A Public Health Division presenter (speaker 10) told the committee that the National WIC Association and the White House Office of Management and Budget have arranged a federal transfer of Section 32 funds (cited in the briefing as about $450,000,000) to sustain state WIC programs on a short-term basis while Congress negotiates appropriations (SEG 710'SEG 718). The presenter said "As of today, there have been no interruptions in WIC participant benefits here within Anchorage, and all Anchorage WIC sites remain open and fully operational" and that the state expects short-term coverage that may last several weeks depending on state allocations (SEG 725'SEG 736).

Local figures: the Anchorage WIC program serves approximately 676 infants (the figure used for formula planning), currently has a 12-member team (2 supervisors) and serves roughly 3,000 participants now with a goal of 7,565 participants over the next few years (SEG 764'SEG 833). The municipality developed an emergency municipal-formula distribution plan that would procure about 6,084 cans of infant formula per month (an average of 9 cans per infant) at a projected cost of $183,000 per month (excluding tax and storage) to ensure infant nutrition if federal WIC funds lapse (SEG 768'SEG 776, SEG 770'SEG 771).

Officials said contingency planning is ongoing: staffing and distribution logistics were developed to allow either WIC or municipally funded personnel to carry out distribution depending on available resources, and the mayor's office and municipal manager are working with Public Health and OMB on potential municipal funding for staff pay if federal/state funds are delayed (SEG 755'SEG 761, SEG 843'SEG 849). The presenter offered to provide an update to the Assembly near the end of the month if further decisions are needed (SEG 846'SEG 848).

What's next: Public Health will monitor state guidance and provide Assembly updates; no formal action or funding vote was taken at this meeting.