McSCUSE You? Ernst Exposes Blue States Wasting $500 Million of SNAP Funds on Fast Food

WASHINGTON – After the Biden administration massively expanded the number of restaurants eligible to accept Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, U.S. Senator Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) is releasing bombshell data exposing that $524 million has been spent, almost exclusively on fast food, in nine states over the past two years.

To stop this abuse and restore the SNAP program to its original mission of providing nutrition to food insecure Americans, Ernst is introducing the McStopping Chains from Using SNAP EBT to Make Entrees (McSCUSE ME) Act.

“The ‘N’ in SNAP stands for nutrition – not nuggets with a side of fries,” said Ernst. “I wish I was McRibbing you, but $250 million per year at the drive through is no joke and a serious waste of tax dollars. I hate to be the one to say McSCUSE ME, but something needs to be done because taxpayers are not lovin’ it.”

State by state spending breakdown of SNAP dollars being redeemed, primarily at fast food restaurants, from June 2023 to May 2025:

Oregon is also currently in the process of launching a program.

Click here to view the bill.

Background:

In 1977, Congress created an exception to the “hot and prepared food” restriction in the SNAP program through the Restaurant Meals Program (RMP). The intent was to allow homeless individuals who lack access to kitchens or food preparation facilities to purchase prepared meals using SNAP benefits.

The McSCUSE ME Act reforms the RMP program by:

• Focusing vendor eligibility to grocery stores and retailers offering healthy prepared food options, while excluding fast food and quick service chains;
• Continuing to allow homeless, elderly, and disabled participation but removes automatic spousal eligibility; and
• Requiring an annual report to show the number of participating vendors, number of participating beneficiaries, and total program costs.

Ernst has led the fight to eliminate waste and reform SNAP, protecting the program for those who truly need help putting food on the table. Her Snap Back Inaccurate SNAP Payments Act targets billions in overpayments due to sloppy state-level administration of the program and requires states to report and repay taxpayers for all payment errors.

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