TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) -- A Kansas House committee refused to restore $3.5 million in state money for a Kansas Bureau of Investigation crime laboratory at Washburn University.

Committee members acknowledged Tuesday that the state needs a high-tech forensics lab to recruit scientists and ease a backlog of DNA evidence waiting for testing. But some committee members said they were concerned about the estimated $55 million cost of the lab. And they questioned a plan to lease the lab from Washburn, suggesting the state could get a better deal in the private sector.

The Topeka Capital-Journal reports (http://bit.ly/XsB6ew ) Washburn President Jerry Farley said Monday Washburn would bid the construction phase and issue bonds to pay for it. The bonds would be rolled into the cost of a lease with KBI.