(1) The federal Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) provides supplemental foods and nutrition education to pregnant, postpartum and breastfeeding women, infants and young children from families with inadequate income through payment of cash grants to states that operate WIC food delivery systems. The department operates a WIC retail food delivery system in which WIC participants obtain authorized supplemental foods by submitting a food instrument to a retail business that has entered into a contract with the department to provide such service. The department's WIC operations comply with the most current version of 7 C.F.R. 246. Copies are available from the Department of Health, P.O. Box 47886, Olympia, WA 98504-7886, or by calling the WIC nutrition program at 800-841-1410.

(2) The purpose of this chapter is to establish:

(a) Qualifications a store must meet before the department will consider its application to be a WIC authorized vendor;

(b) Requirements of all WIC authorized vendors;

(c) Administrative appeal processes; and

(d) An advisory committee.