Governor Laura Kelly announced that 18 Kansas communities will receive more than $13.7 million in federal and state funding for airport infrastructure and energy grid resilience improvement projects. Western Kansas News reports the awards include over $10.1 million from the federal Infrastructure and Investment Jobs Act (IIJA), plus more than $3.6 million in matching funds from the Kansas Infrastructure Hub and the Build Kansas Fund. With more than $165,000 in local contributions, the total investment for this round of grants in Kansas is more than $13.9 million.
The Kansas Infrastructure Hub coordinates multiple state agencies and is described as a resource for communities seeking best practices to maximize IIJA and other funding opportunities. The Build Kansas Fund provides required state non-federal match dollars for projects that secure federal IIJA grants, and the material states it has supported matching for 92 federal grants across Kansas. In total, the Build Kansas Fund has driven more than $51.28 million in state investment, leading to federal grant awards of more than $161 million returning to Kansas.
One example shared in the announcement is the City of Glen Elder, a rural community with a population of 363, which used a Section 40101(d) Second Round Grant and Build Kansas Fund matching to purchase new Itron radio-read electric meters after budget constraints limited the city’s ability to replace older meters. The list of funded area work also includes Wheatland Electric Cooperative for pole replacement and undergrounding.