This week’s edition of the Office of Recovery Newsletter features information about the Capital Project Fund: Broadband Infrastructure Program. This recently announced program is offering $83.5M in grants to expand broadband infrastructure and provide access to high-speed internet to homes and businesses across Kansas.

Also highlighted is information on the Child Care Workforce Appreciation Bonus program that is providing appreciation bonuses to childcare staff workers in Kansas. For more information on program guidelines and how childcare providers can apply to receive a bonus, read the article below.

For the latest Treasury updates and information about resources available to Kansans, see the “Updates to Services and Support” section of this newsletter. For the most up-to-date information, please visit the Office of Recovery website at: COVID.ks.gov 

Program Spotlight

Grants Available to Expand Broadband Access in High-Need Areas

The Kansas Office of Broadband Development recently announced the Capital Project Fund: Broadband Infrastructure Program that will offer $83.5M in grants to provide Kansas homes and businesses access to high-speed internet through the expansion of broadband infrastructure. The program is funded through the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) Coronavirus Capital Projects Fund (CPF).

The program was developed to bring broadband infrastructure that will deliver speeds that meet or exceed symmetrical speeds of 100 Mbps to unserved areas across Kansas. All locations within the census blocks being served and funded through this program will be required to adhere to the minimum speeds listed above. Fiber-optic infrastructure projects that focus on achieving last-mile connections will be prioritized. Middle mile will be funded only if required for the last-mile build.

The Capital Project Fund program is intended to address the following priorities:

Broadband infrastructure deployment designed to directly enable work, education, and healthcare monitoring
Address a critical need that resulted from or was made apparent or exacerbated by the COVID-19 public health emergency
Address a critical need of the community to be served by it

Entities eligible to apply for the CPF Broadband Infrastructure Program include internet service providers, local governments, cooperatives and non-profit organizations.

The application window opened on July 25, 2022, and will remain open for four weeks.

A full list of program guidelines and the application are posted on the Office of Broadband Development’s website. You can also watch the recording of an informational webinar by clicking here.

Applications Open for Appreciation Bonuses for Kansas Child Care Providers

The Kansas Department for Children and Families (DCF) and the Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) are working in partnership with Child Care Aware to distribute bonuses for eligible childcare staff at licensed facilities as a reward for their incredibly essential, hard work. A total of $53M is available in Child Care Workforce Appreciation Bonuses that will soon be directly distributed to approximately 22,650 early childhood care staff members across Kansas and applications are now open. Individual bonus amounts will range from $750 to $2,500 per person.

The Child Care Workforce Appreciation Bonus Program is made possible with funds from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) of 2021. The funds were awarded to DCF and will be administered by KDHE.

Eligible childcare providers must be regularly working in a paid position at a licensed facility and have a minimum of six months continuous employment at their current employer or six months of combined continuous employment with a licensed provider. Home-based and relative providers may also qualify for the bonus program. There is also an opportunity for those who have worked less than six months at a licensed facility to receive a bonus.

Application Period Schedule

Eligible individuals must apply for the payment and verify information as part of the process. Due to the very high volume of applications anticipated, applications will be requested in phases by licensed program type.

Refer to the schedule below to determine when you should apply.

July 18 - August 20: Child Care Centers and Head Start programs
August 15 - September 17: Preschools
September 11 - October 15: School Age and Drop-In Programs
October 9 - November 9: Licensed and Group Day Care Homes
November 5 - December 10: DCF Relative Providers and those who missed their designated application window

For more information on this program and how to apply please visit ks.childcareaware.org/grants/. You can also view an informational webinar by clicking here.

Updates to Services and Support

Learn More About Applying for Federal Funding

Bloomberg Philanthropies recently released a brand-new resource for local governments to learn more about how to apply for federal funding. The Local Infrastructure Hub: Support for U.S. Cities and Towns to Put Federal Funding to Work for Residents is a national program to ensure that all cities and towns can access federal infrastructure funding to drive local COVID-19 recovery, improve communities and deliver results for residents.

The Local Infrastructure Hub aims to connect city leaders to experts to help bring clarity and direction to the complicated application process by addressing two primary barriers to accessing federal funding. First, the hub will help local leaders navigate and understand the large quantities of information from the federal government on the nearly 400 funding opportunities available. And second, it will help cities and towns develop competitive funding applications for federal grants.

To receive updates on exclusive programs, master classes, and other supports available through Local Infrastructure Hub partners and experts, sign up here.

Stay Informed on the SPARK Process

The four SPARK Advisory Panels (Connectivity, Economic Revitalization, Efficiency and Modernization, and Health and Education) spent several months assembling recommendations for the distribution of discretionary American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding. All four Advisory Panels presented their investment recommendations to the SPARK Executive Committee during meetings on April 15 and April 18.

The Executive Committee will consider these panel recommendations before finalizing its own recommendations and presenting them to the State Finance Council, which has final authority on investment decisions. The committee has not yet met to finalize its recommendations. The Executive Committee’s next meeting will be available to livestream on the Kansas Legislature YouTube Page once scheduled.

All previous Advisory Panel meeting materials and recordings can be found on our website: Advisory Panels Materials. SPARK Executive Committee meeting recordings and materials, including the recommendation materials presented by the Advisory Panels, are available at: SPARK Materials.