Grants & Discounts

State Aid

Under the Grants-In-Aid to Libraries Act, the State Librarian includes an estimate of the amount of state aid needed by libraries in the agency’s annual budget. Following the budget consideration process, the agency is appropriated funding to distribute to Kansas public libraries the following fiscal year. In order to be eligible for state aid, libraries must complete the Annual Kansas Public Library Survey and demonstrate maintenance of effort. The later requirement essentially asks “Is a library’s funding body (city, county, district, etc.) providing at least the same amount of tax support this year as last year?” If deemed eligible by the state library, funds are disbursed via direct deposit or check in late February each year. State Aid may be used for any public library purpose except construction, repair or debt reduction.

E-Rate

E-Rate provides discounts to schools and libraries purchasing eligible internet access, telephone service and internal connections. Typically, E-Rate requires filling out 3 to 4 forms: 

• Form 470 describes your library's needs for Internet connections, telephone service or networking between computers. Vendors can read your form online and submit bids to provide your library with these services. 
• Form 471 informs Schools and Libraries Division (SLD) what bids for services you accepted. It identifies the vendors who will provide these services and how much these services will probably cost. The form requires calculating your E-Rate discount based on the eligibility of students in your school district for free and reduced lunches. 
• Form 486 informs SLD the services were delivered and how much the services actually costs. This gives SLD permission to pay the vendors. 
• Form 472 asks for reimbursement for the difference between the amount you paid and the cost of the services after the discount. 

E-Rate discounts are based on the percentage of students eligible for free- or reduced-price lunches.  To determine this percentage locally, visit Kansas K-12 Reports at https://datacentral.ksde.org/report_gen.aspx, then:

• Under Select a Report, choose Students Approved for Free- or Reduced-Price Lunches – Headcount Report 
• Under Data Grouping, choose either District Organization Totals or School Totals 
• Under Select a District/Organization, make a selection.  If searching for school level data, select the school as well. 
• Select the school year and click the display report.

Libraries must be compliant with the Children's Internet Protection Act (CIPA) to be eligible for E-Rate discounts.  Libraries must also follow records retention policies of the program, as the files are subject to audit. 

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