Northern Virginia Technology Council Announces 2016 Legislative Agenda for Virginia
Herndon, VA (PRWEB) January 05, 2016 -- On Jan. 4, the Northern Virginia Technology Council (NVTC) sent NVTC’s 2016 Legislative Agenda to all members of the Virginia General Assembly and to the governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general and senior officials of the McAuliffe administration. NVTC’s 2016 Legislative Agenda advocates policies and investments that focus on competitiveness and economic growth, STEM education and workforce, veterans’ employment, and infrastructure to ensure Virginia remains a top state for business and a global technology center.
In the agenda, NVTC emphasizes the importance of enhancing Virginia's ability to attract companies that are seeking to expand, relocate, move corporate headquarters, or establish research operations while also supporting a comprehensive "Grow Your Own" strategy for new company formation. The agenda stresses the importance of minimizing taxes and regulation; preserving right to work; and avoiding negative signals which drive private enterprise away from the Commonwealth. Additionally, the agenda seeks to grow Virginia’s technology workforce, and provide the infrastructure necessary to power the technology ecosystem by investing in targeted innovation funding initiatives. NVTC also asks legislators to continue efforts to improve infrastructure, including transportation and energy, to support economic development and help Virginia companies compete.
Specifically, NVTC’s 2016 Legislative Agenda calls for focused research, workforce and incentive investment in sectors and areas where Virginia has existing strength and the most opportunity to compete globally, including cybersecurity, data analytics, data centers, and personalized medicine. Specific initiatives include extending the sunset on Virginia’s data center sales tax incentives; adopting the workforce and education recommendations forwarded by the Virginia Cyber Security Commission; startup funding to launch a statewide big data analytics initiative; launching the Global Genomics and Bioinformatics Research Institute at the new Inova Center for Personalized Health; and funding incentive packages to attract high performing university researchers with success in commercializing their research in key areas of focus.
The agenda also calls for growing the CIT GAP Funds program; strengthening Virginia’s refundable R&D tax credit for small, innovative technology businesses; launching a new, alternative R&D tax credit to encourage larger businesses to increase their research investment in Virginia; boosting funding for Virginia’s Angel Investor Tax Credit; and supporting a new research-focused bond package, the GO Virginia initiative, and the Virginia Community College Systems' Workforce Credentials Initiative.
Click here for a full copy of NVTC's 2016 Legislative Agenda, or here to see NVTC’s legislative accomplishments during the 2015 General Assembly.
The Northern Virginia Technology Council (NVTC) is the membership and trade association for the technology community in Northern Virginia. As the largest technology council in the nation, NVTC serves about 1,000 companies from all sectors of the technology industry, as well as service providers, universities, foreign embassies, nonprofit organizations and governmental agencies. Through its member companies, NVTC represents about 300,000 employees in the region. NVTC is recognized as the nation's leader in providing its technology community with networking and educational events; specialized services and benefits; public policy advocacy; branding of its region as a major global technology center; initiatives in targeted business sectors and in the international, entrepreneurship, workforce and education arenas; the NVTC Foundation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit charity that supports the NVTC Veterans Employment Initiative and other priorities within Virginia's technology community; the Equal Footing Foundation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit charity that serves local area youth; and The Entrepreneur Center @NVTC, which mentors new technology entrepreneurs. Visit NVTC at http://www.nvtc.org.
Sarah Jones, Northern Virginia Technology Council, http://www.nvtc.org/, +1 7032685142, [email protected]
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