Roanoke Regional Chamber
LEGISLATIVE NEWSLETTER
                                                                                                 July 1, 2016

POLICY EVENTS 
UPDATE: POSTPONED POLICY IN THE PLAZA
DUE TO A SCHEDULING CONFLICT WE HAVE POSTPONED THE POLICY IN THE PLAZA EVENT THAT WAS SCHEDULED FOR WEDNESDAY, JULY 6TH. WE PLAN TO SEEK ALTERNATIVE DATES FOR THE EVENT AND WILL KEEP YOU POSTED.


Join us for a Public Safety Forum  
WITH
ATTORNEY GENERAL MARK HERRING 
FRIDAY, JULY 22 7:30-9:00 AM 
VIRGINIA WESTERN FRALIN CENTER 

TRANSPORTATION 
The first wave of Virginia funded transportation projects have been scored. Formerly called HB2, the data-driven scoring process now goes by SMART SCALE. Last year over 100 localities, planning organizations and other stakeholders submitted $7 billion in projects. Earlier this month the Commonwealth Transportation Board (CTB) approved $1.7 billion to fully fund 163 projects across Virginia in a Six-Year improvement program. Funded projects can be found  here under Smart Scale Project Scores -- projects in our region are under the Salem VDOT District. Victories for our region were the funding of the S-Curves on Route 460 and I-81 North Auxiliary Lane exit 141-143.

Worth Reading In Transportation Policy News: 
The Chamber supports alignment of transportation funding to meet the economic developments needs in our region. 
LEGISLATIVE 

Hundreds of New Virginia laws are set to go into effect today, including many of the bills that the Roanoke Regional Chamber advocated for in the 2016 General Assembly. A few of the highlights include: 
If you are interested in the status of a particular bill from our earlier newsletters and know the bill name you can search it here. If you want us to take a look please email [email protected]
FEDERAL

On June 22nd Congressmen Morgan Griffith and Bob Goodlatte announced that the Office of the Inspector General confirmed the review process of the consolidation of the Roanoke Processing and Distribution Center into Greensboro. Issues and complaints regarding mail service in our region have skyrocketed for businesses and we appreciate our members that participated in our postal survey this past spring. The Roanoke Regional Chamber contacted our delegation regarding this issue and applaud their efforts. 

Worth Reading In Federal Policy News:
WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT

 

The U.S. Department of Labor announced a $200,000 planning grant for the expansion of apprenticeships in Virginia. This is the first phase in a $90 million dollar federal grant investment to double apprenticeships over the next three years. Federal dollars will help Virginia work towards Governor McAuliffe's goal of 50,000 STEM-H credentials by 2018 and 400,000 workforce credentials by 2030. The planning grant will require coordination between businesses, trade associations, chambers of commerce, school divisions, higher education and non-profits across the state. 

 

Worth Reading in Workforce Development: 

The Chamber believes that an educated, trained and qualified workers contribute in great measure to the economic strength of the Commonwealth. Employees able to meet the challenges and opportunities of doing business in this century and to fuel growth are critical to our region. 
CAMPAIGN CORNER 
STAY CONNECTED:

Josh Baumgartner
VP Public Policy Roanoke Regional Chamber 
[email protected]
540.983.0700