WASHINGTON — Gov. Bob Taft on Thursday asked the White House and Congress to make transportation projects and business tax breaks priorities of a stimulus package to help the nation's economy recover from terrorist attacks.

        In letters to President Bush and the state's congressional delegation, Mr. Taft said he supports $5 billion in new federal transportation money with an estimated $200 million devoted to Ohio. He said the aid would add money to local economies and improve crucial infrastructure.

        “Replacing these systems with the assistance of federal funds would take a huge burden off our financially strapped local governments,” he said. The Republican governor also recommended repeal of a business surcharge on unemployment taxes that he believes is a barrier to hiring new employees.

        Mr. Taft's suggestions, drafted after discussions with economic development groups in Ohio, come as U.S. lawmakers consider a $75 billion economic-stimulus package.

        The White House and Congress already have agreed to $40 billion in emergency aid and a $15 billion bailout for the airline industry since the Sept. 11 attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.

        President Bush called for $3 billion in emergency grants Thursday to help workers unemployed because of the attacks afford health care, receive income support and obtain job training. Another $11 billion would be made available so states could help laid-off low-income workers receive health care.

        The president also proposed extending unemployment benefits — 26 weeks in most states — by 13 weeks for workers in states directly affected by the attacks or in states where the unemployment rate has increased by more than 30 percent since Sept. 11.

        Rep. John Boehner, R-Ohio, chairman of the House Education and the Workforce Committee, said Mr. Bush's requests are necessary to help workers but would not stretch the federal government.

        “It provides the flexibility and resources state and local officials need to close unanticipated holes in the emergency system,” he said.

        Rep. Rob Portman, a Terrace Park Republican and House liaison to the White House, said lawmakers likely would debate the stimulus package next week with hopes of moving swiftly toward an agreement. The package likely will focus on tax relief for individuals and corporations to encourage consumer spending and business investment.

        “We're still in the information-gathering stage,” he said. “But I think it will be along the lines of what the president has proposed.”

        In his letters, Mr. Taft urged the government to expand the Small Business Administration's disaster loan program to cover manufacturers, travel agents or other businesses that have lost revenue because of the attacks. The government also could create “technology zones” — similar to the empowerment zones in low-income neighborhoods — where technology companies would receive tax breaks to encourage growth and development.

        The governor recommended an increase in the investment tax credit, a return of the meal and entertainment deduction, and accelerated depreciation for business equipment. He also suggested more money for worker training, expanded unemployment benefits and a reduction in the withholding tax.

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