Florida Senate - 2023                                     SM 814
       
       
        
       By Senator Gruters
       
       
       
       
       
       22-01247-23                                            2023814__
    1                           Senate Memorial                         
    2         A memorial to the Congress of the United States,
    3         urging Congress to prohibit the use of Supplemental
    4         Nutrition Assistance Program benefits to purchase soft
    5         drinks.
    6  
    7         WHEREAS, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program
    8  (SNAP) offers nutrition assistance to eligible low-income
    9  individuals and families in the form of funds to purchase
   10  eligible food, and
   11         WHEREAS, the Food and Nutrition Service, under the United
   12  States Department of Agriculture (USDA), administers SNAP, and
   13  the Florida Department of Children and Families distributes the
   14  benefits, and
   15         WHEREAS, SNAP benefits may be used to purchase any food or
   16  food product intended for human consumption, including soft
   17  drinks, but may not be used to purchase alcoholic beverages,
   18  tobacco, hot foods, and hot food products prepared for immediate
   19  consumption, and
   20         WHEREAS, soft drinks are nutrient poor but rich in calories
   21  and can lead to nutritional deficiencies and health disorders,
   22  including obesity, heart disease, high blood pressure, and
   23  diabetes, and
   24         WHEREAS, state and local governments have requested
   25  permission from the USDA for waivers to prohibit SNAP
   26  participants from purchasing soft drinks with their benefits as
   27  a way to promote healthy choices, and
   28         WHEREAS, the USDA has denied every such request, NOW,
   29  THEREFORE,
   30  
   31  Be It Resolved by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   32  
   33         That the United States Congress is requested to prohibit
   34  recipients of benefits under the Supplemental Nutrition
   35  Assistance Program (SNAP), 7 U.S.C. ss. 2011 et seq., from using
   36  SNAP benefits to purchase flavored carbonated beverages
   37  sweetened with natural or artificial sweeteners, also known as
   38  “soft drinks.”
   39         BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Secretary of State dispatch
   40  copies of this memorial to the President of the United States,
   41  the President of the United States Senate, the Speaker of the
   42  United States House of Representatives, and each member of the
   43  Florida delegation to the United States Congress.