Health department staff told the Board of Health that nearly all federal and state grant dollars expected for 2026 are confirmed and that the public‑health emergency preparedness grant will be funded at 100% after earlier expectations of reduced funding.

The grant news matters because the public‑health emergency preparedness (often called the bioterrorism or FEP grant) pays for planning and operational readiness for public‑health incidents — for example, pandemic response logistics, mass‑casualty planning and related memoranda of understanding, staff said.

Dr. Seeglass said staff had expected the FEP grant to be funded at 75% but “received word this week that that grant will be funded at, at full.” The department said it will use those funds to support planning and response work; the FEP coordinator role is shared with the city emergency manager, Cassidy Walsh, who serves both planning and execution functions.

Other grant notes in the packet include:
• A five‑year public‑health infrastructure grant that pays for a community health supervisor position through 2027; staff expect roughly $15,000–$20,000 to remain in that grant when it ends and said they are pursuing other funding to continue the role.
• A child passenger safety seat program (BOTS grant) that provides about $4,000 a year for seats distributed to families in need in partnership with Fire Department staff.
• A vaccine improvement program that increased slightly in funding, while the amount of vaccine the department can obtain from the state decreased; staff said the accounting will be handled at the state level.

Alderperson Kathleen Post asked for a description of the work funded by the bioterrorism/FEP grant. Dr. Seeglass explained the role funds planning and preparedness activities for events that affect population health (pandemics, flooding, power outages, mass‑casualty events), and he noted the advantage of a staff member who also serves as the city’s emergency manager.

Staff said grant revenues and related expenses are recorded so revenue will match expenditures for each grant, and staff noted that the department has been assessing an agency indirect cost transfer to cover shared services such as HR, finance and IT on many external funds.

No formal board action was required or taken on the grant line items during the meeting; staff said a budget amendment will be prepared if recently confirmed FEP funding requires updates to the submitted packet.