A program that gives money from state gambling profits to the 84 counties without a casino is now 20 years old.
Iowa Gaming Association president Wes Ehrecke recently gave the annual report on the County Endowment Fund to the Racing and Gaming Commission. “This year was 1,830 grants for $11.6 million,” Ehrecke says. Ehrecke says the program has had a lot of impact since it was created by the Iowa legislature in 2004.
“In 20 years, it’s been like 38,745 grants for $160 million,” he says. “So a very impressive program, and we like to think that every single citizen is benefiting in some way in the impact with these nonprofits in each of these counties.”
