With childhood obesity in the U.S. more than tripling over the past 30 years, President Barack Obama signed the Healthy Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 to reverse the trend. The law aims to make the food sold in schools healthier, and it also applies to food sold in public school vending machines. And that means federal tax breaks.

Federal Tax Breaks Fuel Vending Industry

The law opened opportunities for healthy vending machines to be placed in schools. Healthy vending is similar to traditional vending, but typically ditches the sodas, candy, and chips. It replaces them with healthier options like juice, water, and slices of fruit.

Politicians have been targeting the junk food sold in public school vending machines for years. This led states across the country to regulate them. As a response, the vending industry turned healthy and focused its attention on a tax break to spur the purchase of new vending machines and meet the demand created by the government regulations.

Section 179 of the tax code encourages business to purchase new equipment. To access this, they write off the equipment’s full cost as a tax deduction for the year they purchased it. A small business can deduct up to $500,000. The write-off coupled with federal regulations increase the healthy content of foods sold to American schoolchildren.

Healthy Diet, Healthy Finances

While everybody benefits from a healthy diet, we can also benefit from healthy finances. Like a financial doctor, a tax attorney can help you resolve your back tax debt. You can avoid a wage garnishment and get a clean bill of financial health.

Note: Tax relief options are currently not available in vending machines.