Topeka ? The debate over abolishing a Kansas agency that nurtures emerging high-technology businesses has moved to the state Senate after the House approved the idea.

Gov. Sam Brownback is proposing to eliminate the Kansas Technology Enterprise Corp. and transfer its duties and programs to the state Department of Commerce. The new Republican governor says the move will save the state more than $1.7 million a year.

The House approved a bill abolishing KTEC on an 88-29 vote Friday, sending the measure to the Senate.

KTEC was set up in the 1980s to help diversify and boost the state’s economy. Past attempts by both Democratic and Republican governors to abolish the agency and move its programs to the Department of Commerce met with strong resistance from the business community.