House Republicans whisked through a proposal Wednesday that makes it clear that state Auditor Dave Yost cannot examine all of JobsOhio's books and that the development company’s profits from liquor sales in Ohio are private dollars not subject to state audit.

The legislation must still gain Senate approval to be enacted. How quickly that could happen was unclear Wednesday.

But the legislation would appear to end the tug-of-war between Yost and JobsOhio, the job creation entity that was the brainchild of Republican Gov. John Kasich, over what's public and what's not.

If approved, it would be a victory for the Kasich administration which argued JobsOhio needed the freedom to work on business development outside of the public eye. It had suggested a legislative fix might be needed.

“The uncertainty that’s been raised about the Legislature’s intent created a lot of unease in the economic development community, as well as in higher education, so it’s helpful across many fronts to get this resolved,” Kasich spokesman Rob Nichols said after the House vote. “The additional accountability for JobsOhio is welcome also and provides additional assurances as it continues its important work to help create jobs so Ohio can keep getting back on track.”

Democrats in the House, though, decried the move, which they said allows JobsOhio to operate behind a cloak of secrecy, keeping Ohioans in the dark about what kind of return they are getting on investment.

The dustup began in March when the auditor's office subpoenaed records it had sought for months. JobsOhio complied, but at the time made clear it disagreed that it was subject to the auditor's review.

Yost, a Republican, contended he had authority to look at the private non-profit corporation's books because the root of its revenue was linked to state money. JobsOhio raised operating money through its subsidiary, JobsOhio Beverage System, by selling bonds that used future liquor sales profits as collateral. JobsOhio has a lease with the state to run its liquor operations.

In Yost’s view, the money was intrinsically linked to the state and its monopoly on liquor sales, therefore it should be subject to audit.

The Kasich administration and Jobs Ohio view the money raised from the bond sale as private. JobsOhio paid the state a fee to operate the liquor business. It sold bonds privately while operating that business.

Yost, who was unavailable for comment Wednesday, caused a further stir when he suggested in an interview that state law gave him the authority to look at all of a private company’s books while auditing its handling of public money. He added, as a practical matter, that he would not do that.

That prompted letters from several business growth and development groups that asked the General Assembly to settle the issue in a broader context before it hurt job development in the state.

They said that a lack of clarity on the scope of the auditor’s authority could hurt economic development.

Marty McGann, a vice president for the Greater Cleveland Partnership, said his organization, the state’s largest chamber of commerce, supported the amendment.

“Business leaders noticed when the auditor outlined his broad authority in this matter,” McGann told a House committee Wednesday. “Left unaddressed, the threat alone could have a significant negative impact on economic development and investment in Ohio. This amendment solves the problem.”

The Cleveland Clinic’s Oliver C. Henkel Jr., via a letter dated Wednesday, said the Clinic also supported the amendment.

"Providing clarity alleviates the kind of uncertainty that could be debilitating to not-for-profit and private sectors,” wrote Henkel, the Clinic’s chief external affairs officer. “The amendment eliminates the uncertainty ...”

The change approved Wednesday makes clear that revenues earned by private companies, even if they are doing business as a result of a leasing or franchise agreement with the state, are private revenues.

And it specifically identifies liquor profits for JobsOhio as private. Taxes collected for the state from the sale of liquor would remain subject to audit, but not the profits.

The auditor will get to check JobsOhio annually to be sure it has policies and procedures in place to meet its statutory requirements. And he will have input on the selection of an outside accounting firm for an annual audit of JobsOhio. But the audit will be done privately.

The proposal arose Wednesday morning in a House committee as an amendment to other legislation that dealt with the state auditor’s office. That bill, which had broad support, had already been approved by the Senate.

Democrats in the committee complained. The proposal was a surprise to them, and they wanted more time to look at it. Yost, who also had not seen the amendment, said through a representative that he would like the chance to testify before the committee voted and asked for a delay.

But majority Republicans approved it, sending the bill to the full House.

Wednesday afternoon the debate continued there, with Democrats arguing it was “a bad deal for the state of Ohio,” as Rep. John Patrick Carney said.

Democrats argued that state liquor revenues, by their nature, were public money and that the state needed to be able to be able to track the success of the investment of that public money.

“There was no water into wine moment,” Carney said, that turned public money into private funds.

Republicans, though, countered that Democrats were rehashing a policy debate that was settled when legislation creating JobsOhio was approved and made law.

Ultimately, their rhetoric could have a chilling effect that would do just one thing, Rep. Lynn Wachtmann suggested. “That one thing is kill jobs in the state. Kill jobs.”

The bill now goes back to the Senate for concurrence before it would go to the governor.