The Controlling Board approved "$1.48 million for outside legal work in determining how existing liquor sales will fund JobsOhio, the new privatized arm for the state's economic development initiatives," according to a recent Gongwer & Hannah Report (subscription required).
Waiving competitive selection, the panel gave permission for the attorney general's office to contract with McDonald Hopkins law firm in Cleveland at a rate of $891,000 for fiscal year 2012 to structure the deal.
The deal consists of three significant components: transfer of the liquor enterprise from the state to JobsOhio; retirement of existing bonds supported by the state's liquor profits; and the development of a service contract for the Department of Commerce to continue performing most of its regulatory liquor control and enforcement functions on behalf of JobsOhio.
A separate action by the Controlling Board "approved an increased appropriation request of about $594,000 for the Ohio Department of Commerce for related outside counsel."
