Strongsville State Rep Helps Pass Ohio Transportation Budget

COLUMBUS, OH — The Ohio House passed the transportation budget on Thursday.

State Rep. Tom Patton, from Strongsville, supported the measure and served as chairman of the Finance Subcommittee on Transportation, which moved the bill through the legislative process.

“Not only does this legislation build the strength of our infrastructure and support commerce across our state, but this is also a jobs bill,” Patton said. “This transportation budget is an investment into economic growth and jobs across the state. I am proud of the work we accomplished on the Finance Subcommittee on Transportation with this legislation and I thank my colleagues today for supporting it on the House floor.”

House Bill 74 — also known as the transportation budget — will provide approximately $7 billion for the Ohio Department of Transportation over the next two fiscal years. Funding will be used to support road and bridge construction and maintenance.

The legislation also provides more than $1 billion, spread over two fiscal years, for the Ohio Department of Public Safety, including increased funding for the state highway patrol.

The transportation budget also doubles Gov. Mike DeWine's proposed investment in public transit, providing $190 million over the next two years. That facet of the legislation drew both praise and scorn from Democrats in the Ohio House, who argued $190 million wasn't enough funding for public transit.

“This transportation budget, like all of those before it that have passed under a Republican majority, doesn’t go far enough to help Ohioans change their lives for the better. Inadequate transit funding makes it harder for people to get to work, go to school and make a living — putting the American dream out of reach for too many Ohioans. We can and must do better," said state Rep. Janine Boyd.

House Bill 74 now advances to the Senate for further consideration.