Sponsors (24)
The bill directs modest federal funding and grants to incentivize dairy purchases for SNAP households and to evaluate what works, improving access to certain nutrient-rich foods but increasing public and retailer costs, excluding non-dairy consumers, and potentially shifting funds away from other complementary nutrition interventions.
Low-income SNAP participants (including families and Medicaid beneficiaries) will receive financial incentives limited to milk, yogurt, and cheese, increasing access to nutrient-rich dairy and nudging healthier purchases.
Provides federal funding ($10 million per year) and competitive grants to states, local governments, and nonprofits to sustain and expand dairy incentive projects and support program delivery in communities serving SNAP households.
Requires independent, rigorous evaluations and public reporting so policymakers and providers will know which incentive designs effectively improve diet quality among SNAP households.
SNAP incentives are limited to cow's-milk products, excluding many plant-based or non-dairy alternatives and reducing choice for lactose-intolerant, vegan, or otherwise dairy-avoiding participants.
Administrative costs for retailers to implement EBT-compatible point-of-sale technology could burden small businesses and limit the number of participating stores, reducing program access in some areas.
Projects that perform poorly in evaluations may be discontinued, potentially interrupting local incentive programs and temporarily reducing benefits to SNAP households during transitions.
Based on analysis of 2 sections of legislative text.
Creates a USDA competitive grant program to fund point-of-purchase incentives that increase SNAP households' purchases of specified cow-milk dairy products, prioritizing EBT-enabled systems and evaluations.
Introduced March 31, 2025 by Jim Costa · Last progress March 31, 2025
Creates a USDA "dairy nutrition incentive" program to increase purchase and consumption of specified cow-milk dairy products by SNAP households through point-of-purchase incentives. The Department of Agriculture must set the program up within 180 days, award competitive grants or cooperative agreements to state/local governments and nonprofits, prioritize projects that maximize direct incentives and use EBT-compatible point-of-sale systems, and arrange independent evaluations of each project.