Authorized SNAP retailers in Kentucky can now accept SNAP benefits for hot foods and foods intended to be consumed on retailer premises through March 27, 2025, said the USDA.

The approved counties include Bell, Breathitt, Clay, Estill, Floyd, Harlan, Jackson, Johnson, Knott, Knox, Laurel, Lawrence, Lee, Leslie, Letcher, Magoffin, Martin, Owsley, Perry, Pike, Powel and Wolfe.

“These special rules are in effect through March 27, 2025. Hot foods purchased with SNAP benefits during this time are not subject to sales tax. We encourage all SNAP retailers in the approved counties to post a special notice in the store letting SNAP customers know that they can use their SNAP benefits to purchase hot foods and, where practical, may remain on the premises to consume those foods,” said the USDA.

The waiver comes after a winter storm hit the state. Fox News reported that authorities in the central region of Kentucky are warning that the impacts from the deadly winter storm are ongoing, with sections of riverbanks collapsing over the last several days.

“Franklin County Judge Executive Michael Marler stated that the damage is directly linked to the rapid recession of the waters, causing some cliffs along the waterways to erode and give way,” wrote Fox.

This is the second authorization the USDA has made in 2025. In January, authorized SNAP retailers in Kern, Los Angeles, Orange, San Bernardino and Ventura counties in Southern California could accept SNAP benefits for hot foods after wildfires spread across the region.