KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Kansas City today approved a plan from Mayor Quinton Lucas to expand the Fountain Card program, creating a single-card system residents use to receive benefits, pay bills, catch the bus, and connect to City services.
As planned, the expanded Fountain Card would work as a prepaid debit card, available both as a physical card and on your phone. The City and community organizations will be able to load money directly onto the card, making it faster and easier for residents to receive help like utility assistance or other benefits like bus fare value, without waiting on checks or paperwork.
Under today's direction, the City will negotiate with the United Way of Greater Kansas City to run the program. United Way will bring together the banks, technology partners, and community organizations needed to launch the administrative side of the service.
"The Fountain Card is already making life easier for tens of thousands of Kansas Citians. Now with more tools, including helping our large unbanked population, one card will help Kansas City families access City services, pay their bills, hop on a KCATA bus, and expands our ability to reach all in our community without requiring folks go to multiple physical locations," said Mayor Lucas. "For our many thousands of our neighbors who don't have a bank account, this program will open a door to the financial tools many take for granted.”
For residents, the potential expansion of the program could mean:
-
One card for benefits and payments — a prepaid debit card you can carry in your wallet or on your phone;
-
Help arrives faster — the City and its partners could put funds directly on your card;
-
Banking tools for everyone — pay bills and send money even if you don't have a bank account;
-
One place to pay the City — a single portal for City bills and fees;
-
Bus pass access — expanding access to bus passes and the City’s mandated ‘Functionally Free’ bus far for Kansas City residents with need;
-
One login for City services — your card profile becomes your key to City services online; and
-
Support for local businesses — merchants could accept card payments at competitive rates, with fees helping cover the cost of running the program.
A promise made and kept by Mayor Lucas since his 2019 campaign for mayor, the Fountain Card program was approved in 2023 and is currently administered by the City’s Health Department. Since its inception, more than 19,000 Kansas Citians have received Fountain Cards, helping them access lending and City services.
