COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) A bill authorizing the cuts needed to plug a projected $733 million hole in the current state budget has been introduced in the Ohio House.

A spokesman for Gov. Ted Strickland and a spokeswoman for House Speaker Jon Husted say leaders in the Republican-controlled Legislature and the Democratic Strickland worked out the plan in advance.

The bill introduced May 19 also authorizes $1.3 billion in construction projects statewide over the next two years.

Strickland’s plan for squeezing the budget gap includes eliminating up to 2,700 state jobs through attrition, layoffs and early retirements, closing two state mental hospitals, and starting a state-run video Keno game through the Ohio Lottery Commission.

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