News

Last Friday, March 20, marked the “Second Funnel” deadline in the Iowa State Legislature. We now have a better sense of which bills are “dead” for the session and which are still moving. Thanks to your advocacy, we’ve already marked a few small wins. But the session isn’t over yet, and there are still a lot of threats to food access being thrown around under the golden dome.

The Governor’s “MAHA” Legislation

The Governor’s “Make America Healthy Again” or “MAHA” legislation has advanced in both chambers in slightly different forms. HF 2676 passed the House, and SF 2367 passed out of committee in the Senate and is now on the “unfinished business” debate calendar.

These bills contain language that directs Iowa HHS to continuously request a waiver from USDA to maintain Iowa’s SNAP food restriction waiver that took effect on January 1, 2026. After a barrage of advocacy throughout several subcommittee meetings, HF 2676 was amended on the floor to clean up the bill language and ensure that Iowa’s participation in Summer EBT would not be predicated on the USDA approving a “healthy foods waiver.” While this was a small victory, IHC continues to believe that parents should be trusted to make the best food choices for their families and that the current restriction waiver has caused a multitude of unintended consequences that have banned healthy items and led to confusion for SNAP participants and retailers alike. 

While we want to see all Iowans eating nutritious foods and leading healthy lives, we believe that proven, evidence-based programs like Double Up Food Bucks provide a far better avenue to achieve this goal by directly addressing the primary reason SNAP participants struggle to eat healthy: the high cost of healthy foods. 

Another amendment to HF 2676 that was adopted on the House floor added language that seeks to re-write school meal standards in Iowa. The health and nutrition of Iowa’s students has long been at the forefront of our advocacy for expanding free school meals in our state and we are eager to work with the legislature to improve nutrition access and education statewide. But this amendment fails to expand access to school meals and instead proposes major rewrites to Iowa’s school meal guidelines at a time when school nutrition officials are already anticipating significant federal changes. If Iowa implements standards that differ from federal guidelines, it could put millions of dollars in school meal funding at risk.

With the outcome of these bills still unclear, we are encouraging our legislators to reject these harmful proposals and instead focus on finding state funding for Double Up Food Bucks to support the health of low-income families in our communities.

“Welfare Reform” Efforts

Thanks to the hard work of all our advocates, we are pleased to share that HF 2716 has been defeated for this session. This bill had a number of harmful proposals, including kicking some pregnant women, infants, and children off WIC and establishing a 12-month residency requirement for public assistance programs in Iowa that was against federal law. Defeating this bill is a major victory for anti-hunger advocates! But, we shouldn’t celebrate too prematurely.

Senate File 2422 already passed the Senate and is alive and well in the House. While SF 2422 largely codifies existing federal SNAP policy in Iowa, the House has indicated they may attempt to re-insert provisions from HF 2716, and we will need to remain vigilant to ensure additional harmful proposals stay out of a final “welfare reform” package.

This bill is not in its final form by any means yet. If we could amend it in committee, there would be several amendments I would be bringing forward…We are going to continue to work with the Senate to make sure that we can come to some final compromise and those discussions are already taking place. 

Rep. Austin Harris, Chair, Iowa House of Representatives Health & Human Services Committee Meeting, March 19, 2026

We will continue to advocate in the coming days and weeks to protect Iowans’ access to SNAP, WIC, and other nutrition programs.

Budget Priorities : Investing in Iowans Feeding Iowans

Now that the Iowa legislature has passed the second funnel, and the Revenue Estimating Conference has met, we have officially entered “budget season.” The Iowa Hunger Coalition is advocating for investments across the state budget to help address food insecurity and ensure all Iowans have access to the nutrition they need to thrive. 

In the Iowa Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) budget, we are requesting:

• $1 million appropriation to the Iowa Healthiest State Initiative for the Double Up Food Bucks program.

We also support the following budget asks from the Governor’s proposed HHS budget:

• $19.9 million appropriation from the Technology Reinvestment Fund (TRF) in FY 2027 “for the design, development, and implementation for the new eligibility determination system for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), the Family Investment Program (FIP), and the Refugee Cash Assistance (RCA).”
  
  
• $10.1 million appropriation from the General Fund for additional SNAP administration costs due to changes from HR1.
  • $8.7 million from Community Access & Eligibility
  • $1.4 million from Accountability, Compliance, & Program Integrity
    
    
• State administrative costs to operate the Summer EBT (SUN Bucks) program are estimated to be around $2 million. This was not included in the Governor’s initial HHS budget request due to the timing of the announcement on Summer EBT, but is supported by the administration. These administrative costs could be shared 50/50 between the Health & Human Services and Education budgets.

Finally, IHC is also advocating for the following budget priorities for the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship (IDALS):

• State investment in the Choose Iowa Food Bank Purchasing Program and Choose Iowa School Purchasing Program.

• The Governor’s budget proposal includes $200,000 for the Choose Iowa Food Bank Purchasing Program, but does not include an appropriation for the school program. We would like to see robust funding for both programs.

You can help us by reaching out to key legislators on the Appropriations Committees below and advocating for the priorities listed above!

Appropriations Committee Leadership

Health & Human Services Appropriations Subcommittee Leadership

Agriculture & Natural Resources Appropriations Subcommittee Leadership

Thank you for your ongoing advocacy! Questions? Don’t hesitate to reach out at iowahungercoalition@gmail.com.

This week marks roughly the halfway point in the Iowa state legislative session, and a lot has happened over the past two weeks. Here’s the latest update on where bills stand and what advocacy actions you can be taking right now.

“Welfare Reform” Efforts

The House and Senate both have “welfare reform” legislation this session. While we have concerns with both bills, the House version is considerably more harmful.

• SF 2422 passed the Iowa Senate last Wednesday, February 25, with a 30-17 vote. The Iowa Hunger Coalition successfully lobbied to remove a harmful provision that would have directed the state to share the immigration status of non-applicant SNAP household members to the federal government. While we still have concerns with parts of this bill, it largely codifies current SNAP policies.
  
  
  • A House subcommittee is scheduled for SF 2422 for 8:00am on Tuesday, March 10, in Room 103. Contact the members of the subcommittee below and tell them not to make unnecessary changes to Iowa’s SNAP code.
    
    
    • Rep. Austin Harris – austin.harris@legis.iowa.gov
    • Rep. Ann Meyer – ann.meyer@legis.iowa.gov
    • Rep. Beth Wessel-Kroeschell – beth.wessel-kroeschell@legis.iowa.gov
      
      
• HF 2716 is eligible for a floor vote in the House, but the bill has not yet been scheduled for debate (and we hope to keep it that way). The House bill is considerably worse than the Senate version, and would do a number of harmful things, including requiring 12-months continuous residency to qualify for public assistance programs and restricting WIC based on citizenship status.
  
  
  • Contact your Representative in the House and urge them to vote NO on HF 2716, or at the very least strike Sections 12 and 15 from the bill.
    

“MAHA” Bills and Codifying Iowa’s SNAP Restriction Waiver

Similarly, the House and Senate both have their own separate versions of the Governor’s “Make America Healthy Again” or “MAHA” legislation. Both versions contain a provision that seeks to codify Iowa’s food and beverage restrictions for SNAP and Summer EBT.

But this week, during floor debate in the House, a number of harmful amendments were added in, including language from a bill last year that would request a waiver from federal nutrition standards for school meals.

• HF 2676 passed the Iowa House of Representatives on Tuesday, March 3, with a vote of 65-30. Ten amendments were introduced by both Republicans and Democrats. An amendment by Rep. Austin Harris did clean up some of the SNAP waiver language, which was an improvement and should be celebrated as a small win. Unfortunately, the House also adopted an amendment by Rep. Derek Wulf that seeks to waive federal nutrition standards for school meals, similar to HF 851 which passed the House last year.
  
  
• SF 2367 passed out of the Senate State Government Committee on March 3, and is now eligible for floor debate. The following day, Sen. Kara Warme, Chair of the Senate Health & Human Services Committee, introduced a strike-and-replace amendment to adopt the language from the House bill. This could be a sign the Senate intends to take up the House’s language for a vote.
  
  
  • Contact your State Senator and urge them to vote NO on SF 2367/HF 2676! We should not be using Iowa’s school children as a testing ground for unproven nutritional standards and tying the state’s participation in Summer EBT to having a restriction waiver.

Investing in Iowans Feeding Iowans

The Iowa Farm Act continues to make progress in both the House and Senate. This legislative package, introduced by Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig, makes positive changes to the Choose Iowa Food Bank Purchasing Program and would permanently establish the Choose Iowa School Purchasing Program.

• SF 2465 passed out of the Senate Appropriations Committee on Wednesday, March 4. The bill is now eligible for a floor vote in the Senate.
  
  
  • Contact your State Senator and let them know you support investing in the Choose Iowa Food Purchasing provisions in the Iowa Farm Act!
    
    
• HF 2340 is still sitting in the House Ways & Means Committee and has not yet had a subcommittee scheduled. This bill is considered funnel-proof.
  

Progress on Double Up Food Bucks has unfortunately stalled after a failed committee vote on SSB 3145, which among other things, included a $1 million appropriation for the Double Up Food Bucks program. While the failed vote was a setback, there are still avenues for advocacy on this issue.

• SF 2027 is a clean $1 million appropriation for Double Up Food Bucks and is still considered “alive” and funnel-proof.

• HF 970, which you may recall passed the House last year, makes a $1 million appropriation for Double Up Food Bucks contingent upon the state having a SNAP restriction waiver in place. On February 24, a Senate subcommittee was assigned to the bill, which could be an indication the Senate intends to use this bill as a vehicle for the Double Up Food Bucks appropriation. To make things confusing, the waiver language in HF 970 does not match the waiver language that was just passed in HF 2676.

We’ll be sure to keep you in the loop as bills continue to move leading up to the legislature’s “Second Funnel” deadline on Friday, March 20. As always, please feel free to reach out to us at iowahungercoalition@gmail.com if you have any questions.

On Tuesday, February 24, House File 2716 was introduced in the Iowa House of Representatives and placed on the calendar. That means this bill could come to the House floor for a vote at any point, and we need you to reach out to your Representative in the House and urge them to vote NO on HF 2716!

HF 2716 (previously HSB 696) is a “welfare reform” bill that would take food assistance away from pregnant women, infants, and young children. It contains a number of harmful provisions we oppose, including:

Restricting eligibility for WIC based on citizenship status. WIC provides pregnant and post-partum mothers, infants, and young children with access to food assistance, breastfeeding support, and nutrition education.

HF 2716 would restrict people who are undocumented and certain legal humanitarian immigrants from accessing WIC. While states have long had the authority to restrict WIC eligibility based on citizenship status, no states currently have this policy in place. Iowa would be the only state in the nation to impose this requirement for WIC.

For every dollar invested in WIC, $2.48 is saved in medical, education, and productivity costs. WIC is fully federally funded. This bill would not save the state of Iowa any money—in fact, it would have the complete opposite effect.

WIC is a vitally important program for supporting the healthy development of young children in low-income families. It is an investment in our shared future. Access to proper nutrition in the first five years of life can have life-long impacts on physical and brain development. Our state legislators should not be voting to jeopardize young children’s futures.

Requiring 12 months of continuous residency in Iowa to qualify for public assistance programs. This provision is in direct violation of federal laws that prohibit states from imposing “durational residency requirements” for SNAP (7 CFR 273.3(a)) and WIC (7 CFR 246.7(c)(i)).

The bill also redefines public assistance programs in Iowa to include Child Care Assistance and WIC alongside SNAP, Medicaid, Hawk-i, and the Family Investment Program (TANF). Division III of the bill seeks to allow the state to ask applicants to public assistance programs how long they’ve been in Iowa and their “reasons for being in the state.”

Requesting a waiver from USDA to allow Iowa HHS to expunge SNAP benefits from EBT accounts after three months of inactivity “or of benefits remaining.” Current policy allows states to expunge SNAP benefits after nine months of EBT account inactivity, and we do not see any good reason to change this. If Iowa were granted this waiver by USDA, it would be the only state in the nation to have this policy in place.

Don’t wait – take action today by contacting your House Representative and urging them to vote NO on HF 2716! We encourage you to make your message personal and local – let them know why it matters to you and your community. If you need some help, feel free to borrow some of the language below in developing your message.

Hello Representative,

I am a constituent and am contacting you today to urge you to vote NO on HF 2716. This bill would create additional restrictions for SNAP and WIC. At a time when food pantries are serving record numbers of Iowans, and grocery prices have risen nearly 30% in the past 5 years, we should be reducing barriers to food assistance, not creating new ones. 

I ask that you lead with compassion and reject this attempt to take vital nutrition assistance away from children in our community. 

Sincerely, 

[Your Name]

It’s the Friday before First Funnel. This week has seen a flurry of activity on bills in Des Moines related to food insecurity, SNAP, WIC, and Summer EBT. Some bad. Some good. Next week will be extremely consequential at the statehouse, and contacting your State Representative and Senator is crucial right now. We encourage you to keep reading to learn more, but here’s the most important action you can take:

Contact members of the House and Senate Health and Human Services Committees (especially if you’re a constituent) and ask them to:

1. Don’t take food away from pregnant women, babies, and young children by imposing additional eligibility restrictions for WIC.
   
   
2. Oppose efforts to codify food restrictions for SNAP and Summer EBT.
   
   
3. Support a $1 million appropriation for Double Up Food Bucks.

Keep it short, respectful, and let them know why this matters to you and your community.

Wait, hold up a second. First funnel? If you’re not familiar with the phrase, don’t worry. Iowa’s state legislative process isn’t always the easiest to understand. But we’ll guide you through what it means, and what meaningful actions you can take in the next few days to help prevent children from losing access to critical nutrition programs.

House Nutrition Restriction Bills Advance Out of Subcommittees

On Monday, HSB 694 and HSB 696 were introduced, as we wrote about here. Subcommittee meetings for the bills were held on Wednesday (HSB 696) and Thursday (HSB 694). Both bills passed out of subcommittee on 2-1 party-line votes.

HSB 694 is the Governor’s public health bill, and Section 16 seeks to create a continuous food restriction waiver for SNAP and Summer EBT. It would give authority to the Iowa HHS Director, or their “designee,” to determine what is “healthy food” allowable for purchase SNAP and Summer EBT. It also ties the state’s participation in Summer EBT, and seems to also require the state to have a healthy food waiver in place to participate in SNAP—though there’s contradictory language about ensuring “the provision of SNAP benefits to recipients is uninterrupted.”

HSB 696 is a “welfare reform” bill introduced by Rep. Austin Harris, chair of the House Health and Human Services Committee.There are some problematic pieces in Division I (namely Sections 4 and 6), but the most concerning elements are Sections 12 and 15.

• Section 12 would require 12-months residency to qualify for public assistance programs, which goes against federal law for SNAP, WIC, and Medicaid. It would allow Iowa HHS to ask applicants how long they’ve been in Iowa and their “reasons for being in the state.”

• Section 15 (Division IV) would restrict WIC eligibility to citizens and “qualified aliens.” This would take food away from pregnant women, infants, and children at no savings whatsoever to the state, just to make a political point. Proper nutrition is critical for young bodies and minds to grow and develop. Taking formula and food away from mothers and their babies is just plain cruel.

We encourage you to reach out to all members of the House Health and Human Services Committee and encourage them to strike Section 16 from HSB 694 and strike Sections 12 and 15 from HSB 696.

SNAP Bills Show Up in the Senate

This week also saw the introduction of a number of related bills in the Iowa Senate. SSB 3130 is the Governor’s bill, and companion to HSB 694. IHC opposes it for the same reason: Section 16 codifies food restrictions for SNAP and Summer EBT. A subcommittee meeting has not yet been scheduled.

While we have not yet seen a companion bill introduced for HSB 696, Sen. Kara Warme, Chair of the Senate Health and Human Services Committee, did introduce SSB 3140. Thankfully, this bill does not change eligibility for WIC, but it still does contain a concerning provision that would require the state to report the citizenship status of all members of a SNAP household to USDA, even those not applying for benefits. This could prevent mixed-status households from applying for SNAP out of fear for their families’ safety.

• A subcommittee meeting for SSB 3140 is scheduled for Tuesday, February 17, at 12:00pm in Room 315. Sen. Webster, Sen. Warme, and Sen. Trone Garriott are assigned to the subcommittee. Please reach out to them and encourage them to strike lines 22-26 on page 2 of the bill. As a reminder, you can testify remotely in the Senate, and you can always submit public comments online.
  
  
  • Sen. Scott Webster – scott.webster@legis.iowa.gov
  • Sen. Kara Warme – kara.warme@legis.iowa.gov
  • Sen. Sarah Trone Garriott – sarah.trone.garriott@legis.iowa.gov

On Thursday, Sen. Westrich introduced a similar, more narrow bill, SF 2310, which simply requires the state to use the SAVE system to verify immigration status for public assistance programs in the state. This is already current practice for SNAP in Iowa. But we’ve also seen how the Department of Homeland Security has overhauled SAVE under the Trump administration in a way that has the potential for abuse.

Sen. Warme also introduced multiple bills that seem to split up the Governor’s public health bill. SSB 3139 contains the same Section 16, which IHC opposes, and strips out the Governor’s proposed tobacco and hemp tax increase.

• A subcommittee meeting for SSB 3139 is scheduled for Monday, February 16, at 12:00pm in Room 315. Tell the subcommittee members to oppose Section 16, which would make food restrictions permanent for SNAP and Summer EBT. You can testify remotely in the Senate, and you can also submit public comments online (but we encourage you send emails, too).
  
  
  • Sen. Kara Warme – kara.warme@legis.iowa.gov
  • Sen. Mark Costello – mark.costello@legis.iowa.gov
  • Sen. Sarah Trone Garriott – sarah.trone.garriott@legis.iowa.gov

Instead, the smoking tax increase is in SSB 3145, which also contains a $1 million appropriation for Double Up Food Bucks. IHC is registered in support of SSB 3145, as well as SF 2027, a Double Up Food Bucks bill introduced at the start of session by Sen. Dawson.

• A subcommittee meeting for SSB 3145 is scheduled for Tuesday, February 17, at 1:00pm in Room 217. In addition to emailing the members thanking them for their support for Double Up Food Bucks, you can also speak at the subcommittee online or leave public comments on the legislative website.
  
  
  • Sen. Kara Warme – kara.warme@legis.iowa.gov
  • Sen. Annette Sweeney – annette.sweeney@legis.iowa.gov
  • Sen. Catelin Drey – catelin.drey@legis.iowa.gov

Some Other Good News

In addition to some positive indications on legislation supporting Double Up Food Bucks, we’ve also seen The Iowa Farm Act advance out of subcommittees in the House and Senate. This legislation was introduced by the Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship (IDALS) Secretary Mike Naig. It includes making the Choose Iowa Farm to School Food Purchasing Program permanent, a priority for the Iowa Hunger Coalition and our partners at the Iowa Food System Coalition.

• Contact members of the House and Senate Agriculture Committees and encourage them to support the Choose Iowa provisions in the Iowa Farm Act, and to make sure they’re funded in the budget, too!

A few other good bills were also introduced this week by House Democrats: HF 2394 would create a $1 million matching fund for food banks and emergency food providers, and HF 2421, which would direct the state to use reserve funds to issue SNAP benefits in an event of a government shutdown and delayed issuance of SNAP benefits, like we saw in November 2025. Unfortunately, because both of these bills were introduced by Democrats, they have a slim chance of even getting a subcommittee meeting scheduled, much less a vote on the floor.

Next week is First Funnel, where most bills need to pass out of their Committee by the end of the week or be considered “dead.” This can be a make-or-break moment for bills. You can expect to see a flurry of activity, and we should have a better sense next week where we need to focus our attention next.

If you have any questions about these bills, or others you think we should be paying attention to, feel free to reach out at iowahungercoalition@gmail.com.

Thank you for all your ongoing advocacy!

On Monday, February 9, two bills were introduced in the Iowa legislature that threaten the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), other nutrition programs, and the hundreds of thousands of Iowans who rely on them to help feed their families.

These bills are expected to move very quickly, with subcommittee meetings scheduled for Wednesday and Thursday. Both bills would need to pass out of subcommittee and through the full House Health & Human Services Committee by next Friday, February 20 (known as the First Funnel), in order to remain eligible for debate this session. The Iowa Hunger Coalition is registered against both bills.

We encourage you to learn more about these bills below, and reach out to all members of the House HHS Committee, as well as specific subcommittee members, to tell them to oppose HSB 694 and HSB 696!

Before we dive into all the details of these bad bills, it’s important to keep a few things in mind:

• Food banks and food pantries across the state continue to assist record-breaking numbers of Iowans. Meanwhile, SNAP enrollment in Iowa is at an 18-year low (the lowest since May 2008).
  
  
• HR1, also known as the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, made the largest cuts to SNAP in history, and many of the most impactful provisions have yet to be fully felt.
  
  
• The USDA Economic Research Service is no longer gathering or reporting national food insecurity data.
  
  
• SNAP is an evidence-based, efficient, and effective program, with extremely low rates of fraud and long-standing bipartisan support.

But despite all of this, our Governor and certain state legislators have decided that they want to make it harder for low-income Iowans to access and use their SNAP benefits.

HSB 694: The Governor’s Attempt to Codify SNAP Restrictions

House Study Bill 694 is a Governor bill that has been assigned to the Health and Human Services Committee. A subcommittee of Rep. Austin Harris, Rep. Tom Jeneary, and Rep. Austin Baeth is scheduled to meet this Thursday, February 12, at 12:00pm in Room 103.

Subcommittee meetings are typically the only opportunity to provide public testimony on a bill. Per House rules, you can watch the subcommittee meeting online, but are not allowed to testify remotely (which differs from the Senate). If you attend the subcommittee in person to speak, please know that your comments may be limited to two minutes by the Chair.

We encourage you to contact the subcommittee members below directly and urge them to oppose HSB 694! You can also submit public comments online.

• Rep. Austin Harris (Chair) – austin.harris@legis.iowa.gov
• Rep. Tom Jeneary – tom.jeneary@legis.iowa.gov
• Rep. Austin Baeth – austin.baeth@legis.iowa.gov

HSB 694 is a 56-page bill that includes a number of the Governor’s priorities, including requiring continuing education in nutrition for physicians and raising the cigarette, vapor, and hemp taxes. It also includes a division that seeks to codify (and potentially expand) Iowa’s SNAP restrictions.

Division III ties Iowa’s participation in both SNAP and Summer EBT to its “healthy food” waiver, as defined by “the director or the director’s designee.” 

To reiterate: this bill would allow the Iowa HHS Director, or someone of their choosing, to determine what is considered “healthy” foods (based solely on vibes), and if the USDA doesn’t agree, Iowa would stop participating in Summer EBT, and potentially even in SNAP entirely.

It’s a bit unclear. Section 16 of the bill states that Iowa shall “continuously maintain participation in SNAP…by administering the program in accordance with guidelines approved…that eligible foods…are healthy foods as defined by the director or the director’s designee.” It also states that Iowa shall “ensure that the provision of SNAP benefits to recipients is uninterrupted.” So, if Iowa requests a waiver and it’s denied by USDA, what would happen?

Ultimately, neither the Iowa legislature, nor the Director of Iowa HHS, has the authority to determine what qualifies as eligible foods for SNAP. 

We’ve seen how Iowa’s SNAP restriction waiver is playing out, and the last thing our legislature should be doing is making these restrictions permanent. Not only are they doing that, but they’re also giving free reign to future administrations to make changes as they see fit. We should be making public policy based on evidence, not ideology.

HSB 696: A Suite of Further Restrictions and Waivers

House Study Bill 696 was introduced on Monday by Rep. Austin Harris, who is the Chair of the House Health & Human Services Committee. The bill’s subcommittee of Rep. Harris, Rep. Chad Ingels, and Rep. Ross Wilburn is scheduled to meet on Wednesday, February 11, at 12:30pm in Room 103 of the Iowa State Capitol. You can watch the subcommittee meeting online, but are not allowed to testify remotely.

We encourage you to contact the subcommittee members below directly and urge them to oppose HSB 696! You can also submit public comments online.

• Rep. Austin Harris (Chair) – austin.harris@legis.iowa.gov
• Rep. Chad Ingels – chad.ingels@legis.iowa.gov
• Rep. Ross Wilburn – ross.wilburn@legis.iowa.gov

Division I of the bill contains a number of provisions related to SNAP, some of them harmful, others harmless. In total, the bill would request five separate waivers from USDA related to SNAP administration in Iowa.

• Section 1 would require Iowa HHS to produce a quarterly report on the state’s payment error rate (PER) for SNAP. State legislators are paying extra attention to the PER due to a provision in HR1 that could leave Iowa on the hook for upwards of $26 million if our PER exceeds 6%. Thankfully, right now Iowa’s payment error rate for SNAP is 5.3%. IHC is supportive of this provision.
  

• Section 2 would direct the state to request a waiver from USDA to not count the income of working high schoolers when calculating a household’s SNAP benefits. We believe this could be a positive change, and support it, though there’s no guarantee USDA FNS would grant this waiver.
  
  
• Section 3 would request a waiver to consider a number of data sources “verified upon receipt” when processing SNAP applications, including The Work Number and a number of other third-party data sources that could produce inaccurate, untimely, or questionable data. This goes against long-standing USDA guidance on the use of third-party data sources and “unclear information.” We are concerned this could lead to people having their SNAP benefits reduced or terminated inaccurately, and are opposed to this section.
  
  
• Section 4 would request a waiver to allow Iowa HHS to expunge household benefits after “three months or 91 days of inactivity, or of benefits remaining, on the electronic benefit account.” Current policy allows states to expunge benefits after nine months. We are extremely concerned with this provision and how it would strip SNAP benefits away from individuals and families who earned them.
  

• Section 5 would request a waiver to exclude client errors from the payment error rate and instead only use agency-caused errors. This would reduce Iowa’s payment error rate, potentially keeping the state from cost-sharing on benefits in the future. However, it’s unclear that USDA would grant this waiver to Iowa.
  
  
• Section 6 would request a waiver to require additional eligibility information to be submitted for an application to “be considered complete.” This would require applicants to list the citizenship status and verify the identity of all members of the households, even those who are not applying for benefits. This could discourage mixed-status households from applying for benefits, and we oppose it.
  

Division III makes a few alarming changes to public assistance programs in the state, including requiring as a condition of participation “a statement from the applicant attesting to the applicant’s reasons for being in the state and length of residency within the state” and a copy of the applicant’s most recent Iowa income tax return. This division would also require the state to use the controversial SAVE system to verify citizenship status for all public assistance applicants in Iowa.

Division IV would change eligibility requirements for the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Children, and Infants (WIC). Currently, WIC does not restrict eligibility based on citizenship status. This provision would ban undocumented women, infants, and children from participating in WIC. It’s unclear how many families would be negatively impacted by this change.

Division V would direct Iowa HHS to produce an annual report on public assistance fraud, including reporting the number of cases investigated, case outcomes, overpayment dollars identified, amount of cost avoidance, and actual dollars recovered. All of these metrics are already available through the Iowa Department of Inspections, Licensing, and Appeals (DIAL)’s annual report.

Of course, the real issue of SNAP fraud – benefit theft and skimming – is still going unaddressed with this bill, and there are not requirements for Iowa HHS to report on the number of Iowans who have had their SNAP benefits stolen and the total amount of benefits stolen from Iowans.

We encourage you to reach out to all members of the House Health and Human Resources Committee and encourage them to vote NO on HSB 694 and HSB 696!

Iowa’s SNAP restriction waiver went into effect on January 1, 2026. SNAP participants are now only able to use their benefits to purchase foods and beverages that are not subject to the state sales tax. While this has been branded as a “healthy eating” waiver similar to a candy and soda ban, the truth is these restrictions are much more complex and confusing. In fact, the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) found that creating a complete list of ineligible food items was “deemed too tedious” to complete.

These restrictions do nothing to make healthy food more affordable. Instead, Iowa’s waiver is increasing stigma for SNAP participants, creating confusion at checkout counters, raising grocery prices for everyone, and harming our local economies, especially in rural areas and border counties.

Are you a SNAP participant struggling to make sense of Iowa’s new restrictions? We want to hear from you!

Creating Confusion, Stigma, and Shame

The guidelines for SNAP-eligible foods and beverages follow Iowa’s state sales tax code. This requires SNAP participants to be experts in Iowa’s sales tax code to know which items are and are not eligible. Navigating these confusing new guidelines is already creating tension and stress for SNAP participants and retail workers.

The research on stigma and public benefit programs is well-established. Increased social stigma for SNAP leads to adverse physical and mental health effects for program participants, a loss of community belonging and self-worth, and decreased program enrollment.

Despite how this waiver is being branded, Iowa’s new restrictions have less and less to do with “health” the closer you examine them. Below are some examples that highlight the complexities, inconsistencies, and nonsensical nature of Iowa’s SNAP food and beverage restrictions.

• “Candy” is banned, unless it contains flour or requires refrigeration. Granola bars, fruit leather, yogurt-covered raisins, and barbeque-coated peanuts all fall under this definition of “candy,” and are now banned from SNAP.
  
  
• Soft drinks and all sweetened beverages with less than 50% fruit or vegetable juice are banned. This applies to sodas of all varieties, including sugar-free and zero-calorie options, as well as other sweetened beverages like lemonade, sweet tea, Kool-Aid, Gatorade, Hi-C, Capri Sun, Hawaiian Punch—even Pedialyte.
  
  
• While hot prepared foods were already ineligible for purchase with SNAP, Iowa’s waiver goes even further and bans cold “foods prepared for consumption.” This definition is especially difficult to navigate. Whether or not a retailer has a microwave available for use, seating, and free utensils can dictate if certain items are SNAP-eligible. For example, if a store cuts up fruit and sells it in a cup with a fork, it is considered “food prepared for consumption,” and is banned from SNAP, but when served without a fork, it is still SNAP eligible. Pre-prepared deli sandwiches, salads, and other cold prepared foods are only eligible under certain circumstances, at certain retailers. These guidelines are confusing, inconsistent, and end up punishing convenience rather than promoting “health” since they are based on our taxable food and beverage list and not created to actually support nutrition. 

Harming Iowa’s Local Economies

• One in three SNAP participants in Iowa lives in a county that borders another state.
  Nearly 88,000 Iowans on SNAP live in a border county—1 out of every 3 SNAP participants in the state. Collectively, those Iowans receive a total of $15 million in SNAP benefits every month, generating roughly $23 million in local economic activity through SNAP’s economic multiplier. All of this money for our local economies is at risk of shifting to neighboring states.

Adding Costs for Retailers and Consumers

• SNAP restriction waivers increase costs for retailers and consumers alike. A recent report found SNAP restrictions are likely to cost retailers $1.6 billion in upfront costs and $759 million in annual ongoing costs to implement across multiple states. As a direct result of this, “consumers stand to ultimately see higher food prices and reduced purchasing power.”
  
  
• 61% of SNAP recipients say affordability is the main barrier to healthier eating. The cost of groceries has increased by nearly 30% since 2020, despite declining inflation. Putting these restrictions in place without giving folks the resources to afford healthier foods will only increase food insecurity in our state.  

• Iowa’s waiver could cause some retailers to opt out or not qualify for the SNAP program.  If retailers opt out of SNAP due to added costs or are disqualified due to misinterpreting Iowa’s restrictions, this will only increase the number of food deserts across our state. Retailers have been given a “two strike” policy, with an involuntary expulsion from the program occurring on the second offense.

The Nitty-Gritty Details of Iowa’s SNAP Restriction Waiver

The state of Iowa submitted a formal SNAP restriction waiver request to USDA FNS on April 1, 2025, and it was officially approved on May 22, 2025. On December 12, 2025, USDA FNS sent an “amended approval letter” to Iowa HHS to clarify that in addition to soda and candy, Iowa would also be restricting certain prepared foods from SNAP.

Iowa’s waiver with USDA FNS is for a period of 2 years, from January 1, 2026 to December 31, 2027, with “the option to request three annual extensions thereafter for a total Project period not to exceed 5 years.” Any request for extension must be submitted by June 30, 2027.

Prior to Iowa implementing the SNAP restrictions on January 1, 2026, the state was required to meet a number of terms and conditions of the waiver, including submitting:

• a finalized proposed budget;
  
  
• a finalized communications plan for SNAP-authorized retailers, including providing a designated centralized communication resource and dedicated point-of-contact for SNAP-authorized retailers;
  
  
• a finalized communications plan for SNAP households, and updating the Iowa HHS SNAP webpage to provide information about the waiver to SNAP households;
  
  
• a finalized evaluation plan defining health outcomes and behaviors, including how the state defines success of the waiver and a detailed description of all data points and metrics that the state will be collecting and how they will be analyzed;
  
  
• copies of completed contracts between the state and any other entities (including Altarum Institute, Conduent, and Iowa State University Extension & Outreach) the state is working with to evaluate the waiver; and
  
  
• a finalized compliance and monitoring plan for SNAP-authorized retailers.

Iowa does appear to have submitted the required documents to USDA FNS, given that the state did move ahead with implementation, but these documents provide little additional details and lack specificity. For example, the state’s finalized “compliance and monitoring plan” for SNAP-authorized retailers is a single-page, 246-word document.

In addition to these initial items, Iowa is also required to submit the following information to USDA FNS on a quarterly basis throughout the duration of the waiver: 

• quarterly costs to the state associated with the waiver;
  
  
• baseline and monthly data collection for out of state transactions for all states that border Iowa and total amount of SNAP dollars spent out of state;
  

• total monthly amount of SNAP client hearings filed related to the waiver; and
  
  
• total monthly number of compliments and complaints received related to the waiver, and a qualitative summary of comments received from each of the following groups:
  • SNAP-authorized retailers
  • SNAP households
  • advocacy, community, or retailer association groups.

The Iowa Hunger Coalition will be working to stay on top of these quarterly reports and sharing information on how Iowa’s SNAP restrictions are impacting households, retailers, and local economies.

The Future of SNAP Restrictions in Iowa: What Comes Next?

On January 13, 2026, less than two weeks into Iowa’s SNAP waiver going into effect, Governor Kim Reynolds called for making the restrictions permanent.

Iowa was one of the first states in the country to refocus two federal food assistance programs on the reason they were created: to help low-income families afford nutritious foods.

With USDA’s approval, SNAP and Summer EBT in Iowa will help families purchase fresh produce, grains, meat, and dairy—but candy, sweets, and soft drinks are no longer covered.

This year, I’m asking the legislature to make sure our state always maintains a nutrition first focus for these programs by directing the Iowa HHS to maintain a federal waiver going forward.

Governor Kim Reynolds, Condition of the State Address, January 13, 2026

We have not yet seen any bill language introduced, but are very concerned that only two weeks into the waiver, Iowa’s Governor is already attempting to make these changes permanent.

For one, it’s not clear that Iowa would even be legally allowed to do this. The state’s agreement with USDA clearly states that the waiver is not to exceed 5 years. The entire reason USDA allowed states like Iowa to put this waiver into place is to study whether or not this is an effective policy. The Governor’s desire to codify this waiver before ever exploring the results and outcomes could call into question the validity of the state’s waiver with USDA.

We’ve also seen previous attempts to use “contingent” language to tie these food restrictions to the state’s investment in Double Up Food Bucks. Would the Governor’s bill attempt similar measures with SNAP and Summer EBT? This could hold these vital programs hostage if we were to see changes on the federal level, whether that be nationwide restrictions or a change in administration at USDA.

For now, we have until June 30, 2027 to advocate against extending Iowa’s SNAP waiver and instead returning to normal purchasing guidelines. But we need your help!

What Can SNAP Participants Do?

• Submit your feedback on Iowa’s SNAP waiver directly to Iowa HHS:
  • Call the customer service line at 877-347-5678
  • Submit a comment through Iowa HHS’s Contact Form
    
    
• Share your SNAP story with us:
  • Complete this short Google Form – feel free to share as much or as little information as you would like
    
    
• Share your experience directly with your State Representative and Senator:
  • Find your legislators

What Can Retailers Do?

• Visit the SNAP retailers landing page at Iowa HHS for training and educational materials about Iowa’s new SNAP restrictions.
  
  
• Submit your feedback on Iowa’s SNAP restriction waiver and its implementation directly to Iowa HHS at snapretailers@hhs.iowa.gov.
  
  
• You can also share your experience with any industry groups you may be part of, such as the Iowa Grocery Industry Association or FUELIowa.

What Can Advocates Do?

• Submit your feedback on Iowa’s SNAP restriction waiver and the impact you are seeing first-hand through Iowa HHS’s Contact Form.
  
  
• Share the impact of these changes with your State Representative and Senator:
  • Find your legislators

The Iowa Hunger Coalition is elated to hear the news that Iowa will be participating in Summer EBT (SUN Bucks) in 2026. This federally funded program will help approximately 244,000 children in Iowa gain access to additional grocery benefits during the summer months when they lose access to free and reduced price school meals.

“Today’s announcement is a huge win for every single Iowan,” said Paige Chickering, Iowa State Manager for Save the Children Action Network and vice chair of the Iowa Hunger Coalition. “It’s a win for Iowa’s kids, it’s a win for Governor Reynolds, it’s a win for retailers, it’s a win for rural economies, it’s a win for food banks and food pantries, and it’s a win for Iowa’s anti-hunger advocates who have relentlessly worked to ensure Iowa participates in Summer EBT.”

Summer EBT is a tried and tested, evidence-based program that has been thoroughly researched and found to increase the consumption of fresh fruits and vegetables, whole grains, and dairy, while decreasing consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages.

SUN Bucks provides $40 per month to qualifying children to purchase any items eligible for purchase with SNAP directly from grocery stores, farmers markets, convenience stores, and all other SNAP-approved retailers. Iowa’s SNAP restriction waiver goes into effect on January 1, 2026, and these same restrictions will apply to SUN Bucks purchases.

“While the Iowa Hunger Coalition remains opposed to SNAP food and beverage restrictions, we are overjoyed that Governor Reynolds recognizes the importance of the SUN Bucks program and has chosen to participate in 2026,” said Luke Elzinga, policy and advocacy manager for the DMARC Food Pantry Network and chair of the Iowa Hunger Coalition. “Hundreds of thousands of Iowa’s kids will be better off during the summer as a result.”

Today the state also released a final report for the Healthy Kids Iowa (HKI) pilot program, the state’s alternative to Summer EBT in 2025. The report found that Iowa’s pilot fell short of its stated goals, and also found that Healthy Kids Iowa participants and host sites greatly favored Summer EBT over HKI.

The Iowa Hunger Coalition has long advocated for Summer EBT and cautioned against the state’s alternative approaches. Last month, the Iowa Hunger Coalition in partnership with Save the Children Action Network delivered over 650 handwritten signatures in support of Summer EBT to the Governor’s office.

“This decision does not only signal a choice to pursue evidence-based policy and best practice in addressing food insecurity for Iowan children but also shows the huge impact that anti-hunger advocates have had in our state,” said Chickering.

This story was originally published on 11/5, and was updated with additional information on the USDA’s revised 65% partial benefits plan on 11/6.

In the latest chapter of this unprecedented SNAP shutdown, the Trump administration has announced a plan to issue 65% partial benefits for the month of November. But it’s not as clear-cut as it sounds, and many Iowans could see their benefits drastically reduced in November – or receive no partial benefits at all.

Last Friday, October 31, two federal judges ruled that the Trump administration must use SNAP contingency funds to pay partial benefits for the month of November. On Monday, November 3, USDA Deputy Under Secretary of Food and Nutrition Services (FNS) Patrick Penn submitted a sworn declaration to the court, outlining the administration’s plan to respond to the court’s order.

In addition to providing the Trump administration’s legal argument as to why the administration does not have the authority to transfer funds from other USDA nutrition programs (debatable), USDA provided the following plans for issuing partial SNAP benefits for November:

• After obligating $450 million from the contingency fund for state administrative expenses, USDA will have “a total of $4.65 billion in the contingency fund for November SNAP benefits that will all be obligated to cover 50% of eligible households’ current allotments.”
  
  
•  “Given the variation among State systems, some of which are decades old, it is unclear how many States will complete the changes in an automated manner with minimal disruption versus manual overrides or computations that could lead to payment errors and significant delays.”
  
  
• “For at least some States, USDA’s understanding is that the system changes States must implement to provide the reduced benefit amounts will take anywhere from a few weeks to up to several months.”

On Tuesday, November 4, USDA FNS issued additional guidance to state agencies, along with a benefit issuance reduction table for the adjusted 50% maximum benefits. Unfortunately, this memo left state agencies and SNAP recipients with far more questions than answers. It also became clear that because of the way the changes were being applied, USDA would not use all of its contingency funding issuing 50% benefits.

The next evening, USDA put out revised guidance and an updated benefit issuance reduction table for 65% maximum benefits.

In the guidance to states, USDA FNS provided instructions for calculating households’ reduced SNAP benefits:

“the amount of benefits shall be calculated by reducing the maximum SNAP allotment amount to 65 percent for the applicant’s household size and then deducting 30 percent of the household’s net income from the reduced maximum SNAP allotment amount.”

What does this mean in practical terms?

• Only households who were already receiving the maximum SNAP benefit will receive 65% of their typical benefits for the month.
  
  
• All other households will receive less than 65% of their typical benefits for the month.
  
  
• Some households will receive nothing*.
  
  
  • *Note: otherwise eligible households with only 1 or 2 members can qualify for a minimum benefit of $16, even if their calculated benefit amount is $0.

For example:

• A single person who previously received $155 in monthly benefits will now receive $50.
  
  
• A family of five who typically receives $597 in SNAP benefits will receive $183.
  
  
• A three-person household who usually gets $275 per month will receive no partial benefits for the month of November.

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Calculator: Estimate November Partial SNAP Benefits

Disclaimer: this is only meant to provide an estimate. Please wait for final confirmation from Iowa HHS on your households’ partial benefits for November.

This calculator can also be accessed at iowahungercoalition.org/shutdown-calculator.

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More Questions than Answers

The Trump administration’s response leaves state agencies, advocates, and SNAP participants with more questions than answers. To make things more confusing and uncertain, President Trump issued a Truth Social post on Tuesday seeming to defy the court order and contradicting the plan his own USDA sent to states just hours earlier.

Some quick fact-checking: no, SNAP benefits were not “haphazardly ‘handed’ to anyone for the asking.” The suggestion is insulting. Anyone who has had to navigate the SNAP application and recertification process can attest to how hard it is to get SNAP benefits.

And for the record, SNAP enrollment in Iowa decreased by 8.7% over the course of the Biden administration (287,156 individuals in January 2021 vs. 262,104 individuals in December 2024).

So at this point, it’s unclear if USDA FNS will even stick to its own plan that it issued to states yesterday. But assuming it does, there are still a number of questions remaining:

• How long will it take for Iowa HHS to adjust benefit amounts for each one of the 131,000 SNAP households in the state, and how quickly will partial benefits be issued onto Iowans’ EBT cards?
  
  
• Will Iowans ever receive their full SNAP benefit amounts for November once the federal government re-opens?
  
  
• How much of USDA’s $4.65 billion in contingency funding will actually be spent, given that not all participants will receive the full 50% partial benefit?
  
  
• How might this impact SNAP payment error rates in Iowa and any potential benefit cost-sharing due to new provisions from H.R. 1?

One thing is clear: we are in truly unprecedented times.

Tomorrow, SNAP benefits will not go out for the first time in the program’s history. This is a dire situation for Iowans facing food insecurity and emergency feeding organizations, as November is already typically the busiest month of the year at food pantries.

In anticipation of this unprecedented surge in hunger and food insecurity and the need for emergency food assistance through the state’s nonprofit food banks and food pantries, nearly 100 frontline emergency feeding organizations joined together on Wednesday to discuss rapid response options available to try to meet their communities needs. One thing was clear from this conversation: without additional support from the state or federal government, food pantries and food banks across Iowa will be unable to meet the increased demand from their communities when SNAP funds run out. 

It is critical that we stand together and take action to support our neighbors, friends, and families across Iowa who rely on SNAP to put food on the table. 

Take Action Today!

1. Reach out to your local hunger-fighting organization and ask how you can help.

• Donations: If you’re able, financial gifts can make a big difference, allowing organizations to purchase in bulk at reduced rates. The Governor has announced $1 million in matching funds for donations to Iowa’s six Feeding America food banks, starting November 3rd. Please don’t forget direct financial support to your local frontline food pantry, food rescue organization, soup kitchen, or other hunger-fighting effort.

• Food Drives: When hosting a food drive, reach out and ask for a list of most-needed items. Considering specific food drives for culturally appropriate foods and alternatives to meet specific medical and dietary needs for people who will be unable to purchase these items with SNAP.
  
  
• Volunteering: Organizations will need additional help with daily food pantry operations, stocking, food sorting, deliveries, and more.

2. Spread awareness and resources, not panic.

• There have been many rumors and misinformation circulating, in part due to USDA’s delay in issuing clear guidance to states. Be sure to share reliable information and correct any myths you may see on social media.

• Print and share a frequently asked questions flyer (available in multiple languages), and direct people to hhs.iowa.gov/snap.
  
  
• Find local SNAP statistics from IHC’s SNAP Map interactive data tool.
  

3. Document harm and advocate for the release of SNAP contingency funds.

• If you are a SNAP participant, share your story of what it means to go without SNAP benefits during the shutdown.
  
  
• Contact your U.S. Senators (Chuck Grassley and Joni Ernst) and House Representative (find yours here) and tell them that it’s clear: USDA has the authority to use contingency funds for SNAP, and must immediately do so.
  

Most important of all: show love, respect, and solidarity with people experiencing hunger and food insecurity across the state. We are in unprecedented times. It’s more vital now than ever to check in on your neighbors, treat people with grace, and do what we can to help out.