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ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) - The sale of a single pack of cigarettes paid for with food stamps was grounds enough for state officials to ban a grocery store from being part of a subsidy program for the poor, the Minnesota Supreme Court ruled Thursday.
Both the store and the customer said the transaction — involving a $3.19 pack of cigarettes among seven grocery items paid for with a federally funded Women, Infants and Children food voucher — was a simple mistake, according to court documents.
But the court said state Health Department officials correctly followed federal and state rules that prohibit stores from selling tobacco or alcohol in exchange for WIC vouchers. The punishment for violations is a three-year ban from the program.
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