JACKSON, Miss. (AP) -- Gov. Haley Barbour's spokesman says the governor intends to sign a bill that would provide $19 million of incentives to keep a Cooper Tire & Rubber Co. manufacturing plant in northeastern Mississippi.
Senators on Wednesday accepted minor changes the House had made to the bill.
The Ohio-based company would receive a $7 million building, a $6 million loan and a rebate of up to $6 million for its payroll taxes.
Cooper Tire announced in December it would close its plant in Albany, Ga., and keep open its plants in Findlay, Ohio; Texarkana, Ark.; and Tupelo, Miss.
The legislation requires the company to maintain at least its current 1,200 jobs in Mississippi. Lawmakers said the Cooper Tire jobs pay about $45,000 a year.
