If state Sen. Victoria Sullivan gets her way, people would not be able to buy candy or soda pop with their government benefits from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, formerly called Food Stamps.

“Those are two items that have absolutely zero nutritional content,” the Manchester Republican said Monday. “So when families are trying to make decisions on how to spend those benefits and get the most nutritional bang for them, candy and soda should be a non-qualifier. There’s just no reason to have them.”

Her legislative proposal also includes provisions aimed at better enforcing recipient eligibility requirements.

Regarding the soda pop and candy provision, Sullivan said such items fuel obesity and chronic disease.

“I was a stay-at-home mom,” Sullivan said. “My husband worked two jobs so I could do that. And we had to make decisions all the time as to what we were going to spend our money on. And soda and candy were not there, unless it was a special occasion.”

N.H. Sen. Donovan Fenton, D-Keene, opposes the proposal.

“To dictate what people can eat and not eat, especially at such a low income level, is ridiculous,” he said. “That makes no sense to me.”

He also dismissed the idea that the restriction could promote healthier eating and fight obesity.

“When you are worried about where your next meal comes from, I don’t think people are thinking about if ‘I am going to be able to work out on the treadmill or not.’ Their priority is ‘I am going to use the money to feed my kids so that we can get by through this day,’ ” Fenton said.

“Also, don’t kids deserve candy, too? We’re dictating that these children cannot enjoy what other wealthier kids can.”

Federal funds pay for SNAP benefits, which are received by about 77,000 people of lower income in New Hampshire. The federal government and the states split the program’s administrative costs.

If Sullivan’s proposal passes, New Hampshire would join a dozen other states, none in the Northeast, that prohibit SNAP benefits from being used to buy candy and soda.

Her proposal would also require state officials to cross-check SNAP recipients against information from a series of state and federal departments to make sure they truly qualify to be in the program.

She said this would ensure the taxpayer-funded program is being accessed only by people who are really in need.

“This is supposed to be a lifeline, not a way of life,” Sullivan said.

New federal law includes the potential for financially penalizing states that have high rates of errors in SNAP payments.

That error rate was 10.93 percent nationally last year, representing 9.26 percent in overpayments and 1.67 percent in underpayments, according to a U.S. Department of Agriculture report. New Hampshire’s error rate was 7.57 percent, 4.52 percent in overpayments and 3.05 in underpayments.

The department’s Food and Nutrition Service, which runs the SNAP program, says on its website that it “has made major strides to improve the accuracy of SNAP’s eligibility determination and benefit payment system. SNAP’s Quality Control system earns a solid ‘A’ grade.”

These articles are being shared by partners in The Granite State News Collaborative. For more information visit collaborativenh.org.