
__joker__
Bro really copied a tweet word for word and thinks he has a say in the matter.It’s because the foods covered by EBT are up for interpretation and the same food can be EBT-accepted OR ineligible. EBT pretty much exactly follows the tax exemption for groceries which covers just about everything except “hot prepared food” and things with a “supplement facts” label instead of a nutrition facts label.
Because of that, any single cold ingredient is universally known by recipients to be EBT-accepted. However, there’s a grey area. A tray of cookies at a supermarket is EBT-accepted while a tray from Insomnia is not since it’s hot. Energy drinks are a beverage and EBT-accepted and Five Hour Energy is a supplement so it’s not. Cold pizza is EBT-accepted while hot pizza isn’t. Milkshakes are EBT accepted even though they’re prepared because they’re cold
So the reason these are labeled EBT isn’t really a predatory thing. It helps people receiving SNAP benefits know which goods they can get. Why cookies? You may be attending a party and want to bring a small dish as a courtesy. It’s a fault of specifically written tax laws which were intended to make groceries tax-free while taxing restaurant food, aka a tax-free necessity vs. a taxed luxury. Companies abuse the fuck out of loopholes and have insane legal teams to make sure they can.
Ok what you said just makes sense and I completely agree. I still do think we need to reform the ebt process to eliminate some of the loopholes you just described so it works for everybody. Also you shouldn’t be using your ebt to buy things like stuff for a party. That’s not what ebt is for
Party doesn’t just mean keg stands, freebasing crack, and cookies. It could be Thanksgiving or Christmas with family. It’s customary to bring dessert. As for EBT, the limitations are fine as is. If you can buy butter, eggs, sugar, chocolate chips, flour, vanilla, baking soda, salt, and nuts with EBT, just let ppl buy the damn cookies at that point. If one loophole ends, another will gain prominence unless there’s no exemptions at all.