Veteran business benefits in Kansas (2026)

10% preference — award at up to 10% above the lowest bid

Award at up to 10% above the lowest competitive bid

K.S.A. 75-3740(b) states that a contract shall be awarded to a certified business or disabled veteran business which is also a responsible bidder whose total bid cost is not more than 10% higher than the lowest competitive bid. Ten percent is a serious instrument — it is the same rate Kansas gives its certified-business programme, so veterans are not treated as a lesser category here. Note the wording is "shall be awarded", which is stronger than the permissive "may" language Wisconsin and Alabama use for their preferences.

Who qualifiesA disabled veteran business as defined by K.S.A. 75-3740: a sole proprietorship, partnership, association or corporation domiciled in Kansas — including a wholly owned subsidiary of a foreign corporation — certified annually by the Department of Administration, with not less than 51% owned by one or more disabled veterans (or 51% of stock for a publicly owned business) and management and daily business operations controlled by one or more disabled veterans.

Source: Kansas Statutes Annotated § 75-3740 — Competitive bids; bid preferences to certain businesses · verified 2026-08-12

Two agencies, annual certification, and a requirement that runs the whole contract

Annual recertification required

The process detail that costs people contracts. "Disabled veteran" means a person verified by the Kansas Commission on Veterans Affairs Office as having served and being entitled to compensation for a service-connected disability — so KCVAO establishes your status. The Department of Administration then certifies the business, and does so ANNUALLY rather than on a multi-year cycle like Missouri's three years or Indiana's two. Then the part buried in subparagraph (C): the business must maintain the 51% ownership and the operational control requirements during the entire contract term. A change in ownership or control mid-contract is not a paperwork problem, it is a compliance problem.

Who qualifiesVerification of disabled veteran status by the Kansas Commission on Veterans Affairs Office, plus annual business certification by the Department of Administration. Ownership and control requirements must be maintained for the full duration of any contract awarded under the preference.

Source: Kansas Statutes Annotated § 75-3740 — definitions of "disabled veteran" and "disabled veteran business" · verified 2026-08-12

Where to actually apply — and why the main preference page will not tell you

Kansas publishes a Bidder Preference Program page listing three preferences, and none of them is the veteran one: 10% for a certified business, dollar-for-dollar up to 10% for State Use Program purchases, and dollar-for-dollar up to 10% for purchases from certified businesses. A veteran reading that page reasonably concludes Kansas has nothing for them. The disabled veteran preference lives on a separate Department of Administration page, "Certified Business and Disabled Veteran Owned Business", which carries the Disabled Veteran Owned Business Preference Application and a published list of currently certified disabled veteran owned businesses. That is the page you want.

Who qualifiesDisabled veteran business applicants. The Department of Administration publishes both the preference application and the current list of certified disabled veteran owned businesses.

Source: Kansas Department of Administration — Certified Business and Disabled Veteran Owned Business · verified 2026-08-12