Virginia Chamber of Commerce
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Chamber Briefings 
December 2015
Upcoming Events

January 8, 2016
noon-2:00 p.m.
Greater Richmond Convention Center

Chamber Day at the Capitol & Old Dominion Assembly
January 27, 2016
Omni Richmond Hotel
Member News







 
President's Message

Barry DuVal
On December 4th, we hosted over 700 business leaders in Williamsburg for the 6th Annual Virginia Economic Summit, where we released the inaugural State of the Commonwealth Report. Also that day, we were pleased to hear from a panel of Virginia executives on prospects and challenges to growing a business in Virginia; a policy briefing on the US Chamber's 2015 Jobs, Growth and Opportunity Agenda; and United States Senator Tim Kaine. To view photos and videos from the event, please click here.

Governor McAuliffe yesterday released his FY 2016-2017 budget. We've summarized some of the highlights of his announcement below. We will continue to follow the budget process and keep you updated as more information becomes available.

After the holidays, we will be in full swing preparing for the 2016 General Assembly session. We hope that you will make plans to join us on January 27th for Chamber Day at the Capitol and the Old Dominion Assembly Legislative Reception, two of our signature annual events. More information can be found below.

Best wishes to all of you for a wonderful holiday season and happy new year!
Governor McAuliffe Announces $100 Billion FY2016-2017 Budget

Yesterday, December 17, 2015, Governor Terry McAuliffe introduced his budget for Fiscal Year 2016-2017. This will be the first $100 billion budget in Virginia's history. Below is a list of items in Governor McAuliffe's budget that we'd like to highlight:

Trade: 
  • The Chamber was pleased that the Governor highlighted our "Virginia International Trade Profile," the first-of-its-kind analysis of Virginia's exports and their impact on our economy in his speech. The Governor agreed with our findings that if we are going to grow and diversify our economy, international trade must be front and center.
  • This budget includes $3.65 million annually for international trade and export programs, redoubling the Commonwealth's focus on finding new markets for Virginia's goods and services.
Education and Workforce Development:
  • The Governor's plan will include $1 billion in new investment for public schools, colleges, and universities.
  • The budget includes $25 million for Virginia's community colleges over two years to help meet the administration's goal of awarding 50,000 STEM-H credentials annually by the end of this administration and more than 460,000 credentials by 2030.
  • The budget has $7.8 million over the biennium to connect veterans to educational resources, workforce training and support services they need to make a speedy and seamless transition into great civilian careers. This includes funding for a pilot program that will empower former military combat medics and corpsmen to work in health care careers while they earn the appropriate civilian credentials.
Bond Package:
  • Higher Education Research and Development: The Governor is proposing a bond package of $2.43 billion that will include projects at Virginia's four-year institutions and community colleges to support research, building classroom capacity, and addressing campus infrastructure needs in STEM-related fields. The budget will also contain competitive grants to promote public-private initiatives for research activities and establish centers of excellence on Virginia's college campuses in order to attract top talent to the Commonwealth.
  • Strengthen the Port of Virginia: The bond package will include $350 million for enhancements for the Port Authority to strengthen the capacity and operations at Norfolk International Terminals, and provide for the anticipated growth in cargo resulting from the widening of the Panama Canal.
Economic Development:
  • The Governor included $38.9 million to partner with Go Virginia as it fosters regional collaboration among businesses, government and education leaders to help achieve shared economic goals.
  • $2.4 million over the next two years to strengthen our competitive position in the battle with New York for a $1 billion electron ion collider project through Jefferson Labs.
Transportation:
  • The Port:  In addition to the bond package, the budget includes new operations and maintenance funds needed to address higher traffic volumes at the Port.
  • Dulles International Airport:  The budget includes $50 million in non-general funds over two years to help Dulles International Airport attract additional carriers and retain existing ones. Dulles serves 23 million travelers a year. It welcomes 445 weekly flights on 28 carriers from 50 international destinations. Of particular importance, the United hub at Dulles Airport supports 45,000 direct and indirect jobs in this region. Maintaining that carrier alone must be a top priority for our Commonwealth.
 
Virginia has a 2-year budget cycle and the FY 2016-2017 budget will be voted on during the General Assembly this winter.  The Chamber will keep you updated on the budget process as information becomes available.

JANUARY 27, 2016
Omni Richmond Hotel


Early bird pricing for Chamber Day ends Wednesday, December 23rd!

Chamber Day at the Capitol
 9:00 a.m.-2:00 p.m.

Chamber members and Chamber of Commerce executives from across the Commonwealth will convene at the Capitol for briefings from Virginia's top government leaders.
 
Registration Fee:
Members: $65 if registered by 12/23/15
Non-Members: $75 if registered by 12/23/15

Old Dominion Assembly Legislative Reception
6:00 p.m.-8:00 p.m.

Join more than 600 guests at one of the premier events on the legislative social calendar!
 
Registration Fee:
Members: $125
Non-Members: $135



Interested in International Expansion? Take Advantage of VITAL!
The Virginia Chamber is proud to partner with the Virginia Economic Development Partnership on VITAL, the Virginia International Trade Alliance. As a VITAL partner, our member companies have access to steeply discounted rates for international market research as well as international trade shows and international trade missions facilitated through VEDP. 
 

Click below for more information:

If you or a company that you work with is interested in learning more about VITAL, please contact Samantha Quig, Deputy Director of Communications, at s.quig@vachamber.com or 804-237-1457.
Congress Strikes a Deal on Transportation Funding
 
This month Congress reached agreement on a 5-year, $305 billion transportation bill (Fixing America's Surface Transportation Act or the FAST Act) that would increase spending to address the nation's aging and congested highways and transit systems.  The transportation deal ends a cycle of stopgap, short-term extensions that were the norm for the past seven years, which made it difficult for states to plan long-term projects.

In addition, the FAST Act includes provisions that:
  • Reauthorize the U.S. Export-Import Bank for another 4 years.
  • Speed up the review and approval of permitting for significant infrastructure and manufacturing projects.
  • Extends a pilot program that lets as many as three states toll existing interstates, they are Missouri, North Carolina and Virginia. The agreement would add a three-year deadline for Virginia to use their authority to toll interstates, or else that permission could be given to another state instead.
  • Phase out older oil tanker railroad cars and require new safety components for all rail cars transporting crude oil and flammable materials.
  • Establishes a $95 million state research grant program to test the viability of alternative highway user fees, such as mileage-based taxes.
Governor McAuliffe Launches eVA B2B Connect

On December 9, 2015, Governor Terry McAuliffe officially launched eVA B2B Connect, a new tool to allow businesses to locate other businesses for the purpose of working together to successfully compete for work with State and local government agencies.
 
"Increasing small business participation in government contracting is critical to establishing a new Virginia economy. As federal dollars continue to disappear, it is our small businesses that we will rely on more than ever to keep Virginia's economy strong," said Governor Terry McAuliffe. "Any time we can remove hurdles for our existing businesses to grow and thrive, we're putting the Commonwealth in a better position to compete on a national and global scale."
 
Virginia has led the nation in e-Procurement since 2001. The Commonwealth's nationally-recognized procurement system, eVA, is the result of a partnership between the Virginia Department of General Services and CGI Technologies and Solutions. With its U.S. headquarters in Fairfax County, CGI has 4,200 employees in Virginia, including over 500 employees at the Southwest Virginia Center for Excellence in Lebanon.
 
eVA has opened the door for tens of thousands of Virginia businesses, most of whom are small businesses, to do business with Virginia state government. Any Virginia business can now easily find out what state agencies and many localities are looking for and compete for the goods and services they are qualified to provide. And the only time a business ever pays a fee for using eVA is when they actually sell something, in which case they pay a small fee based upon the dollar value of the business they successfully competed for.
 
Virginia has now taken another major step that will make the Commonwealth a national leader in opening up public sector business opportunities for Small, Women- and Minority-owned (SWaM) businesses. This exciting new initiative is called B2B (Business to Business) Connect.
 
B2B Connect is an enhancement to eVA that will allow businesses to establish relationships with one another in order to form teams to respond to an RFP or IFB. For example: 
  • It is common for large businesses that are preparing a bid response to look for partners in order to meet SWaM requirements set forth in the bid, or to provide a specific capability or service.  This is a time-intensive effort, often resulting in a "prime" partnering with the first business(es) it can find, rather than being able to consider a large number of potential SWaM partners.
  • Likewise, small, women and minority-owned business often find themselves in the position of being the most capable business to fulfill a specific portion of a large project, but they do not have the capability to fulfill the entirety of what is needed. These SWaM businesses need a way to easily identify prime vendors that are pursuing the same bid so that they can form a successful team.
To make this possible, eVA's new B2B Connect will: 
  • Provide registered vendors the ability to identify themselves as willing to partner.
  • Provide non-registered vendors (guest vendors) the ability to identify themselves as willing to partner.
  • Provide the ability to view the list of available vendor partners for a given opportunity.
  • Provide vendors the ability to view and update the list of opportunities for which they have identified themselves as a willing partner. 
  • Provide mobile users with Business to Business Connect list capabilities.
 
To learn more about eVA and B2B Connect, visit www.eva.virginia.gov.
Labor Force Participation Rates


Source: Virginia Employment Commission, January 2015


The photo above shows labor force participation rates by county and city in 2014. To download a larger version of the image, please click here.
Free Electronic UI Claims Reporting Now Available

Developed through a strategic partnership between the U.S. Department of Labor (USDOL) and state unemployment insurance agencies, the State Information Data Exchange System (SIDES) is an electronic tool to help employers respond to state unemployment insurance (UI) requests quickly, easily, and accurately.

There are two aspects of SIDES:
  • SIDES for TPAs (Third Party Administrators) and large employers
  • SIDES E-Response
SIDES and SIDES E-Response offer employers a secure, electronic and nationally-standardized format to better anticipate and supply the data needed to respond to UI information requests, reduce follow-up phone calls and streamline UI response processes. Both are web-based systems designed to meet the unique needs of businesses large and small.
Benefits of SIDES and SIDES E-Response:

SIDES and SIDES E-Response have the potential to significantly improve the UI information exchange process. While the best option depends on the specific needs of an employer, both systems offer significant benefits:
  • Saves time and money
  • Provided for FREE
  • Reduces staff time
  • Reduces paper work
  • Helps keep UI rates as low as possible by reducing overpayments
  • Provides an electronic, nationally standardized data format
  • Includes data checks to ensure the exchange of complete and valid information
  • Provides tools for a healthier bottom line
Additional information on the new program, including how to enroll, can be found at http://www.vec.virginia.gov/employers/sides.
Nominations Open for DREAM Big Small Business of the Year 

In partnership with Sam's ClubŪ, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce is seeking nominations for the DREAM BIG Small Business of the Year.

As a leader in the business community, please take a moment to recognize the standout small businesses in your community that are creating jobs and making a difference. If you know a small business that is committed to its customers, employees, and community, please consider nominating them for the 2016 DREAM BIG Small Business of the Year Award.

There is no fee to submit a nomination, and the online nomination form takes only minutes to complete. There is no limit to the number of businesses you can nominate.

The DREAM BIG awards program recognizes companies for their dedication to the principles of free enterprise and contributions to restoring jobs and supporting economic growth. All businesses are evaluated in four key areas - business strategy, staff training and motivation, customer service, and community involvement.

The winner will receive a $10,000 cash prize and will be recognized during America's Small Business Summit, June 13-15, 2016, in Washington, D.C.


Deadline Approaching for  21st Annual Fantastic 50 Awards Nominations

April 28, 2016
Westfields Marriott-Chantilly, VA

The names of fifty of Virginia's fastest growing companies will be announced at the twenty-first annual Virginia's Fantastic Fifty Banquet.  

Program Requirements:
  • Nominees must be privately held companies headquartered in Virginia.
  • They will be ranked by four-year average growth rates (FY 2011-FY 2014).
  • Their base fiscal revenues must exceed $200,000 and their most recent fiscal revenues must be less than $200 million.
  • They must also demonstrate year-over-year positive revenue growth and positive net income in their past four fiscal years.
Note: Deadline for submitting nominations is January 8th

Nominate your company or a deserving
 client who meets these requirements here.

 

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