Florida Moves to Ban Luxury Purchases on Welfare EBT Cards

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis announced on Monday, Aug. 24, 2026, in Tampa that the state is amending its Temporary Assistance for Needy Families plan to prohibit public assistance benefits from being used on non-essential and luxury items.

Under the proposed changes, Electronic Benefit Transfer cards for Temporary Cash Assistance and TANF grants will no longer cover items including tobacco, vaping products, drugs, adult material, video games, theme park tickets, tattoos, tanning beds, and fortune-telling services.

The policy shift aims to reduce fraud, protect taxpayer funds, and direct state support strictly toward essential needs such as groceries, clothing, housing, utilities, and medicine without reducing overall assistance amounts for eligible families.

"No tobacco and vaping products with EBT cards and TANF grants. No drugs or intoxicants with EBT cards and TANF grants," Gov. DeSantis said during the press conference.

"No adult material. You can get adult material at the gas station. No video games, entertainment tickets, theme park subscriptions, no tattoos, no tanning beds — other... you know, more luxury services — no fortune-telling services."

Florida officials stated that welfare benefits are meant to serve as temporary relief, emphasizing that current regulations already ban card usage at casinos, adult venues, and gaming establishments.

"The primary reason to do this ... it’s gonna make this matter more," DeSantis said. "It’s gonna make it more likely that folks are able to get on their feet."

The governor noted that state authorities are actively working with federal partners to crack down on fraudulent transactions and misuse across the system.

"Obviously, some of these cards are just — people don’t need it and it’s fraud," he said. "They’re milking the system. They’re not really needy. They’re scam artists."

State programs like the Hope Florida Care Portal are expected to assist families in transitioning off government benefits into long-term financial independence.

“Ultimately the strength of our economy and society is not how many can we get EBT cards to, but how many people can we liberate from needing an EBT card in the first place.“

State welfare administrators confirmed that technical adjustments will be made alongside federal officials and local retailers to implement the purchase blocks effectively.

"Temporary Cash Assistance is designed to provide families with flexibility during times of need, and these commonsense changes preserve that flexibility while strengthening the integrity of the program," said Florida Department of Children and Families' Interim Secretary Kate Williams.

The state previously implemented its Healthy SNAP initiative, which restricted food assistance usage on sugary drinks, candy, energy drinks, and prepared desserts.

"Retailers updated their point-of-sale and online purchasing systems so that restricted products could be easily identified and automatically blocked during SNAP transactions," Williams said.

Families enrolled in Florida's Temporary Cash Assistance program receive an average of $250 monthly per household, with funds also backing programs supporting over 4,000 relative caregivers statewide.

"These changes will not affect a family’s eligibility for temporary cash assistance, nor will it impact the amount that they receive," Williams said.

Retail networks will receive operational guidelines as federal discussions progress to ensure smoothly executed compliance across point-of-sale systems.

“A caregiver can still use temporary cash assistance at a convenience store to purchase food or other essential item,” she said. “But taxpayer dollars should not be used to purchase tobacco or vaping products.”

Department officials indicated that ongoing coordination with federal agencies will shape the final schedule for rolling out the transactional restrictions.

“More to come, but we’ll make sure that that’s closely communicated with retailers and recipients as well,” she said.

Career development leaders emphasized that benefit structures must align with active pathways toward employment and career progression.

“Public assistance should be intentional and temporary, and it should be connected to a pathway forward,” Johnston said.

State workforce statistics show tens of thousands of participants successfully moved from public assistance into stable employment over the past year.

“Last year, more than 67,000 job seekers who are served through the CareerSource Florida Network were moved into employment, and more than 30,000 individuals served by our network are no longer dependent on public assistance,” Johnston said.

Former benefit recipients achieved significant earnings improvements after obtaining full-time employment opportunities across the state.

“Every step moves a family closer to self-sufficiency, and every step strengthens Florida’s workforce,” Johnston said.

Florida officials plan to submit the formal state plan amendment to the federal government for final review and approval.

“We’ve worked — I know the DCF has worked with the folks in the Trump administration,” DeSantis said. “This is something that they welcome.”