Chamber Briefings 
July 2017
Upcoming 
Events

September 28, 2017
Greater Richmond Convention Center

SAVE THE DATE!

Virginia Conference on World Trade
October 17-18, 2017
The Williamsburg Lodge

Virginia Economic Summit
December 1, 2017
The Williamsburg Lodge
Member News & Events








President's Message

This month, two major state rankings surveys were released. Business Facilities released its annual "Best of the Best" report, which identifies  the leading states in economic development and recognizes their successful growth sectors. The report ranked Virginia 4th this year - up from 9th in 2016 - and identified cybersecurity as a potential high-growth sector for the Commonwealth. 

CNBC also released its annual "Top States for Business" survey. Virginia came in 9th this year, up from 13th in 2016. While we are pleased to see Virginia in the top 10, a lot of states are also working to improve their national rankings and Virginia still has work to do to get back to the top spot. 

As we continue to collect data and input for Blueprint Virginia, state rankings such as these give us better insight into the specific ways we can improve our economy. We are pleased to be working closely with the Virginia Economic Development Partnership on identifying specific strategies for improvement, which will be incorporated into the final Blueprint Virginia 2025 plan. Over the rest of the summer, our team will be focused on finalizing these recommendations.

Over the next few weeks, we'll also be meeting with the candidates for Governor of Virginia to share some preliminary results from our polling of nearly 5,000 business leaders from around the Commonwealth. The final Blueprint 2025 plan will be presented to the Governor-elect on December 1st at the Virginia Economic Summit. We hope you'll mark your calendar!

September 28, 2017
Greater Richmond Convention Center

The 2017 Virginia Workforce Conference will bring together leading educators, employers, human resources managers, veteran groups, and policymakers to explore solutions to providing greater access to in-demand skills. 
 
This year's conference will focus on the workforce pipeline and helping employers do a better job recruiting, hiring, and retaining highly-skilled veterans and translating their training to private sector employment. 

Early bird tickets: $95

Hosted by

Co-Hosts
SHRM

Presenting Sponsor
altria
Presenting Bank Sponsor
 Platinum Sponsor

THANK YOU TO ALL OF OUR SPONSORS!
Virginia Moves Up to 7th in CNBC Rankings of Best States for Business

In July, CNBC released its annual "Top States for Business" rankings. This year, Virginia came in 7th, up from 13th in 2016.

CNBC scores all 50 states on more than 60 measures of competitiveness, developed with input from a broad and diverse array of business and policy experts, official government sources, the  CNBC Global CFO Council ,  YPO  and the states themselves. States receive points based on their rankings in each metric. Metrics are then separated into 10 broad categories, weighted based on how frequently each is used as a selling point in state economic development marketing materials. 

For a breakdown of Virginia's rankings, see below:

To view the full Top States for Business 2017 rankings, click here.
Virginia Ranks 4th in Business Facilities "Best of the Best" Report

On July 20th, Business Facilities released their 13th annual Rankings Report, an analysis tracking the leading states in economic development and recognizing their successful growth sectors amidst the dynamic nature of their industries. This year, Virginia was ranked 4th, up from 9th in 2016. The report further identifies the Old Dominion as 4th in cybersecurity growth potential, 7th for education, 7th in broadband, having the 8th best infrastructure, and 10th in offshore energy.

Of note in the report, Northern Virginia ranks as number one for data center hubs, trumping Silicon Valley Due to emerging cybersecurity hubs in Fairfax County.

To view the entire report and rankings, click here .
EnergySure coalition releases statement on the FERC's Final Environmental Report for the Atlantic Coast Pipeline

The following is a joint statement on behalf of the EnergySure coalition by Barry DuVal, President & CEO, Virginia Chamber of Commerce, and Dennis Martire, Mid-Atlantic Regional Manager, Laborers' International Union of North America, on the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's Final Environmental Impact Statement for the proposed Atlantic Coast Pipeline:

"After almost three years of extensive study by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) and other agencies, we are encouraged by the favorable conclusions of the final environmental report released today. Never before has an infrastructure project in our region received so much scrutiny by so many agencies and offered so many opportunities for public input. We have total confidence in the process, and we are convinced the project will be built with all necessary protections for the environment and public safety.

There is an urgent public need for this project. Public utilities in our region urgently need new infrastructure to provide electricity and home heating to their millions of customers and support the growth of manufacturing and other new industries.

The Atlantic Coast Pipeline promises to be an economic game changer for the entire region. The project's construction will generate tens of thousands of new jobs and stimulate billions of dollars in economic activity. Once operational, the pipeline will produce tens of millions of dollars in new annual tax revenue for local governments and lower energy costs for all consumers in the region.

This project is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to revitalize our region's manufacturing economy. Economic developers across our region are hard at work recruiting manufacturers and other new industries, but the region's existing pipelines are fully tapped and unable to support them. The Atlantic Coast Pipeline will bring the new supplies of natural gas we need to attract these industries and the thousands of new, good-paying jobs they will create.

The project is also a critical element of the region's transition toward a cleaner energy future. The transition from coal to cleaner-burning natural gas has already allowed our region to make drastic cuts in carbon emissions, and the Atlantic Coast Pipeline will only accelerate that progress in the years to come. Natural gas also serves as a companion to renewable energy sources because it provides the reliable, around-the-clock backup power utilities need to keep the lights on and the economy running when renewables are not producing electricity.

We are encouraged by this very positive step forward, and we urge the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to approve this vitally important project." 

To view the full EnergySure statement, click here. 
2017 Virginia Workplace Readiness Skills Survey
The University of Virginia Weldon Cooper Center for Public Service has been asked to administer a Workplace Readiness Skills survey.  Participation in this important survey will help the Virginia Department of Education (VDOE), Office of Career, Technical, and Adult Education shape future education policy and ensure that the Workplace Readiness Skills curriculum in our public schools is up-to-date and aligned with the needs of today's employers.

The survey should take less than 10 minutes to complete , and your answers will remain completely confidential.
 
Click here to take the survey. 
 
If you have any questions, please contact Kathryn Piper Crespin, Research and Policy Analyst - Demographics Research Group, Weldon Cooper Center for Public Service at  
[email protected] or 434-982-5582. 
Virginia Ranked Among Top 10 Nationally in Survey of Minority-owned Businesses

On July 13th, the U.S. Census Bureau's 2015 Annual Survey of Entrepreneurs revealed a nationwide increase in minority-owned employers. Virginia ranked 10th among the 50 states and the District of Columbia in percentage of total employers that are minority owned. 

The survey is a demographic snapshot analyzing ethnicity, gender, race, and veteran status of employer businesses. The rankings, determined by the percentage of total businesses that are minority-owned, placed Virginia as ten out of the 50 states and the District of Columbia with 21.4% of businesses owned by minorities, a considerable rise from previous years.  

On the national level, minority-owned businesses rose 4.9 percent in 2015 to 996,248. Additionally, women-owned firms increased by 3 percent from 2014, and one quarter of the one million firms in 2015 is minority-owned. Hawaii and California are the number one and two leaders among the 50 states with 55.9 percent and 32.6 percent of minority-owned businesses.   

To read more, click here.
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, Director of Communications and Program Manager, at [email protected] or 804-237-1457.
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