants out of the program.
“Congress specifically acknowledged the importance of preserving food access and deliberately chose not to make modifications related to percentages of sales of hot foods,” said the senators. In their letter, they pointed out that, for many people, small-format stores are often the closest food outlet and sometimes the only places open late at night.
“We look forward to working with you to develop a rule that reflects both of these important goals,” they said, referring to ensuring that nutritious food is available and that nearby retailers will accept food stamps.
“It is disappointing to see some take a position against increasing healthier food options for our most vulnerable,” said a USDA spokeswoman. “We are now in the process of analyzing comments in order to prepare the final rule, and we are confident the final rule, when proposed, will succeed in increasing food choices without harming small retailers.”
Nearly 259,000 retailers were authorized to redeem food stamps during 2015, said the USDA. Supermarkets and superstores accounted for 82 percent of sales, or $57 billion. Convenience stores, though they account for 42 percent of retailers, handled just 5 percent of sales. “Combination grocery/other” retailers handled an additional 6.6 percent of sales.