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Public callers ask Johnson Select Board to serve as fiscal agent for store’s WIC-capable point-of-sale grant
Summary
Representatives of Johnson Eats asked the Select Board to act as fiscal agent so the store can accept WIC benefits after a health-department-written grant would fund a point-of-sale upgrade; the board asked for the grant paperwork and deferred a decision until it receives documentation.
Representatives of Johnson Eats addressed the Select Board during public comment asking the town to serve as fiscal agent for a federal health grant that would pay for a point-of-sale upgrade to allow the store to accept WIC benefits. “We literally just need somebody to say, yeah, I’ll be the fiscal agent, receive the grant if we are awarded it, and then give us some money,” one representative said, describing the health department as the grant writer.
Board members asked to see the grant paperwork and to be given contact information for the health-department staff handling the application before making a commitment. A board member said he wanted to “see the grant paperwork and the grant first” before authorizing any pass-through. The board did not take action at the meeting and asked the applicants to email the relevant documentation and contact info; the next regular meeting was noted as March 2 for follow-up if needed.
Why this matters: if awarded and accepted through a municipal fiscal agent, the grant would let a local business accept federal nutrition benefits that can increase low-income customers’ access to food and store revenue. The board limited its response to asking for documentation and did not commit to acting as the fiscal agent without review.
