SNAP Retailers: Tell USDA How SNAP Restrictions Are Affecting Your Stores by October 15
This is the first formal opportunity retailers have had to tell USDA how these restrictions will affect their businesses.
Oct 01, 2026 | 2 min read
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Food and Nutrition Administration (FNA) is accepting public comments through October 15 on 18 state waivers that restrict what SNAP customers can buy, such as soda, candy, energy drinks or other sweetened beverages. This is the first formal opportunity retailers have had to tell USDA how these restrictions will affect their businesses. NACS has prepared a comment guide for convenience retailers and is urging each retailer operating in an affected state to weigh in by October 15.
FNA is asking for feedback on how each state’s waiver is being implemented. Comments are open for waivers in Arkansas, Florida, Hawaii, Idaho, Indiana, Kansas, Louisiana, Missouri, Montana, Nevada, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Texas, Utah, Virginia and Wyoming. The waivers for Colorado, Iowa, Nebraska, Tennessee and West Virginia are not open for comment because they were vacated by a federal court over the summer.
“USDA needs to hear directly from retailers about how confusing it is to manage a different set of definitions in every state,” said NACS Director of Government Relations Margaret Mannion. “What counts as candy or a soft drink changes from one state to the next, so the same product could be restricted on one side of a state line, yet eligible on the other. Tell them about the hours your team has spent reviewing each and every product on your shelves—and the confusion your customers and associates deal with every day at the register.”
Convenience stores are the largest single type of SNAP retailer, with more than 117,000 stores participating and representing nearly 45% of all SNAP-authorized retailers. If compliance costs and waiver complexity force convenience retailers out of the program, many SNAP customers, especially in rural areas, could lose the most convenient place they have to buy food.
How to File
NACS is making the process easy. We have prepared a comment guide with a letter template, suggested talking points, and a table of every state docket. Just draft your letter on company letterhead and email a PDF copy to Margaret Mannion at [email protected] by Wednesday, October 14. NACS will file it with USDA on your behalf. If you operate in more than one waiver state, a single letter can cover all of them.
Questions? Contact Margaret Mannion at [email protected].
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