KS Biosciences Lab still supported by Feds

News out this morning says the Feds support--still support--the biosciences lab going in out at Manhattan, even if it is scaled down:

Fed. panel supports Kan. biosecurity lab project

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A government-backed committee of the National Research Council issued a report Friday saying the United States would have adequate biosecurity protections even if plans for a proposed $1.14 billion lab in Kansas are scaled back.

The study was prepared by a subcommittee formed this spring to look at three options for the National Bio- and Agro-Defense Facility that is to be built in Manhattan near the Kansas State University campus. The report was in response to tighter federal revenues and budget controls that are forcing agencies to rethink spending priorities.

DHS asked the National Research Council to review the threats of foreign animal disease, the capabilities needed to address such threats and analyze options for building the lab as proposed or scaling back the size and scope. A third option included keeping the current research lab at Plum Island, N.Y.

While the committee found that the need for a lab hadn't changed since the project was first proposed in 2006, it did find that DHS had two options for completing the goal of developing the capabilities with a laboratory designed specifically to respond to a biosecurity threat. However, the report concluded that both options had drawbacks.

So rest assured, Kansas--apparently you're still going to get your lab and the money and jobs, even if it isn't as big as once promised and hoped.

Link: http://news.yahoo.com/fed-panel-supports-kan-biosecurity-lab-project-170920861.html