JobsOhio bill OK’d in victory for Kasich

Photo

Governor John Kasich

Associated Press

COLUMBUS

Gov. John Kasich scored his first key legislative victory Wednesday as lawmakers in the House and Senate approved his plan to hand over job creation functions to a nonprofit corporation.

The bill sets up a framework for JobsOhio, a private-public partnership that would lead the state’s economic development efforts. The measure directs the Department of Development’s interim director, Mark Kvamme, to review the duties that his state agency performs and what could be transferred to the new entity.

The Republican-led Senate passed the bill on a 31-2 vote after lawmakers changed it to address some questions about ethics and public access. The House, which had approved an earlier version, agreed to the changes on a 60-35 vote. It now goes to Kasich, who will sign the measure Friday, his office said.

“Ohio must embrace new, innovative job- creation methods, and with JobsOhio we will be able to pursue economic opportunities otherwise unattainable through our outdated development structure,” the Republican governor said in a written statement.

Under the Senate revisions, the nine-member JobsOhio board that Kasich chairs and selects would have to report travel expenses paid for by corporations. The bill would require notices of the board’s public meetings, and meeting summaries would be released afterward.

State Sen. Chris Widener, a Springfield Republican who chairs the Senate Finance Committee, said the revisions his panel made now make clear what Jobs-Ohio could do as a nonprofit and what it would have to disclose.