High hopes for biodefense lab

Feb. 28--TOPEKA -- Gov. Kathleen Sebelius on Wednesday said Kansas "is very well placed" to win the National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility.

Sebelius and several Kansas officials met in Washington, D.C., this week with federal authorities who will be involved in the decision to pick a location for the Department of Homeland Security laboratory.

Kansas State University is one of six finalists for the $450 million research facility that will focus on diseases and bio-threats to the food supply and public health.

The other sites include Athens, Ga.; San Antonio; Granville County, N.C.; Madison County, Miss.; and an existing lab at Plum Island, N.Y.

Kansas officials have said the state is uniquely qualified because it is centrally located, home to the nation's largest concentration of animal health companies, and has gained widespread public support. Also, K-State has offered use of its new university bioscience research lab while the larger federal facility is built.

"We have a proposal that is head and shoulders above other states on its merits," Sebelius said.

Homeland Security is scheduled to select a site in the fall.

Some have suggested that a more politically connected state, such as Texas, which is the home of President Bush, may be the front-runner, but Sebelius said she believed the sites will be evaluated on their assets.

She said if it appears that political considerations are creeping into the process, then Democrats in Congress may slow down the process so that the site will be selected under the next administration that takes office in 2009.

Sebelius did say some concerns have been raised about the adequacy of air passenger service to Manhattan, Kan. The proposed lab will have approximately 250 researchers.

A bill moving through the Legislature would appropriate funds to improve air service in Manhattan, and supporters of that bill have said it was needed for NBAF and expansion at Fort Riley.

"What's unfortunate is that it's not on my desk," Sebelius said of the bill. "It's somewhere in the legislative black hole, along with health care, early childhood education, budget decisions, any number of things that are moving very slowly."

House Speaker Melvin Neufeld, R-Ingalls, defended progress on the legislative session.

"We're trying to keep things moving," he said.

Neufeld also was in Washington to talk with federal officials about NBAF. He said the discussions went "very well."

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