From Columbus Business First:

Legislation for Ohio’s $1.57 billion economic stimulus package is one step closer to Gov. Ted Strickland’s desk after receiving Senate approval.

The chamber late Wednesday passed House Bill 554 and House Joint Resolution 5. The package would place a $400 million bond issue before voters in November to renew state’s $400 million Clean Ohio initiative, a key element of the jobs plan Strickland unveiled in February.

The $1.2 billion balance of the plan is funded from existing state revenue sources and will head to public works projects, a higher-education work-force program, advanced and renewable energy technologies, and historic preservation tax credits.

Joint legislation for the stimulus package had hit both chambers in early May, part of a move to bring the measures to Strickland’s desk before the end of the month. The package is a large-scale state effort to invest in industries with significant job-growth potential.

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