Category: Economic development
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Do CNBC ‘Best States for Business’ Rankings Mean Anything at All?
Last year, CNBC ranked Virginia as the 4th best state for business. However. as Dwayne Yancey observes at Cardinal News… Over the past year, Virginia has lost more jobs than [almost] any other state. Only two other states have lost jobs at a faster rate. Federal job cuts are a big driver, but not the…
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Virginians Question Power-Hungry Data Centers’ Expansion
by Rich Tucker Newton’s third law indicates that every action produces an equal and opposite reaction. In Virginia politics, that is showing up in the push-and-pull over data centers. The state is already peppered with data centers, and developers are rolling out plans to build more. In almost every location, local residents quickly rally to…
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Digital Future – Build It the Right Way
by Chris Saxman Too often, conversations about data centers are presented as an either-or: tech companies versus local communities, or economic growth versus environmental protection. That is the wrong debate. The real challenge is whether communities, businesses, utilities, investors and public leaders can work together to support the infrastructure a growing digital economy requires while…
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Pittsylvania County Breathes Sigh of Relief
by Dick Hall-Sizemore The Colorado-based company, Stack Infrastructure (Stack), has announced that it will move forward with its plans to build a giant data center complex in Pittsylvania County. As was reported earlier in Bacon’s Rebellion, the company had made its decision to locate in Virginia contingent on the state continuing its exemption of computer…
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Debunking Data Center Myths
by Jeff Reynolds You’ve heard the stories. Data centers are loud, water-guzzling monsters chewing up rural landscapes. They promise jobs but deliver none. They’ll suck the grid dry, jack up everyone’s electric bill, overload the power grid, and leave abandoned warehouses when the AI bubble bursts. Opponents paint them as the latest corporate scam, with…
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Virginia Democrats Are in Serious Trouble
State Senator Louise Lucas (D-Portsmouth) announces a Democratic “Civil War” over the budget, while nationally Democrats aren’t exactly pivoting well. by Shaun Kenney Let’s start with the basics. As of this moment, the generic congressional ballot is D+5. Which isn’t great for Republicans. Yet when compared to other midterm elections? Democrats enjoyed a D+10 environment…
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And in Other Gun-Related News…
The Daily Signal reports: On Wednesday, Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp announced a firearms manufacturer will leave the state of Virginia over new “anti-gun legislation” and relocate to Georgia, bringing a $22 million investment and employing hundreds of residents. … “This relocation was not something we originally planned to pursue. The reality is that recent anti-gun legislation in…
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When Business Packs Up and Leaves
by Chris Saxman A Warning for Seattle, Olympia — and Richmond Former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz opens his Wall Street Journal op-ed by celebrating Washington state’s extraordinary economic rise — built over half a century by Microsoft, Amazon, Costco, and Starbucks into a global hub of technology, innovation, and logistics. That era succeeded, he argues, because civic…
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The Technological Republic and the Re-Industrialization of America
Here’s a fact: the data center buildout is going to re-industrialize America. The sooner we embrace this reality; the sooner we reap the rewards. by Shaun Kenney Data centers have arrived and it’s about time they did — and it’s your fault, too. Well, not entirely your fault — but if you’re watching Netflix and…
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Ending Data Center Exemption – Wrong Policy, Wrong Time
by Chris Saxman Wise words from former Virginia Congressman Bob Goodlatte” In politics, timing is everything. Timing also matters when it comes to the economy. Virginia is approaching a pivotal moment in its economic strategy—and it is happening at exactly the wrong time. As global markets reassess the value of technology companies, one thing is becoming clear: the era of easy capital is…
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The Governor Flexes Her Muscles
by Dick Hall-Sizemore Governor Spanberger has issued her first veto. To add some drama, it was of a high-priority bill sponsored by one of the top Democrats in the Senate. Sen. Scott Surovell (D-Fairfax), the Senate Majority Leader, introduced legislation that would have authorized a referendum in Fairfax County on the establishment of a casino at…
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Is a Casino the Answer to Fairfax County’s Genteel Decline?
by Chap Petersen A few things are certain in life. Death, taxes and UVA losing to Duke in the ACC men’s basketball final. (No, I’m not bitter). Another one is well-funded interests getting their way in the Virginia General Assembly. A mere decade ago, our battle was with Dominion Power who sought to avoid customer…
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The Data Center Scapegoat Led to Two Different Sacrificial Altars
by Steve Haner Virginia’s world-leading data center industry, once a source of economic pride to our Commonwealth, has become the scapegoat of the 2026 General Assembly. The State Senate and House of Delegates have built different altars for its sacrifice. The Senate is about to vote to strip away the major sales and use tax…
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The Fiscal Flywheel Effect
In my Feb. 13 podcast, former Finance Secretary Steve Cummings explained the positive feedback loop between strong state finances and economic development. His observations about the fiscal flywheel effect are worth highlighting here. –JAB Cummings: “The underlying premise here is growth. When you have a declining revenue stream, when you have declining population, you’re gonna…
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Governor Youngkin’s Fiscal Legacy
Jim Bacon chats with former Finance Secretary Cummings about former Governor Glenn Youngkin’s budgetary achievements, Virginia’s economic development track record, and how well positioned the commonwealth is to survive a federal financial meltdown. Lightly edited transcript Jim Bacon: Hello, everyone. I’m Jim Bacon, and this is the Oinkonomics podcast. Whatever your feelings about Glenn…