Kentucky Association of Counties

What Kentucky Association of Counties does

The Kentucky Association of Counties (KACo) is a private, nonprofit professional membership association founded in 1974 and headquartered at 400 Englewood Drive in Frankfort, KY. KACo serves all 120 county governments of the Commonwealth of Kentucky through county judge/executives, magistrates, sheriffs, jailers, coroners, county clerks, PVA, and other elected officials. Core service lines include insurance programs (property & casualty, unemployment, workers compensation, health, and bonds), financing services delivered through wholly-owned subsidiaries (KACo Leasing Trust and KACo Finance Corporation), and the KACo All Lines Fund insurance pool. The organization also runs the KACo Leadership Institute for training, publishes County Line Magazine and County Line Weekly, and operates data products including the KACo County Salary Explorer and the County Officials Directory. Headcount sits at 11-50 employees.

KACo's business model is funded primarily by membership dues from Kentucky's 120 county governments, supplemented by service income from its financing and insurance subsidiaries. The organization does not retain the tax revenues it helps administer; in FY25 Kentucky counties collected $99.5 million in insurance premium taxes (9.8% of total county tax revenue), and in FY24 they collected $430.7 million in occupational license fees (45.8% of county tax revenue). Membership pricing is not publicly disclosed.

KACo is the Kentucky state affiliate of the National Association of Counties (NACo). It maintains core partnerships with the Kentucky Opioid Abatement Advisory Commission, the Kentucky Attorney General's Office, the state's Area Development Districts, and Eastern Kentucky University (EKU Advantage). Strategic emphasis since 2022 has been on administering national opioid settlement proceeds (cumulative Kentucky settlements exceed $1 billion), a position institutionalized through the 2026 launch of the Opioid Solutions Network. Current KACo President is Reagan Taylor, Madison County Judge/Executive; senior staff include Jennifer Burnett (Chief Innovation Officer), Shellie Hampton (Director of Government Affairs), Rich Ornstein (Staff Attorney), Brenna Angel (Director of Communications), Kayla Smith (Public Policy Manager), and Lauren Carr (Opioid Settlement Advisor).

Name

Kentucky Association of Counties

Legal name

Kentucky Association of Counties

Website

https://kaco.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1974

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The Kentucky Association of Counties is a nonprofit professional membership association founded in 1974 that serves all 120 Kentucky county governments from its Frankfort headquarters, providing collective insurance programs, financing services, legislative advocacy, leadership training, and opioid settlement technical assistance.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Government Association Services

NAICS

Business Associations (813910), Professional Organizations (813920)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Association & Society Conference Management (Nonprofit, Professional Bodies) (THAHACAA)

Keywords

• County government services
• Government insurance programs
• Public sector advocacy
• Government training programs
• Government financing solutions

Headquarters

HQ city

Frankfort

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership Dues: KACo operates as a membership organization funded by dues from Kentucky's 120 county governments. Counties pay membership to access services including insurance programs, advocacy representation, training, and resources.
2. Insurance Premium Taxes: KACo helps administer insurance premium tax programs for counties. Fiscal courts can levy insurance premium taxes on automobile, fire, casualty/liability, inland marine, life, health and other insurance categories. Counties collected $99.5 million in insurance premium tax revenue in FY25.
3. Occupational License Fees: KACo provides resources and guidance on occupational license fee collection for counties. Counties collected $430.7 million in occupational license fees in FY 2024. KACo advocates for keeping collection authority at the local level.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

The Kentucky Association of Counties (KACo) is a private nonprofit membership association serving all 120 county governments in Kentucky. KACo delivers collective insurance programs (Property & Casualty, Workers Compensation, Health, Bonds, Unemployment), financing services through its Leasing Trust and Finance Corporation, legislative advocacy at the state level, training and education programs through the KACo Leadership Institute, and specialized technical assistance for opioid settlement fund administration and reporting.

Product overview

The Kentucky Association of Counties (KACo) provides a comprehensive suite of services to Kentucky's 120 county governments. The organization operates as a membership association offering insurance programs (Property & Casualty, Unemployment, Workers Compensation, Health, Bonds), financing services through KACo Leasing Trust and KACo Finance Corporation, and member services including law enforcement support, jail services, emergency management, retirement benefits, and educational programs. Key products include the KACo County Salary Explorer database for wage information, the County Officials Directory for contact information, and the KACo Leadership Institute for training. KACo also provides specialized technical assistance for opioid settlement fund management and publishes County Line Magazine and County Line Weekly for communications.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Insurance Programs Comprehensive insurance programs for county governments including Property & Casualty, Unemployment, Workers Compensation, Health, and Bonds coverage, pooled through KACo All Lines Fund for economies of scale.
• Financing Services Financial programs including KACo Leasing Trust and KACo Finance Corporation providing leasing and financing solutions for county government infrastructure and operational needs.
• KACo Leadership Institute Training and education program offering seminars on opioid settlement fund best practices, leadership development, and county government operations for elected and appointed officials.
• KACo County Salary Explorer Interactive database containing county employee wage information from the 2022 KACo County Salary Survey, covering more than 40 common county job titles organized by county population size, revenue classes, and Area Development Districts.
• County Officials Directory Searchable online directory of county elected officials' information including name, address, and phone number searchable by county or title.
• Opioid Settlement Technical Assistance Technical assistance program providing counties with guidance on opioid settlement fund use, expense review, strategic planning, templates, reporting requirements, best practices, training, and referrals to qualified practitioners.
• Member Services Suite of member benefit programs including Law Enforcement, Jail, Emergency Management support, Retirement Savings Benefits, EKU Advantage scholarship program, Presidential Scholarship, KACo Salt Auction, KACo Relationship Officers, and KACo Activity Books.
• Legislative Advocacy Statewide legislative advocacy and unified representation at the Kentucky General Assembly on behalf of all 120 county governments.

Named customers1 record

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• Kentucky Opioid Abatement Advisory CommissioncoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2022KACo collaborates with the Kentucky Opioid Abatement Advisory Commission to ensure counties receive their fair share of opioid settlement funds and provide technical assistance to counties on evidence-based strategies for using settlement funds.
• National Association of Counties (NACo)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2021KACo is the Kentucky state affiliate of NACo, participating in national conferences, achievement awards, and the Opioid Solutions Leadership Network to share best practices with counties across the nation.
• Kentucky Attorney General's OfficecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerKACo worked with the Attorney General's office to help ensure counties receive their fair share of opioid settlement funds. The AG's office leads settlement negotiations while KACo supports county implementation.
• Area Development DistrictsmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerKACo partners with Kentucky's Area Development Districts (such as Green River ADD, Lake Cumberland ADD) to deliver regional training programs, including opioid settlement fund seminars and leadership development.
• Kentucky River District Health DepartmentmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerKACo works with local health departments to support opioid abatement efforts, including case management programs, quick response teams, and recovery initiatives in Kentucky counties.
• Eastern Kentucky University (EKU Advantage)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerKACo partners with Eastern Kentucky University to provide educational benefits and programs for county officials through the EKU Advantage program.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Market position

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/kaco
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCw47G4IsdNYe25AlN07IzEA
• Facebookfacebook.com/KentuckyAssociationofCounties
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/kentucky-association-of-counties

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

Subsidiaries3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Kentucky Association of Counties