WHEREAS, the Federal Communications Commission of the United States of America has designated 2-1-1 as the national telephone number for information and referral on human services, declaring that 2-1-1 best satisfies the public interest in allotting the limited resource of this abbreviated number; and

WHEREAS, the 2-1-1 number is an easy-to-remember telephone number that facilitates critical connections between individuals and families seeking services, volunteer opportunities, or both and the appropriate human services agencies, including community-based and faith-based organizations and government agencies; and

WHEREAS, with approximately 1,500,000 nonprofit organizations in the United States, including 18,540 in Kansas, individuals and families often find it difficult to navigate through a complex and ever-growing maze of human service agencies and programs, spending inordinate amounts of time trying to identify an agency or program that provides a service that may be immediately or urgently required and often abandoning the search from frustration or lack of quality information; and

WHEREAS, at the Federal, State and local levels, government funding supports well-intentioned systems that are not fully utilized because of lack of access to and information on such programs by the public; and

WHEREAS, program administrators have indicated that there is a need for a simple way to connect those eligible for programs with available program resources; and

WHEREAS, 2-1-1 telephone service can reduce the number of inappropriate calls to government offices by directing consumers to the appropriate human services agent, resulting in a more effective use of government services; and

WHEREAS, Americans desire to volunteer and become involved in their communities and a simple call to 2-1-1 will help Kansans find the volunteer opportunity they seek; and

WHEREAS, 2-1-1 telephone service has been recognized by the 107th Congress for the important role 2-1-1 plays in disaster prevention, community preparedness and response information, and public and community health information, thus making our State’s communities safer, stronger and better prepared to respond to threats of domestic and international terrorism and domestic emergency situations of all natures; and

WHEREAS, 2-1-1 telephone service facilitates the availability of a single repository where comprehensive data on all community services is collected, maintained and updated regularly, reducing costs and duplication of efforts; and

WHEREAS, 2-1-1’s reliable data allows for better assessment of the needs of our communities and immediate mobilization of resources toward those needs; and

WHEREAS, United Way of the Plains has established a statewide 2-1-1 call center that ensures prompt and efficient dissemination of information by highly trained call center representatives and has established standards for its call center operations; and

WHEREAS, a single information network has been created by United Way of the Plains through leveraged resources so that every resident of the State with phone service can dial the 2-1-1 telephone at no charge to the caller; and

WHEREAS, the 2-1-1 statewide database is available to all residents of the State as well as all human services programs, through the Internet, allowing for individuals to search for programs or services available according to the data gathered from human services programs in the State.

NOW, THEREFORE, pursuant to the authority vested in me as Governor of the State of Kansas, I hereby designate United Way of the Plains as the lead entity for 2-1-1 Kansas as identified in the Calling for 2-1-1 Act of 2009.

This document shall be filed with the Secretary of State as Executive Order 09-09, and shall become effective immediately.