Governor Laura Kelly Announces $4 Million to Benefit 26 Kansas Nonprofit Organizations

TOPEKA – Governor Laura Kelly today announced that 26 Kansas nonprofit organizations will receive more than $4 million in Community Service Tax Credits (CSP) to improve and enhance fundraising efforts for education, healthcare, childcare and housing projects.

“The Community Service Tax Credit program is an excellent tool we can use to support our state’s nonprofits and strengthen the essential services they provide to their communities,” Governor Kelly said. “My administration will continue pursuing innovative initiatives like CSP to improve Kansans’ access to quality education, healthcare, childcare, and housing to make Kansas the best state in the nation for families and businesses to call home.”

The CSP program provides a 70% tax credit to qualified donors in rural communities with a population less than 15,000 and a 50% tax credit in larger communities. For example, a donor making a $1,000 gift in a rural community receives a $700 tax credit when they file their state taxes, making the net cost to the donor only $300. CSP is distributing $1 million in awards for childcare and early childhood development projects, specifically for services to those under the age of 5.

CSP is a highly competitive program. Awarded nonprofits were chosen through a competitive, score-based selection process.

This year, 26 of the requested 55 projects (constituting 47% of the total funds requested) received CSP funding.

“When it comes to economic and community development, quality of life has to be a priority,” Lieutenant Governor and Commerce Secretary David Toland said. “Helping to ensure that people have the amenities they need in their communities is one of the best ways to maintain a growing, vibrant, stable economy with a motivated and driven workforce. Programs like CSP are a great way to help achieve this outcome for our state.”

CSP funding is being awarded to the following organizations:

• Atchison County: Atchison County Community Schools Education Foundation – Construction of an 8,400-sq-ft, multi-purpose facility to serve numerous needs present in their community.
• Barton County: Golden Belt Community Foundation – Construction of a 4,100-sq-ft building that will house Advancing Barton County’s Childcare Development Center.
• Butler County: Flinthills Services, Inc. – Renovations at a 4,800-sq-ft facility, including wall removal, new flooring, addition of handicap-accessible shower, specialized furniture, kitchen renovations, signage and outside fencing and gravel work.
• Cowley County: William Newton Memorial Hospital – Purchase and installation of a new call system, offering improved communication and increased efficiency of patient care.
• Douglas County: Elizabeth B Ballard Community Center, Inc. – Updating building-wide HVAC upgrades that will provide better ventilation, better air filtration and better clean air for the childcare and community center.
• Finney County: High Plains Housing Development Corporation – Initial startup funding for the construction of 3D-concrete printed homes – a first in Kansas.
• Geary County: Aging Well, Inc. – Construction of three small homes that will provide long-term care to a total of 36 elders (12 elders in each home), with a fourth small home planned to provide assisted living services to 14 elders.
• Greeley County: Greeley County Health Services, Inc. – Funding for the G+Kids project, an initiative designed to meet the childcare needs of Greeley County Health Services employees and other local residents.
• Harvey County: Kidron Bethel Retirement Services, Inc. – Construction of a new community space/chapel to solve overcrowding and program disruption at the current space.
• Johnson County: Down Syndrome Guild of Greater Kansas City, Inc. – Establishment of an 11,000-sq-ft multi-functional building to house several components designed to equip people with Down Syndrome of all ages and their caregivers.
• Johnson County: Friends of JCDS, Inc. – The purchase and renovations of two properties for affordable and accessible housing needs, serving adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
• Labette County: Labette Health Foundation – Expansion of the Independence Healthcare Center, including a pharmacy, expanded laboratory, ultrasound, conference room, home health, a physical therapy department and an additional 19 exam/procedure rooms.
• Lyon County: Emporia Arts Council – Construction of EAC’s Innovation Laboratory and updates to its classrooms and theater.
• Lyon County: Hetlinger Developmental Services, Inc. – The construction of a new greenhouse with state-of-the-art automated systems, including irrigation, shading and ecofriendly operations, which will allow persons served to participate in horticultural therapy and gardening activities.
• McPherson County: Sprout House Learning Center Inc. – Establishing a purpose-built childcare center to accommodate 67 children in the first phase, which will enable them to move their program out of several makeshift spaces into one attractive space with room to grow and develop the program.
• Montgomery County: Caney Valley Agape Network, Inc. – A new sustainable facility to provide quality produce to more recipients and assist local neighbors in distress.
• Norton County: Valley Hope Association – A new extended treatment program combined with sober housing will expand the existing treatment center capacity from 26 to 35.
• Reno County: Cosmosphere, Inc. – Funding for iWonderSTEM Virtual Education Content, designed to provide 48 underserved schools with a chance to experience the Cosmosphere.
• Rooks County: Solomon Valley Manor – Creating a new long-term care facility that will feature private rooms and private bathrooms/showers.
• Saline County: CKF Addiction Treatment, Inc. – Expanding telehealth treatment services to hospitals across the state to reach additional clients, while continuing to provide services from their homes once they are released.
• Saline County: Young Men’s Christian Association of Salina – Adding outdoor pavilions with restrooms to allow expansion of services to their Early Education Center, as well as licensed after school and summer day camp programs for elementary age students.
• Sedgwick County: Catholic Charities Wichita – A new 30,661-square-foot building to serve up to 200 adult participants with intellectual or developmental disabilities, as well as seniors with dementia or Alzheimer’s disease.
• Sedgwick County: The League 42 Foundation – Construction of The Youth Education Center. The center will include 25 computer stations to be at the heart of the education programming provided by League 42.
• Seward County: Kismet Public Library Foundation – Establishment of a community safe room for public use during severe weather events.
• Shawnee County: Friends of the Topeka Zoo, Inc. – Building a new, modern 10,000-square-foot giraffe facility for the zoo’s giraffe herd. 
• Wyandotte County: Kansas City Kansas Community College Foundation – A new 114,387-square-foot Downtown Community Education Center to serve as an anchor institution for Kansas City, Kansas.

About the Community Development Division

The Community Development Division at the Kansas Department of Commerce exists to improve quality-of-life in communities across the state through various programs and services. The Kansas Department of Commerce understands the immense role played by strong communities in economic development and prioritizes investments in people and communities as major contributors to the overall strength of the Kansas economy. To learn more, visit the Community Development page at the Kansas Commerce website.