The Kansas State Corporation Commission received a 1994 NTIA planning grant to develop a comprehensive statewide telecommunications infrastructure development plan that addresses the needs of businesses, health care and education providers, governments, and the public. A committee of representatives from the state legislature, local and long-distance telephone carriers, and cable operators has been established to oversee the planning and to generate a report. Cooperation between public and private interests is being encouraged, with particular emphasis on training and potential employment effects. The committee's report was due at the end of 1995.
Access is provided through a modem connection to a toll-free number.
INK was the first of several innovative public-private networks established in states seeking a telecommunications network that could serve the information needs of both business communities and citizens. Others are described in the sections on Nebraska and Indiana. State government information provided on INK includes bill tracking, text of bills, legislative calendars and journals, the Kansas Register, historical bill indexes, executive appointments, a legislative directory, and campaign finance data. Additional data are available from the Department of Motor Vehicles, the secretary of state's office, the Department of Human Resources, the Board of Healing Arts, the state treasurer, the Board of Tax Appeals, the State Historical Society, and many other sources. The kiosks helped farmers who had been flooded out indicate what they needed and where they lived.