TOPEKA, Kan. (WIBW)_ Eighteen communities in Kansas will share nearly seven million dollars in federal funding thanks to the Community Development Block Grant program, the Kansas Department of Commerce announced on Tuesday.

The $6,955,094 in Water and Sewer grants will combine with $14,491,882 in matching funds provided by the communities to provide help for over 20,000 Kansans, over half of whom low or moderate incomes, according to Commerce department figures. Recipients were determined through an annual competition.

"We're glad to provide Water and Sewer grants to these 18 deserving communities," said Kansas Department of Commerce Secretary Bill Thornton. "The CDBG program is one of the Department's most effective tools to help rural Kansas communities with quality-of-life projects."

The Commerce Department describes Community Development Block Grant program as providing federal funding to Kansas communities to address development and infrastructural needs. For 25 years, the program has helped communities enhance their quality of life by providing decent housing and a suitable living environment as by expanding economic opportunities, mostly for persons of low and moderate incomes.