Kansas Bioscience Authority

Kansas Bioscience Authority (KBA) was created by the Kansas Economic Growth Act of 2004 to accelerate growth in the bioscience sector of the state of Kansas. Their investments were focused on agricultural science and technology, animal health and human health, sectors where Kansas government felt they had an advantage over other state-specific markets.

KBA was founded with $100 million to invest, and was designed to be funded by Kansas income taxes generated by bioscience jobs with a 2019 sunset. In 2015, in part due to low state funding, KBA decided to try to go private after receiving board approval.

During the process of going private, KBA stopped making investments in their portfolio companies and laid off part of their staff. In 2016, the state of Kansas, in response to underfunded schools in the state, sold the investment portfolio of the Kansas Bioscience Authority and essentially closed the firm. They received $14 million for the portfolio they estimated to be $25 million.

In 2018, Democratic hopeful Laura Kelly, while campaigning for governor of Kansas, suggested she would revive the Kansas Bioscience Authority.

Kansas Bioscience Authority has made investments in Advanced Animal Diagnostics, Flow Forward Medical, Innara Health, Metactive Medical, Health Outcomes Sciences, Aratana Therapeutics, IGXBio, OsteoGeneX and VasoGenix.