Schmidt Supports Passage of Transportation Budget

COLUMBUS – The Ohio House of Representatives recently passed the two-year state transportation budget. The measure was supported by State Representative Jean Schmidt (R-Loveland).

“This budget is an investment not only in the state’s infrastructure, but in our economic opportunity,” Schmidt said. “I am proud to have worked on this budget in committee and look forward to it coming to fruition.”

Schmidt sits on the House Finance Committee and helped see the measure through its early stages. The Finance Committee yesterday approved the transportation budget, which invests $12.6 billion in Ohio’s transportation system over the next two years. 

Funded under the bill, the Brent Spence Corridor project reinforces the critical role Ohio plays in the nation’s supply chain. The construction of a new bridge over the Ohio River will carry both I-71 & I-75, ensuring the continued flow of roughly $700 billion worth of freight annually (3% of the US GDP).

“The best decision we made in this budget for both Ohio and the country is funding the Brent Spence Bridge project,” Schmidt said. “The Brent Spence is the heartbeat for commerce in Ohio and the nation.”

In addition to the Brent Spence Corridor project, the transportation budget allocates $2.2 billion for pavement, $717 million for bridges, $360 million for dedicated safety upgrades, and $1.5 billion for large, capacity adding projects like those that are reconfiguring our urban interstates. This will help local contractors and small businesses create jobs and expand their workforces across the state.

The budget also creates the Rural Highway Fund (RHF), which consists of $1 billion in new money focused solely on projects that add capacity or reduce commute times to employment centers in counties that do not have a municipality of over 65,000 residents. The RHF provides transportation routes for workers in rural parts of the state who otherwise might be forced to relocate in order to gain employment. It will also make Ohio more attractive for potential future employment centers.

The transportation budget now awaits further consideration in the Senate.