Working paper
Short-Run Impacts of SNAP Restriction Waivers on Beverage Purchases
NBER working paper series, Vol.35613
National Bureau of Economic Research
08/2026
DOI: 10.3386/w35613
Abstract
Ten states implemented Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) Food Restriction Waivers to restrict purchases of sugary beverages with SNAP funds for the first time in program history in 2026. We estimate the short-run impact of these waivers using a new panel dataset of household beverage purchases. For the average SNAP household, these waivers decrease soda purchases by 13 percent with persistent effects for up to two months after implementation. For inframarginal SNAP households, these waivers decrease soda purchases by 18.5 percent. These findings are inconsistent with the predictions of traditional demand theory and suggest that behavioral models incorporating mental accounting and labeling better characterize consumer responses to SNAP purchase restrictions.
Details
- Title: Subtitle
- Short-Run Impacts of SNAP Restriction Waivers on Beverage Purchases
- Creators
- David E FrisvoldFelipe Lozano Rojas
- Resource Type
- Working paper
- Publication Details
- NBER working paper series, Vol.35613
- DOI
- 10.3386/w35613
- ISSN
- 0898-2937
- Publisher
- National Bureau of Economic Research; Cambridge, Massachusetts
- Number of pages
- 58 pages
- Language
- English
- Date posted
- 08/2026
- Academic Unit
- Economics
- Record Identifier
- 9985219869102771
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