Key Takeaways
- USDA/FNA has approved SNAP food-restriction waivers in 23 states, and as of September 2026, 10 of those restrictions are actively in effect - up from 8 a month ago now that South Carolina and North Dakota crossed their target dates.
- A June 22, 2026 federal court ruling in Aragon v. Rollins blocked the waivers in Colorado, Iowa, Nebraska, Tennessee, and West Virginia, finding USDA exceeded its legal authority.
- USDA filed a notice of appeal to the D.C. Circuit on August 20, 2026; the five blocked states stay blocked unless that appeal succeeds, which could take months.
- The ruling and pending appeal apply only to those 5 states - the other 18 approved waivers remain active or on schedule, unaffected.
- Eight states still have approved waivers that haven't taken effect yet, with target dates running from this month through February 2028 (Nevada).
USDA has approved SNAP food-restriction waivers in 23 states, and as of September 2026, 10 of those restrictions are actually in effect — up from 8 a month ago, now that South Carolina and North Dakota have crossed their target dates. Five more states remain blocked by a federal court, and USDA filed its appeal of that ruling on August 20, 2026.
If you receive SNAP, whether your state’s restriction actually applies to you right now depends on which of the 23 you live in — the list isn’t uniform, and neither is the legal status.
One housekeeping note: the agency behind these waivers changed its name on June 1, 2026. USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) is now the Food and Nutrition Administration (FNA) — same agency, same waiver program, new name on the letterhead.
What’s Actually Banned, State by State
Every waiver is different. Some states restrict just soda; others go much further. Here’s the full list with target implementation dates, pulled directly from the FNA’s food-restriction waiver tracker.
| State | Target Date | What’s Restricted | Status (as of Sep 2026) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Arkansas | Jul 1, 2026 | Soda, low-juice drinks, other unhealthy drinks, candy | Active |
| Colorado | Oct 30, 2026 | Soft drinks | Blocked by court |
| Florida | Apr 20, 2026 | Soda, energy drinks, candy, prepared desserts | Active |
| Hawaii | Apr 1, 2027 | Soft drinks | Approved, not yet active |
| Idaho | Feb 15, 2026 | Soda and candy | Active |
| Indiana | Jan 1, 2026 | Soft drinks and candy | Active |
| Iowa | Jan 1, 2026 | Nearly all taxable food items under Iowa tax law (broadest restriction of any state) | Blocked by court |
| Kansas | Feb 15, 2027 | Candy and soft drinks | Approved, not yet active |
| Louisiana | Feb 18, 2026 | Soft drinks, energy drinks, candy | Active |
| Missouri | Feb 15, 2027 | Candy, prepared desserts, certain unhealthy beverages | Approved, not yet active |
| Montana | Sep 30, 2026 | High-sugar beverages, energy drinks, candy, prepared desserts | Approved, not yet active |
| Nebraska | Jan 1, 2026 | Soda and energy drinks now; candy added Nov 1, 2026 | Blocked by court |
| Nevada | Feb 1, 2028 | Candy and sugar-sweetened beverages | Approved, not yet active |
| North Dakota | Sep 1, 2026 | Sweetened beverages, energy drinks, candy | Active |
| Ohio | Oct 1, 2026 | Sugar-sweetened beverages | Approved, not yet active |
| Oklahoma | Feb 15, 2026 | Soft drinks and candy | Active |
| South Carolina | Aug 31, 2026 | Candy, energy drinks, soft drinks, sweetened beverages | Active |
| Tennessee | Jul 31, 2026 | Processed foods and beverages: soda, energy drinks, candy | Blocked by court |
| Texas | Apr 1, 2026 | Sweetened drinks and candy | Active |
| Utah | Jan 1, 2026 | Soft drinks | Active |
| Virginia | Oct 1, 2026 | Sweetened beverages | Approved, not yet active |
| West Virginia | Jan 1, 2026 | Soda | Blocked by court |
| Wyoming | Feb 1, 2027 | Sweetened, carbonated beverages | Approved, not yet active |
South Carolina (SC) and North Dakota (ND) both crossed their target dates this week, bringing the active-restriction count to 10 states. South Carolina’s waiver hit its Aug. 31 target date, and North Dakota’s took effect Sep. 1 — both now join the “active” column alongside the 8 states that were already live last month.
Florida’s restriction remains one of the broadest currently active — it goes beyond soda and candy to also cover energy drinks and prepared desserts, so it’s worth a closer look if you’re a Florida (FL) recipient.
If your state isn’t on this list, USDA/FNA hasn’t approved a food-restriction waiver there as of this writing. The FNA’s waiver tracker page is the authoritative, regularly updated source if you want to check for changes.
Subscribe or follow us to get updates as more states move between these buckets.
The Court Ruling That Blocked Five States
On June 22, 2026, U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson ruled in Aragon v. Rollins that USDA exceeded its legal authority when it approved food-restriction waivers as “demonstration projects.” Her reasoning: the law lets USDA test the SNAP program’s administrative efficiency through pilot projects, not use that authority to improve recipients’ diet or health.
“Congress defined what ‘food’ is supposed to be, and it did not authorize the agency to amend or waive the definition it enacted,” Judge Jackson wrote.
The ruling specifically voided the waivers in Colorado (CO), Iowa (IA), Nebraska (NE), Tennessee (TN), and West Virginia (WV) — the five states named as defendants in that lawsuit. It does not automatically apply to the other 18 states with approved waivers; those remain in effect unless USDA withdraws them voluntarily or a separate court challenge succeeds against them individually.
USDA filed its notice of appeal on August 20, 2026, asking the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit to review Judge Jackson’s June 22 ruling — one day ahead of its filing deadline. Filing the appeal doesn’t reinstate the five blocked programs on its own; they stay blocked unless the D.C. Circuit stays or reverses the district court’s ruling, a process that typically takes months. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins has said the administration intends to keep pursuing the restrictions as part of the broader “Make America Healthy Again” push led alongside HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
Who This Actually Affects
Carla, a SNAP recipient in West Virginia, had been budgeting around the state’s planned soda restriction, which was originally set to start January 1, 2026. Because West Virginia is one of the five blocked states, that restriction still isn’t in effect — she can keep using SNAP for soda purchases while USDA’s appeal plays out.
James, who receives SNAP in Texas (TX), isn’t affected by the ruling at all. Its restriction on sweetened drinks and candy took effect April 1, 2026, and wasn’t part of the Aragon v. Rollins case, so it remains active regardless of how the appeal turns out.
If you’re not sure whether your state’s restriction currently applies, your state SNAP office is the fastest way to confirm — the contact links on the FNA’s waiver tracker page go directly to each state’s SNAP administrator.
Common Issues to Watch Out For
A few things that trip people up on this topic.
Assuming all 23 states have the same rules. They don’t. Iowa’s waiver is dramatically broader than most — it restricts nearly all taxable food items, not just soda and candy — while several other states only touch sugary drinks. Read your specific state’s restriction rather than assuming it matches a neighboring state.
Thinking the court ruling ended all SNAP food restrictions. It only blocked the five states named in the lawsuit, and USDA’s appeal doesn’t change that while it’s pending. The other 18 approved waivers are unaffected unless a separate legal challenge succeeds against them.
Confusing “approved” with “active.” Hawaii, Kansas, Missouri, Montana, Nevada, Ohio, Virginia, and Wyoming have approved waivers with implementation dates still ahead, some stretching into 2027 and 2028 — nothing changes for recipients in those states yet.
Not checking retailer-level confusion. Even in active-restriction states, retailer point-of-sale systems don’t always correctly flag every restricted item at checkout in the early weeks of a rollout. If you’re charged incorrectly, most states have a retailer complaint email listed on their state’s SNAP waiver page.
Looking Ahead: What to Watch Through 2027
USDA’s appeal to the D.C. Circuit is now the biggest thing to watch on the legal side — there’s no set timeline yet for briefing or a decision, but a reversal could eventually reinstate the five blocked states’ restrictions, while an unfavorable ruling for USDA could put pressure on its approach in the other 18 states too.
Beyond the litigation, several approved-but-not-yet-active waivers are still coming: Montana (MT) on September 30, 2026, then Ohio and Virginia on October 1, 2026, followed by Kansas, Missouri, and Wyoming in February 2027, Hawaii in April 2027, and Nevada in February 2028. I’ll update this page as implementation dates arrive and as the appeal develops.
