The Keep WIC Working Act would provide a temporary funding backstop for the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) if there is a lapse in discretionary appropriations for the Department of Agriculture during fiscal year 2026. In practical terms, the bill authorizes the Secretary of Agriculture to draw whatever sums are necessary from the Treasury to keep WIC operating during a federal government shutdown or similar funding lapse.
The bill also addresses retroactive reimbursement. If state agencies spend state funds after September 30, 2025, to keep WIC services running and preserve participant access, the federal government would reimburse those amounts once the bill is enacted. The authority would remain in place only until Agriculture appropriations for fiscal year 2026 are enacted, including through a continuing resolution.
Impact
This bill would create a targeted continuing appropriation for WIC, overriding the normal funding interruption that would occur during a lapse in discretionary appropriations for USDA. It would not permanently amend the Child Nutrition Act’s WIC program structure, but it would temporarily ensure uninterrupted benefits, preserve state administration of the program, and reimburse states that used their own funds to bridge a shutdown period. The main affected parties would be WIC participants, state agencies administering the program, and the Department of Agriculture.
Sentiment
The available context suggests the bill is broadly supportive and protective of a widely used nutrition assistance program, with the title and structure indicating an effort to prevent service disruptions for women, infants, and children during a shutdown. There is no recorded committee debate or vote history in the provided materials, so no formal opposition or amendment activity is evident here. Overall, the measure appears to be framed as a practical, bipartisan continuity-of-services bill.
Contention
No specific points of contention are documented in the provided transcripts or vote history. Potential areas of debate, based on the bill’s design, could include whether Congress should provide a program-specific shutdown exception rather than rely on broader appropriations measures, and whether retroactive reimbursement of state spending should be automatic. However, the supplied record does not show any named opponents or disputed provisions.
To authorize the reimbursement by the Federal Government of State funds used to maintain participation in the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children in the event of a Government shutdown.