$18 million in Kansas incentives enticed large private company across the state line

Results of a Freedom of Information Act request obtained by the Kansas City Business Journal have revealed that the state of Kansas pledged $1.8 million a year for 10 years to Dairy Farmers of America Inc.

The money was promised through the PEAK (Promoting Employment Across Kansas) program as an incentive to get the company to move its headquarters to Kansas City, Kan., from Kansas City.

PEAK allows companies that bring jobs to Kansas to keep up to 95 percent of state withholding taxes they otherwise would have paid.

The Kansas City Business Journal reported that the Dairy Farmers of America had 325 employees when it announced in February 2015 that it would move.

Missouri had offered about $1 million less in its attempt to keep the company in Kansas City, the business newspaper said.

The new headquarters is under construction near the Schlitterbahn Kansas City Waterpark.

The Star

This story was originally published May 11, 2017 at 11:09 AM with the headline "$18 million in Kansas incentives enticed large private company across the state line."