Republican gubernatorial hopeful Bob McDonnell, under fire from Democrats for lacking a job creation plan, proposed a bundle of tax credits, grants and other measures to lure new business to Virginia.
McDonnell, with Lt. Gov. Bill Bolling, who is seeking re-election in November, rolled out the package on a conference call with reporters Thursday.
The plan, which Bolling said would “help position Virginia to take full advantage of a future economic resurgence,” focused especially on the state’s rural stretches, where unemployment is far higher than in the Washington suburbs.
Overall, Virginia posted a 7.1 percent seasonally adjusted unemployment rate in May, still well below the national average.
McDonnell proposed appointing Bolling the “chief job creation officer,” acknowledging the lieutenant governor’s current duties were “very few.”
He called for “a dramatic expansion and retooling of the governor’s opportunity fund,” a pool of money used to help local governments pay for needed infrastructure for projects that create new jobs, and said he would make it easier for a business to receive a $1,000 tax credit for every new job it created.
McDonnell said one deputy secretary of commerce would focus solely on economic development in rural areas.
The Republicans’ announcement was a shot across the bow in a gubernatorial race likely to center on Virginia’s economic problems. McDonnell’s opponent, state Sen. Creigh Deeds, responded Thursday by announcing that, if elected, he would appoint himself “chief job creation officer.”
“My opponent has a long record of supporting [former Republican Gov.] Jim Gilmore’s fiscal gimmicks and opposing [former Democratic Gov.] Mark Warner’s bipartisan economic recovery plan,” Deeds said. “So, it’s no wonder my opponent wants to appoint somebody else to be in charge of job creation.”
Commonsense Virginia, a political action committee funded by the Democratic Governors Association, has tried to pin McDonnell with the moniker “No Jobs Bob.” Despite Thursday’s rollout, the group did not take down an online clock ticking away the hours that McDonnell was without a jobs plan.
