State lawmakers could vote to keep people from using food stamps to buy junk food. A bill to add candy, Coke and cookies to the list of items food stamps won’t cover has passed a senate committee. The bill is raising questions about how entitlements are being used.

An entire shelf in Ed and Joan Thomas’s discount grocery store is dedicated to sweets. Almost half the store’s customers pay with food stamps and sometimes the chips and candy bars end up in their shopping baskets. “Candy bars, you can get them most of the time six for a dollar; gum 50 cents a pack.”

This shelf could soon be off limits to people paying with food stamps. State Senator Ronda Storms is sponsoring legislation that would add junk food to the list of items not covered by the entitlement benefit. “In these times when we are making all these cuts at the state level, the local level, the federal government. We are cutting back everywhere. Really, is it a high priority for us to buy people potato chips?”

Representative Mark Pafford calls the bill heavy handed. “It’s certainly government going way too far in private family matters.”

The bill would also keep people who receive cash assistance on state issued debit cards from using those cards in liquor stores, strip clubs, and casinos.

Joan agrees the entitlement shouldn’t be used on gambling or boozing, but says for many of her customers buying a piece of candy for their children, goes a long way. “When you have children how do you explain to them that you can’t have this candy because I can’t buy it with this.”

Last year three million Floridians claimed five billion dollars in food stamps, which means the bill could face a lot of opposition as it goes through the process.

Jello, Ice cream, pretzels, popcorn, popsicles, potato chips, donuts and cupcakes are just a few of the items that would be banned. But the junk food element of the bill may have to be eliminated in order to garner support to pass the measure.