INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Cities, counties and towns would receive $800 million from the lease of the Indiana Toll Road to spend on local road projects under a bill endorsed by a key House Committee on Monday.

The Democrat-controlled House Ways and Means Committee approved the bill, which now goes to the full House, on a 15-8 party-line vote. Democrats say the bill would create thousands of new jobs quickly during hard economic times.

"We have families who are truly facing disaster," said Democratic Rep. Terri Austin of Anderson, the bill's author.

But the administration of Republican Gov. Mitch Daniels and many GOP lawmakers say the bill would simply shift toll lease money away from major projects already planned or under construction.

Those projects could include improving access between Fort Wayne and the Ohio state line and completing a long-awaited stretch from Lafayette to Fort Wayne with the Hoosier Heartland Corridor.

Under the U.S. House version of a federal stimulus package moving through Congress, Indiana stands to receive $5 billion, with $750 million of that set aside for infrastructure spending. Austin said the $750 million could replace the dollars shifted from the toll road lease fund to local road projects.

Austin's bill would dole out the money to counties, cities and towns through a formula based on population. Eighty percent of those employed on the local projects would have to be Indiana residents, and local governments could pay more to ensure that contracts go to Indiana companies as opposed to lower bidders from other states.

Rep. Scott Pelath, D-Michigan City, also said that all steel used in the local projects would have to be from Indiana. He said the provisions would ensure that most of the money would help Indiana residents and the state's economy.

Republican Rep. Jeff Espich of Uniondale said he was all for helping Indiana residents and the economy, but paying a lot more to ensure that contracts go to Indiana companies was wasteful. He and other Republicans also said the Indiana-based provisions could result in other states not contracting with Indiana companies.

Besides money for local projects, the bill would steer $200 million in toll road lease money to the Indiana Department of Transportation in hopes the agency could leverage more matching federal highway dollars.

To appease concerns of some members, none of the $1 billion diverted from the toll road lease fund could include money already set aside or planned for future use on the extension of Interstate 69 from Evansville to Indianapolis.

Rep. Steven Stemler, D-Jeffersonville, noted that provision and said he would seek an amendment before the full House that would give similar protection to two planned bridges between Indiana and Louisville, Ky.

Rep. Randy Borror, R-Fort Wayne, suggested to Austin that he also should get an assurance that a highway project in northeastern Indiana be protected.

Austin said there was a danger of the legislation becoming a so-called pork-barrel bill — one laden with spending on lawmakers' pet projects. Her bill as initially introduced would have steered money to more than 20 specified projects, but they are not included in the current version.