Category: Economic development
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Grant Process Tightens at VEDP
Tomorrow Governor Ralph Northam travels to the coalfields for what is billed as a major economic development announcement, and steps have been taken so that four years from now he won’t cringe when shown the old photos. For the past year the Virginia Economic Development Partnership (VEDP) has been doing additional due diligence on companies…
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It Works for Georgia, Why Not for Virginia?
When former New Yorker Marty Stefanelli and his wife moved from West Palm Beach, Fla. to Blue Ridge, Ga., they went from paying about $20,000 a year in real estate taxes to $3,000. The couple still maintains a residence in New York, where they pay about $30,000 a year in taxes, but Stefanelli plans to…
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Va Beach Snags Third Trans-Atlantic Cable
South Atlantic Express International Ltd. plans to build a high-speed data cable to connect South Africa with Virginia Beach. The third trans-Atlantic cable terminating in Hampton Road, it would provide yet another stimulus to Virginia’s burgeoning data center industry. As a bonus, ACA International will relocate its headquarters from Northern Virginia to Virginia Beach. The…
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Development Grants Performance Data
About ten days ago during a discussion of Virginia economic development programs I posted a link to the annual report of the Virginia Economic Development Partnership, but I knew there was a something out there with even more detailed performance data. In response to a legislative mandate pushed by a former legislator, Jimmie Massie of…
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Virginia, Maryland and D.C. Collaborating on Amazon Pitch
As much as Maryland Governor Larry Hogan wants Amazon.com to locate its HQ2 in Montgomery County, he’d be delighted if the tech giant picked anywhere in the Washington metropolitan area. Accordingly. Maryland, D.C., and Virginia are working to pitch Greater Washington to Amazon as a unified region, he said Wednesday. Hogan’s remarks, reports the Washington…
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Virginia Small Business Rating: Fair to Middling
Yesterday I opined on the critical importance of tax rates in influencing the flow of corporate and human capital between the states (“Supply Siders Like Virginia’s Economic Outlook“). But I made the point that taxes are hardly the only factor driving economic growth. Another important variable is entrepreneurial vitality — the ability of states and…
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Supply Siders Like Virginia’s Economic Outlook
Virginia’s economic performance has been mediocre over the past 10 years compared to that of other states, finds the 2018 edition of “Rich States, Poor States,” but the Commonwealth’s public policy mix gives it an economic outlook rank of 10th best in the nation. The “Rich States, Poor States” economic competitiveness rating reflects the analytical…
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Leveraging Offshore Gas Drilling to Build Offshore Wind
The Trump administration is opening up the East Coast of the United States to oil and gas drilling, but it’s not clear how much enthusiasm there is. A recent sale of drilling rights in the Gulf of Mexico has attracted only “moderate” interest, reports the Financial Times, an indication that the oil & gas industry…
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Subsidies for Thee, but Not for Me
The economy of the Historic Triangle — Williamsburg, Yorktown and Jamestown — depends heavily upon heritage tourism. Visitor spending reached $1.08 billionand employed 11,000 workers in 2012, according to one report. But last year tourism and hospitality officials were complaining that growth had stagnated. So, what do you do to boost the region’s No. 1…
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Here’s an Idea, Let Maryland Have Amazon
Maryland legislators approved Wednesday an $8.5 billion incentive package to lure Amazon’s second headquarters to Montgomery County. Governor Larry Hogan (R), who proposed the plan, is expected to sign the bill. I love it! This is the best of all worlds for Virginia. Amazon has estimated that the headquarters will invest $5 billion and employ…
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5G Wireless: Build, Baby, Build!
The latest wave of wireless innovation is upon us — fifth generation wireless, otherwise known as 5G. The technology will multiply download speeds by 10 times or more, allowing wireless carriers to compete with cable companies for high-speed Internet access. As former FCC trade commissioner Robert McDowell writes in the Wall Street Journal today: 5G…
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Taxes, Data Centers, and Republican Party Politics
Data centers account for 92% of all new capital investment in Prince William County between 2012 and 2017. Now Corey Stewart, chairman of the Board of Supervisors and Republican candidate for the U.S. Senate, wants to raise taxes on them. Stewart, who is running as a Donald Trump-style populist, proposes to use the $21 million…
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Is Mo’ Money the Solution to the STEM Job Shortage?
Speaking at the Charlottesville Regional Chamber of Commerce yesterday, Governor Ralph Northam enumerated the main challenges he sees for Virginia’s business environment: diversifying regional economies, creating more opportunity in rural communities, providing dedicated funding for the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, and reforming state taxes and regulatory structures. Reports the Daily Progress: The Democratic governor tied most of…
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What Is a College Degree Worth?
Bryan Caplan doesn’t just think outside the box when it comes to higher education. He stomps on the box and mashes it into the ground. How much of what college students learn in class do they retain later in life? Remarkably little, says Bryan Caplan, an economics professor at George Mason University. And thereupon lies…
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U.S. Electricity Demand Falls Again
U.S. electricity consumption fell 2.1% in 2017, according to Oilprice.com. As energy-efficiency measures have taken hold, electricity sales have declined seven in the past 10 years. Such numbers do not bode well for electric utilities banking on increased demand growth to justify construction of new power plants. A big question is the extent to which…