Legislation to boost community foundations in Kentucky passes first test

UPDATE, March 26: The legislature has passed the bill and sent it to the governor.
UPDATE, March 18: The full Senate passed the bill but removed the tax credit, which could still be restored in budget negotiations with the House.
The Kentucky Senate's budget committee unanimously approved legislation Tuesday that would create a community endowment fund and a tax credit for donating to the fund. The Appropriations and Revenue Committee approved Senate Bill 227, which would establish the "Endow Kentucky" program and provide a means for communities to easily direct local contributions to local needs, through community foundations. Beth Musgrave reports for the Lexington Herald-Leader that the measure grew out of this summer’s legislative Poverty Task Force, which studied long-term fixes and policies that could chip away at key poverty indicators. (Read more)

Al Cross, director of the Institute for Rural Journalism and Community Issues at the University of Kentucky told WEKU public radio station, "We have to do something to create a trustworthy place for people who have money and some attachment to rural areas to invest that money in a way that it will continue to work long after they're gone." (Read more)

Here is more information on community foundations from The Rural Blog.