SPRINGFIELD - Springfield-area lawmakers say if Gov. Rod Blagojevich doesn't reconsider his plan to ship 110 transportation workers to Southern Illinois, they may take legal action to prevent the move.

State Sen. Larry Bomke and state Reps. Raymond Poe and Rich Brauer threatened to file suit against the Blagojevich administration Friday claiming "Springfield is the state seat and operations should be operated out of the city of Springfield."

"We think we found something in statute we might be able to hang our hats on which may require legislation to move them," said Bomke, R-Springfield. "I'm not sure how far we could get with that."

Earlier this month, Blagojevich announced plans to move 148 Illinois Department of Transportation jobs toward state Sen. Gary Forby's district in southern Illinois. The governor's goal was to save money and spark the region's economy, he said.

Since then that number has whittled down to about 110 jobs in the Division of Traffic Safety and the stated reason for the move has shifted away from financial relief toward economic stimulation.

"Moving to Southern Illinois is part of an overall effort to operate agencies more efficiently," said IDOT spokesman Brian Williamsen.

Springfield lawmakers are hopeful that Blagojevich ultimately decides against moving the jobs, either because of sheer sympathy for the state employees or new jobs are created by passage of a proposed statewide construction plan.

"Once the governor becomes aware of how families are being affected, the fact that there's room here in Springfield, that it's going to cost more money to move them, hopefully he'll reverse that decision," said Brauer, R-Petersburg. "Yes, filing a lawsuit is an option."

Williamsen said lawmakers don't have a leg to stand on because state law allows agencies to have state offices outside of Springfield.

He added that passage of a construction plan and the move are "unrelated issues."

If a suit ultimately is filed, it will not occur before the Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability hosts a pair of public hearings and makes a recommendation on the matter.

The hearings have yet to be scheduled but likely will take place sometime in July or August.

Blagojevich and downstate lawmakers discussed the move last week, but Brauer said they made little headway in convincing the governor to stop the move.

"We were able to agree on disagreeing," said Brauer. "I think that the important thing is that we obviously have that ability to have that accessibility which we haven't had in the past."