Code of Virginia
§ 2.2-2720. The Center
for Rural Virginia; purpose.
The Center for Rural Virginia,
hereinafter referred to as "the
Center," is hereby created as an
independent nonprofit local
entity without political
subdivision status, for the
purpose of sustaining economic
growth in the rural areas of the
Commonwealth and lessening the
burdens of government through
the activities prescribed in
subsection B of
§
2.2-2723.(2004,
cc.
938,
964;
2005,c.703
Virginia Rural
Center was established as a
result of Virginia Rural
Prosperity Commission
recommendations.
The Rural Virginia Prosperity
Commission was created by the
Virginia General Assembly in
January, 2000 (House Joint
Resolution 129 and Senate Joint
Resolution 140, Appendix A).
The legislation establishing the
18member Commission instructed
it to “undertake a detailed
analysis of rural Virginia
economies and recommend flexible
but targeted state policies
which, combined with local
efforts, will help foster
sustainable economic growth in
Virginia’s rural areas.”
The recommendations the
Commission offers are a
package—no single recommendation
alone is likely to be a silver
bullet. The problems are too
complex to be solved with simple
solutions. Yet if all of the
recommendations are implemented,
the odds for success are very
promising. It will take time to
turn things around. The
Commission is confident that
given effective implementation
of the entire package and some
patience, these recommendations
can provide a new and bright
economic future not just for
rural Virginia but for everyone
in the Commonwealth
The recommendations
address six strategic needs
for prosperity in rural
Virginia
1
Capital Access: No place can
prosper without
entrepreneurs, and
entrepreneurs require access
to capital. Ways are needed
to make more credit
available to rural
entrepreneurs who have good
ideas but little collateral.
The capital access program
Virginia already has in
place needs to be expanded
to reach rural areas.
2
Workforce Training and Adult
Education: Rural Virginia
suffers from having too many
adults without high school
diplomas and with inadequate
opportunities for customized
worker training and
retraining. Without a high
school diploma or GED,
workforce training may be of
little value. The community
college system must be made
a partner in a major effort
to upgrade the human capital
in rural Virginia.
3
Digital Telecommunications
Infrastructure: For
understandable economic
reasons, the private sector
has been slow to provide
high-speed, broadband
digital telecommunications
access to much of rural
Virginia. Returns on
investment are much higher
if they are made in or
between urban centers. Yet
without such access, rural
communities have no
possibility of overcoming
the disadvantages of
remoteness. Public/private
partnerships are needed to
ensure that rural Virginia
is not left behind in
acquiring access to digital
telecommunication
opportunities.
1
Tiered Incentives for
Investment in Lagging Rural
Areas:
Several neighboring states
provide tiered tax
incentives aimed at
offsetting some of the
inherent disadvantages of
being remote and lacking the
critical mass needed to
sustain economic growth. A
tiered incentive program,
tailored to Virginia’s
needs, is essential for
communities in rural
Virginia to compete
successfully with places in
neighboring states.
2
Long-Term Institutional
Support:
Local grassroots leadership
in rural Virginia must be
enhanced and nourished. A
focal point for rural
concerns must be established
through new public/private
sector partners in the form
of a Center for Rural
Virginia.
Create a cabinet-level
Secretary of Agriculture:
Virginia is one of few
states that does not have a
cabinet-level secretary of
agriculture. A prosperous
agriculture will not be
enough to assure a
prosperous rural Virginia.
Yet a prosperous and
innovative agriculture is
important for economic
health in rural Virginia,
and achieving such requires
that agriculture be
represented at the highest
levels of the executive
branch of the Commonwealth
government.
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