The Pennsylvania Food Merchants Association (PFMA) applauds President Donald J. Trump’s signing of the Agricultural Improvement Act of 2018, also known as the Farm Bill, which offers a host of provisions greatly beneficial to its members and to Pennsylvania residents.
The final bill is a significant win for many PFMA member organizations, including convenience stores,
grocery chains, and independent grocers. For one, the bill reauthorizes the Supplemental Nutrition
Assistance Program (SNAP), the country’s most effective anti-hunger program, helping one in eight
Americans afford a basic diet, as well as permitting online SNAP sales.
“We are pleased that the final bill retains critical anti-hunger programs that many families across
Pennsylvania rely on for nutrition assistance,” PFMA President & CEO Alex Baloga said. “We also
support the positive changes to the EBT programs that will greatly benefit our members.”
In addition, the bill:
- Modernizes Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) regulations;
- Prohibits EBT processors and their subcontractors from charging retailers a fee for switching or
routing a transaction; - Authorizes mobile EBT payments;
- Rejects a pilot project to test the Harvest Box proposal, which would have replaced about 40
percent of SNAP benefits with a government-run food delivery service. - Creates a clearinghouse to offer technical assistance for participating retailers in the Food
Insecurity Nutrition Incentive (FINI) grants and; - Extends the ban on interchange fees to a permanent prohibition on state EBT processing fees –
which is expected to save independent grocers much needed dollars.
The legislation passed the House of Representatives 369-47 and the Senate by a vote of 87-13.
