SNAP waiver banning soft drinks a possible administrative burden for the state # SNAP waiver banning soft drinks a possible administrative burden for the state Determining what a soft drink is is one challenge, but another is the unintended consequences of a sweeping ban.
dakotanewsnow.com · Grant Green · September 4, 2026
SNAP waiver banning soft drinks a possible administrative burden for the state
# SNAP waiver banning soft drinks a possible administrative burden for the state
Determining what a soft drink is is one challenge, but another is the unintended consequences of a sweeping ban.
By Grant Green
Published: Sep. 4, 2026 at 6:12 PM CDT| Updated: 46 minutes ago
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (Dakota News Now) - This week, South Dakota moved forward with a SNAP waiver that will exclude soft drinks from the eligible list of SNAP benefits.
This change comes from a law enacted last legislative session.
In recent years, states around the country have attempted to exclude certain products from SNAP benefits in order to ensure that taxpayer dollars are going to healthy alternatives. Although this may be viewed as a noble effort, one retail expert said that it’s easier to talk about than to enforce.
Executive director of the South Dakota Retailers Association, Nathan Sanderson, said his office has been in constant communication with the Rhoden administration on how to handle the implementation of the ban. However, with thousands of products in the market, this will not be an easy task.
“What exactly constitutes a soft drink is difficult to know. Is orange juice a soft drink? Well, orange juice has a higher sugar content than a lot of products that one might think would be ‘soft drinks,’” Sanderson said.
Determining what a soft drink is is one challenge, but another is the unintended consequences of a sweeping ban. Five states, including neighboring Nebraska and Iowa, have already had their waivers ruled invalid by a federal district court.
“There 100% will be impacts; you’re going to have to figure out how to make this all work, and that’s not even counting the pushback they’re (Retail stores) going to get from consumers who are going to want to know why the product they were able to purchase last week isn’t able to be purchased this week, and so on,” Sanderson said.
The sponsor behind House Bill 1056, which required the Department of Social Services to submit the waiver, told Dakota News Now that regardless of litigation, this waiver is a step in the right direction for South Dakota.
If the USDA approves the state waiver, implementation will begin six months after approval. 72,000 people in 36,500 households will be affected.
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