MIAMI -- The state Senate could take a floor vote Thursday regarding a new ballpark for the Florida Marlins that could keep the team in South Florida.

Lawmakers approved the amendment by a voice vote late Wednesday.

Marlins President David Samson and other team executives are lobbying to qualify for state assistance.

The amendment would provide a $60 million subsidy for a new stadium in Hialeah, the state's fifth-most populous city located just a few miles northwest of downtown Miami.

In November, Samson announced that Major League Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig had given the team permission to consider offers from other cities.

The announcement came after years of negotiations between the team, the city of Miami and Miami-Dade County to finance a new stadium. The Marlins requested a retractable-roof stadium at the site of the Orange Bowl, but could not come to an agreement on the funding.

There were also reports that Miami Dolphins owner Wayne Huizenga, who originally owned the Marlins before selling the team in 1997, had offered land and money to the financially strapped team to build a new ballpark on the property next to Dolphin Stadium, but that offer no longer appears to be on the table.

Officials in San Antonio, Texas, are vying for the team, but a judge in San Antonio imposed a May 15 deadline for the Marlins to commit to relocating there.

Bexar County, Texas, officials have offered to put up $200 million toward an estimated $300 million ballpark if voters approve extending a tax on hotel and car rentals. But in order for voters to consider extending the tax in November, the deadline to get the issue on the ballot is Aug. 15.

Samson has said he hopes the team can remain in South Florida.

In January, the Marlins met with Hialeah officials to discuss the chances of a new ballpark being built for the team there.

"We all realize the importance of keeping a Major League Baseball team in South Florida," Hialeah Mayor Julio Robaina said. "The city of Hialeah stepped up, put up the land. The county has stepped up and put up the money necessary to do that. There's been a total cooperation from the county commission, the city council, the city of Hialeah, and now we see the state of Florida step up and say, 'We want to be part of this. We want to be good partners on this also.'"

If the bill passes both chambers it would go to Gov. Jeb Bush for final approval.

Marlins officials have been eager to get a stadium of their own. The team has shared a stadium with the Dolphins since the franchise began play in 1993.

The Marlins won the World Series in 1997 and 2003.