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Whoppers on Welfare? Legislation Filed to BAN SNAP Funds from Being Used on Fast Food
No more Big Macs on food stamps!
As part of a widespread effort to reform the SNAP (food stamps) program, Sen. Joni Ernst has just introduced a bill that would stop benefits from being used at fast food restaurants.
While the SNAP program is supposed to be used to provide the poor and needy with nutrition, several states have a loophole that lets them get chicken nuggets and pizza on the taxpayer’s dime.
Sen. Ernst explained more in an appearance on Fox News:
McSCUSE ME?
The amount of SNAP being spent at fast food should be $0 not McMillions. pic.twitter.com/041ZKf2jFb
— Joni Ernst (@SenJoniErnst) November 20, 2025
Right now, hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars are used to fund SNAP recipients’ fast food budgets.
If you’ve ever seen one of those big “We Accept EBT” posters in a fast food chain’s window, you’re paying for it!
A statement from Sen. Ernst reads:
“The ‘N’ in SNAP stands for nutrition – not nuggets with a side of fries,” said Ernst. “I wish I was McRibbing you, but $250 million per year at the drive through is no joke and a serious waste of tax dollars. I hate to be the one to say McSCUSE ME, but something needs to be done because taxpayers are not lovin’ it.”
And, in case you’re wondering, here’s a breakdown of exactly how many SNAP funds are spent on fast food for each state that allows it:
Notably, not every state lets SNAP recipients spend taxpayer money on burgers and fries.
But, in the states where it is allowed, it’s made possible by a loophole from 1977.
This loophole is exactly what Sen. Ernst is seeking to close.
Fox News explained further:
Nine states, including Arizona, California, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, New York, Rhode Island and Virginia — all of which are Democrat-run states except for Virginia — are opted into a SNAP program called the Restaurant Meals Program (RMP), which has spent nearly $250 million a year on hot meals, including fast-food, Ernst’s office found.
The modern day Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program was established in 1964 under the Food Stamps Act to provide basic food needs such as meats and fruits and vegetables to financially vulnerable Americans. Hot foods or foods ready for immediate consumption were not eligible for purchase under the program as its main mission was to provide staple foods to be prepared at home.
A 1977 loophole, however, allowed states to opt into a program called the Restaurant Meals Program, which was established to allow homeless individuals who do not have a kitchen to purchase prepared meals using SNAP benefits, according to Ernst’s office. The eligibility for the program expanded in the following years to include disabled individuals, the elderly and their spouses, according to the office.
Nine states are opted into the program, which requires participating restaurants to sign an agreement with the state that is then authorized by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which oversees the SNAP program writ large. Restaurants that participate in the program were historically a small group but have since expanded, most notably in California in the Biden era, Ernst’s office said.
California expanded its program statewide, for example, in 2021 that allowed restaurants to accept CalFresh benefits via SNAP at a swath of top fast-food chains stretching from McDonald’s to Domino’s Pizza to Jack in the Box.
Ernst’s office found that from June 2023 to May 2025, more than $475 million in taxpayer dollars funded Restaurant Meals Program meals at fast-food establishments. During that same time period, $524 million in taxpayer funds were spent through the Restaurant Meals Program overall, meaning California accounted for more than 90% of the nation’s total Restaurant Meals Program funds from June 2023 to May 2025, according to the office.
What do you think?
Do you support blocking SNAP funds from being used on fast food?
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