McDonnell focuses on job creation in visit to Southside

"McDonnell focuses on job creation in visit to southside(Via Martinsville Daily)At Morning Press Conference Unveils: "Economic Vision for Rural Virginia:
Good Jobs Everywhere"Plan Includes Coordinated Statewide Effort to Bring New Economic
Opportunity and Prosperity to Rural Virginia-RIDGEWAY- Bob McDonnell, Republican gubernatorial nominee and former
Attorney General of Virginia, today unveiled a comprehensive plan to bring
new jobs and more opportunities to rural Virginia. He announced his plans
during a press conference held at Blue Ridge Aquaculture in Henry County,
where the unemployment rate is 15.4%. Ridgeway is just outside
Martinsville, a city struggling with a 21.6% unemployment rate, the highest
in the state. McDonnell's plan emphasizes the need for a coordinated
statewide effort to spur growth in rural Virginia, noting the importance of
putting individuals in Virginia's rural cities and counties at the helm of
these efforts. The plan highlights the need for bold action to overcome
current economic challenges, and builds off of plans McDonnell has already
unveiled relating to small businesses, education and energy. The Highlights of Bob's "Economic Vision for Rural Virginia: Good Jobs
Everywhere" Plan include:Making Virginia the best state in America in which to open a small
businessEstablishing a HUBZone Empowerment Contracting program to spur job
growth and economic development in historically underutilized business
zonesDesignating one Deputy Secretary of Commerce and Trade to focus solely
on rural economic developmentCreating a Governor's Rural Virginia Taskforce
to ensure cooperation among agenciesFully utilizing the Center for Rural
VirginiaProviding a $1,000 tax credit per job to businesses that create 50
new jobs, or 25 new jobs in economically distressed areasExpanding use of
the Governor's Opportunity Fund by roughly doubling the funding available
and broadening Fund rules to allow companies that generate additional state
and local tax revenue to qualifyEstablishing academic opportunities in K-12
and higher education that train a workforce in transferable skills, and
expanding existing programs to every area of rural VirginiaDeveloping a
comprehensive infrastructure planMaking Southwest and Southside Virginia
the nation's hub for traditional and alternative energy research and
developmentPromoting farm preservation, championing agriculture issues, and
reviewing over-burdensome regulations and Executive OrdersFighting for the
permanent elimination of the Death Tax at the federal levelSpeaking about his proposals to launch a coordinated statewide effort to
bring economic revitalization to rural Virginia, McDonnell remarked, "Most
Virginians have been impacted by this economic downturn and we are all
anxious about what the future holds. Many of our rural communities have
been hit the hardest. Here in Henry County unemployment tops 15.4% and in
neighboring Martinsville the unemployment rate is the highest in the state
at 21.6%. The people of Ridgeway, and all of rural Virginia, are hard
working, innovative, and talented. What they need are the new jobs and
opportunities that will allow them to achieve their dreams, and grow our
economy. From manufacturing to dairy farms, I know that rural Virginia will
be a key part of the economic resurgence that we will create in the
Commonwealth. I will be a jobs governor. Working together, across party and
regional lines, we will bring new jobs and greater opportunities to rural
Virginia.McDonnell continued, "In my administration I will enact specific policies
geared toward job creation in rural Virginia. We will designate one Deputy
Secretary of Commerce and Trade to focus exclusively on rural Virginia.
This individual will have one simple mission: help keep the jobs we have,
and create the new jobs we need, in our rural areas. We will provide tax
credits for employers who go into our hard hit rural areas and create jobs
fo"