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Kansas has responded to the needs of a changing
world with a bold set of strategies to attract new and expanding
business now and in the future. The roster of Kansas companies includes
a powerful combination of cutting-edge and traditional industries.
The state’s
business and economic success is fueled by one of the nation’s
best-educated workforces.
Kansas Governor, Kathleen Sebelius, recently signed the 2004 Kansas
Economic Growth Act, which includes a $500m initiative to further
develop biotechnology and life sciences in the state. The Act also
modernises Workforce Development with a once-in-a-generation restructuring
of the state’s training programmes, establishes a Kansas Centre
for Entrepreneurship, an Angel Investor Tax Credit Programme, and
a Rural Business Development Programme. State initiatives in bioscience
and research have attracted progressive industry leaders such as
Bayer, Lab One, PRA International, Abbott Laboratories and Serologicals
Corporation. Kansas is also a world leader in aviation manufacturing.
Established aerospace firms like Boeing, Cessna, Raytheon, Bombardier
Learjet and
Airbus operate facilities in Kansas.
If you have not seriously considered Kansas as a viable site for
your business, perhaps it’s time to schedule a visit. Kansas
is becoming an economic powerhouse and the reasons include:
- High quality, well-educated labour force.
Our workforce ranks 16th nationwide for attainment of high school
and 12th for college degrees;
- Low cost of doing business, averaging 5%
below the national average;
- Unit labour costs (earnings per dollar of
output) well below the national average;
- Ideal transportation and marketing advantages
due to central location and outstanding infrastructure.
Whether by highway, rail or air, Kansas
offers excellent transportation and marketing advantages for your
business. Because the state is centrally located and focused on
building and maintaining an outstanding infrastructure, it’s
easier and cheaper to ship in and out of Kansas. The state is home
to numerous production facilities, warehouses and distribution centres
that have found shipping raw materials and finished goods to be
more profitable when located in the nation’s heartland. In
fact, transportation infrastructure was a major reason
why FedEx Ground decided to expand its operations in Shawnee and
Wichita, building new distribution and delivery facilities.
Kansas’ technological excellence is driven by the state’s
superior education system at all levels, from elementary schools
to universities. This emphasis on education produces workers who
are both competent and hard working; valuable traits for any employer.
The pupil-teacher ratio in Kansas public schools ranks 17th in the
country and there is a computer for every 2.4 students in each Kansas
school, the third-best mark in the nation. At the adult level, Kansas
again ranks high for educational achievement. Over 29% of Kansans
over the age of 25 have at least a bachelor’s degree, and
88% have earned a high school diploma. Six universities anchor the
education system and technical colleges provide specific training
in a number of areas.
A variety of incentives are available to international businesses
in Kansas:
- Up to a 100%, 10-year exemption on real and
personal property taxes;
- Corporate income tax credits that can eliminate
up to 100% of annual tax liability;
- Sales tax exemptions on facility construction
and equipment purchases;
- No inventory tax;
- Workforce training grants;
- Right-to-Work Law.
Our workforce training programmes, ranked 11th in the nation by
site location consultants, benefit companies substantially on their
training costs. The state of Kansas is dedicated to the training
and retraining of its workforce to obtain the skills needed
by employers. New or existing Kansas companies may qualify for assistance
under one of our flexible and customised workforce training programmes
served by 19 community colleges, 16 vo-tech schools, one municipally
funded university, and a variety of private, liberal arts colleges.
In addition to the outstanding business climate, Kansas is also
a great place to live. Morgan Quitno, a nationally recognised publication,
recently ranked Kansas as the 11th most livable state in the United
States, based on 43 factors, including median household income,
crime rate, sunny days and job growth. If rural living interests
you, there are plenty of open spaces, including several small towns,
which currently offer free building land to qualified applicants.
If city life is more your style, there are a number of metropolitan
areas and attractions to meet those needs.
With everything that Kansas has to offer, it’s easy to understand
why companies continue to start, grow, relocate to, and flourish
in the state. If bottom-line costs are the most important factor
in your site decision, Kansas is a great place to be. The organisation
that helps tie everything together in the state is the Kansas Department
of Commerce.
For more information, contact the
Kansas Europe office
in the UK:
Tel: +44 (0)
1372 363386
E-mail: reception@prowse.co.uk
Website: www.kansascommerce.com
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