For more than a year, Senator Roberts has been working to attract a new federal laboratory to the state. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security will build a new $451 million, 500,000 square foot lab called the National Bio- and Agro-defense Facility (NBAF), and Kansas is one of 12 states in the running for the facility. Recently, Governor Sebelius appointed Senator Roberts as Honorary Chairman to the Kansas National Bio- and Agro-defense Facility Task Force, bringing federal, state and private partnerships to the effort to promote Kansas as an ideal location for the proposed NBAF facility. Two sites in Kansas - Leavenworth and Manhattan - are currently under consideration.

While the competition for the project is fierce and will take a concentrated effort to achieve, Roberts believes Kansas is well-positioned to attract the lab, which is projected to have an economic impact of $3.5 billion over the next 20 years. Construction of the facility alone is projected to employ 1,500 workers.

After severe winter storms in late December, Senator Roberts worked with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to announce significant federal aid for disaster areas in western Kansas. The state preliminarily has assessed damages of up to $360 million.

"I must commend the people of Kansas for really leaning forward to help their neighbors," Roberts said after the storm "I especially want to thank the folks at the Kansas National Guard, the State and the Region Seven FEMA office who have worked around the clock to make this new aid available to those still suffering."

In a speech on the Senate floor on January 8, Senator Roberts talked about the storm’s effects on one Kansas community: "The 850 people that live in Sharon Springs, Kansas cannot afford to clear the mounds of snow that currently cover six blocks of Main Street. The city government could not have known to budget for the 600 truckloads of snow they estimate it will take to clear just that area. They need their federal government’s help."

While visiting Washburn University’s campus recently, Senator Roberts read the book "Climbing Kansas Mountains," written by George Shannon and illustrated by Thomas B. Allen to Whitson Elementary School 4th graders. Then the Senator and his wife Franki, toured Washburn University’s Mulvane Art Museum with Washburn President Jerry Farley. The exhibits were: This Is Our Land: Discovering America and the World Through Original Illustrations from Children's Books, and, Ancient Threads, Newly Woven: Recent Art From China's Silk Road.

Senator Roberts’ effort to expand child care options for working families was passed by the Senate as an amendment to the Senate’s minimum wage bill. The measure creates a short-term, flexible grant program to encourage small businesses to work together or with other local child care agencies to provide child care services for employees. Small businesses will be eligible for grants up to $500,000 for start-up costs, training, scholarships, or other related activities.

"In many small Kansas towns such as Dodge City," Roberts said, "child care facilities can be scarce. This amendment would alleviate the strain on working families who often have to close the door on the opportunity to expand their income because of the lack of child care options in their communities." Roberts’ legislation has strong bipartisan support and heads to a conference committee to iron out differences between the House and Senate versions of the bill.

At an annual event in Topeka, Senator Roberts addressed the Kansas Chamber of Commerce’s annual Leadership Summit. As a key new member of the Senate Committee on Finance, he updated the Chamber on legislative activities in Washington including efforts to allow small businesses to offer health insurance to their employees.