- 10 months ago
Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R-VA) highlighted statewide economic policy efforts.
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NewsTranscript
00:00Good afternoon, everybody, and welcome. I'm Brian Slater. I'm Secretary of Labor, and
00:10I want to welcome the Governor, the Lieutenant Governor, and all of you all here today. Virginia
00:15has jobs, and Virginia's economy is strong. Not only are we competing to win, but we're
00:22actually winning. I actually want to take and turn it over to the Lieutenant Governor,
00:26our trailblazing Lieutenant Governor, for a few remarks, and then the Governor will
00:30have a few more remarks. Lieutenant Governor? Thank you, Secretary Slater. Folks, next year,
00:41America will celebrate the 250th anniversary of her founding, and with so many key founders
00:48from Virginia, I mean Washington, Jefferson, Madison, Mason, it can truly be said that
00:55America is made in Virginia. I want to talk about the American Dream. You know, I am the
01:01living proof of it, and it tells us that anyone who works hard in this country can get ahead
01:08and build a better life for his or her family. So, America is made in Virginia, and we must
01:14always fight to ensure that the American Dream can be achieved in our great Commonwealth
01:20of Virginia by anyone. All states, all states are competing with each other to attract businesses,
01:29attract people, attract investments, and over the past three years, we have worked together
01:35to implement a compete-to-win agenda, and that has transformed Virginia into an economic
01:42powerhouse. We know the game plan. We know how to win. We win because we must invest
01:50in infrastructure. I mean business-ready sites, especially for large employers, power
01:57generation and distribution, roads, and our spaceport, and, of course, the Virginia Port,
02:06of course. We must cut regulations and reduce the cost of doing business. We must build
02:13on the $1.2 billion of job savings from the streamlining of regulations against businesses.
02:20Folks, time is money. We have cut that. We must keep a business-friendly environment
02:26that encourages job creators to create jobs in Virginia. That means fighting against arbitrary
02:34mandates from the government, preserving the right to work, and making it easy for entrepreneurs
02:42to start businesses right here. We must also provide tax relief to Virginia families and
02:50businesses to keep costs down and to let them choose to invest their money where they see
02:57fit. We must continue to invest in education and workforce. Virginia's people are its greatest
03:05assets, and every student of every age, from pre-K all the way to the seasoned professional
03:13who is taking a new class at a community college, something I know a whole lot about, deserves
03:19a high-quality education. Over the past three years, we have done all that I've just spoken
03:27of, and it has yielded results. We should all be proud of the CNBC recognized that Virginia
03:35is the top state for business in 2024. We're seeing all these other benefits, of course,
03:41across our commonwealth. But it's not just one ranking. No, the metrics show we are winning.
03:48How? Well, $100 billion in capital investment over the last three years, 15,000, count them,
04:0015,000 new startups since January of 2022. We have brought 276 more people working from the
04:11time that we started our administration. Folks, Virginia has transformed from a state where people
04:18are moving out to more people are moving in. And today, Governor Yunkin is going to take action
04:25on many bills which will help keeping us moving forward. What do I mean? Bills like that carried
04:31by Senator Jordan, which gives small localities access to site investment grants for them to be
04:42able to grow, to develop their own economy, to attract business investments. Also a bill carried
04:49by Chair Lucas and Chair Torian, which helps to support the $2.1 billion investment by Micron,
04:58which is a priority, of course, of President Trump's. As I said before, Virginia is the
05:06birthplace of the American dream. And we will work every day to make sure it stays a land of
05:13opportunity for all. So if I could sum it up, I would say, bring your business to Virginia,
05:19come and prosper here. God bless you, and God bless our great Commonwealth. Thank you.
05:29Thank you. Thank you, Lieutenant Governor Sears. And now it's my distinct honor and
05:33pleasure to introduce the 74th Governor of the Commonwealth of Virginia, the Honorable Glenn
05:38Young. Governor? Thank you. Thank you. Well, good afternoon, everyone. Thank you for coming,
05:51and thank you for recognizing that Virginia is not just open for business. Virginia is not just
05:59competing to win, but Virginia is winning. And from the first day of our administration,
06:07that was our clear aspiration, and that has been the result. And I do not mean simply winning with
06:15business investment, because yes, we're winning there, but I also mean winning for job creation
06:22and winning for opportunity for Virginians. And we know that when Virginians have unbridled
06:30opportunity, that Virginia flourishes. Over the past three years, we have worked tirelessly
06:38to transform Virginia into a job machine. This is a machine that is generating job growth month
06:46after month after month after month. This is a job machine that is unleashing opportunity,
06:52not just in certain areas, but across the entire Commonwealth. And I have to say, the success of
06:59this compete to win strategy has really been underpinned by three big, big principles.
07:08And guess what? Those principles are all about Virginia being the best place to live, work,
07:12and raise a family. And when we drive forward on those key initiatives, we see Virginians thriving.
07:22Virginia must be a great place to live. And we've gone through three years, and we have one more
07:28year to continue to drive, to lower the cost of living through record tax relief, by restoring
07:37excellence in education with record investments in education, by making our communities even safer
07:45with record investments in law enforcement and public safety, and undertaking creative
07:52collaborations that allow us to drive forward safer communities. And of course,
08:00by unleashing job opportunities that have never been seen before. Those job opportunities,
08:07of course, are underpinned by businesses starting and growing and hiring. And at the heart of that
08:15has been a focus on five key areas. Site readiness, so that businesses have a place to go.
08:23Bringing down regulations, so businesses enjoy, in fact, a business-friendly environment.
08:32Creating and developing an unrivaled workforce with talent that is the envy of the nation
08:39and the world. Unleashing the power of power in Virginia to make sure that it is affordable
08:49and reliable and increasingly clean. And finally, leading the nation in the most collaborative
08:58state to do business in, so that when companies are looking where to go, they say, indeed,
09:05that is the most business-friendly state in America. You couple all of that with a relentless
09:13drive to attract that opportunity, and we see Virginia winning. We see Virginia winning in
09:22an unprecedented way. And yes, we all cheered when CNBC named us last summer America's top
09:30state for business. And yes, we cheered this past November when business facilities named us
09:38state of the year. But as I have said over and over and over again, rankings are one thing,
09:45but results matter. And we have seen our results continue to reinforce the fact that
09:54we don't want to be the best state in America for business, we are.
09:58And those results are very clear. We have been in the top 10 for job growth.
10:04We have been in the top 10 for net in-migration. We have, as the Lieutenant Governor said, seen
10:11over $100 billion of capital commitments from companies that are here and want to expand
10:18because they already know how great Virginia is, and other companies who have done national
10:24searches and chosen Virginia as the place that they want to build their future. And yes,
10:32we are creating jobs, job creation that has been at an unprecedented level.
10:39Since we started this effort together, we have seen 276,000 more people working today
10:49than in January 2022. Just yesterday, we released yet another strong job creation
11:02month in January and a revision to December. And the two combined result in 21,000 more jobs just
11:12in those two months. My friends, what we are seeing is, of course, the economic strength of
11:20the Commonwealth translate into opportunity for Virginians. And yet, the demand for Virginia
11:29workers is at an all-time high, 3% unemployment, nearly 66% labor participation. And what has come
11:42with that over $100 billion of capital commitments is 70,000 new jobs that are expected
11:51to be hired as plants are built, offices are opened, and, of course, those powerful three
11:58words are uttered, you are hired. And that is on top of the 250,000 jobs that are currently
12:10ready and open for Virginians or anybody else to take today. And I'm going to repeat that,
12:17250,000 jobs that are open and ready to be filled. You see, people are seeing Virginia
12:28as that land of opportunity, and they are staying here or moving here in record numbers.
12:38For the first time in over a decade, in 2023, more people moved to Virginia on a net basis
12:47than moved away to the other 49 states. In fact, we were in the top 10. That's after having been
12:56number 39 on average for the preceding five years. People are choosing to stay and people
13:04are choosing to come. And I believe that is the ultimate metric.
13:10What that also has translated to is a financially successful Virginia,
13:16a Virginia that has more businesses operating and paying taxes and more people working at a
13:23record level and paying taxes. And that has allowed our Commonwealth to experience record
13:31surplus after surplus after surplus. And in fact, we'll see it again. In the current biennium,
13:38we are seeing over a $3 billion surplus that's forecasted. That again underpins the fact that
13:47what we are doing is working. And those surpluses have allowed us to offer record tax relief.
13:55And as I said, through our administration, we will have at least $8 billion of tax relief
14:02for Virginians. But on top of that, we have had record investments in education,
14:08increasing our commitment to K-12 by 50%. We've had record investments in law enforcement,
14:17record investments in behavioral health and supporting Virginians who in fact need to find
14:22their way to that great opportunity that God has laid out for them by making sure they get the right
14:28help right now. It's allowed us to meet all of our expanding needs under Medicaid. It's allowed us to
14:35invest in conserving God's natural wonders. And this works. And it's why Virginia is thriving.
14:45Now, let's just be clear that a huge part of what we have seen working has been striving to be the
14:55best. And I believe one aspect that we need to continue to strive to be the best in is to be
15:01the best place to turn the lights on, to have affordable and reliable and increasingly clean
15:08power. We've worked hard to create an all-of-the-above, all-American power strategy in
15:16the Commonwealth of Virginia. We've also worked hard to eliminate unneeded costs to try to
15:23constrain rate increases and, of course, to get rid of silly taxes that were hidden and imposed
15:32on utility bills. We are focusing on meeting the increasing demand for power that truly powers
15:42the economic growth going forward, economic growth that comes from lots of sectors.
15:48Yes, data centers, AI and machine learning, but also advanced manufacturing, where we have seen
15:55spectacularly respected companies from all over the world choose Virginia,
16:02but also indoor farming and, of course, the increased electrification of everything.
16:09Meeting this growth and power demand has been one of our top priorities since the day
16:15we were fortunate enough to be inaugurated. Virginia is open for business, and that success
16:23will allow us also to lead in power. Now, one of the things that I've been most proud of is that
16:32we've been first in many things. We were one of the first states to really embrace all-American,
16:40all-of-the-above, and recognize that not just Virginia, but the nation, had a power challenge.
16:47And we were proud to announce that we were the first at being the state that was selected to
16:53host the very first commercial operation of a fusion power plant. We must continue to seize
17:02these opportunities. We must continue to lead. Virginians lead. We don't follow. And that's what
17:10has enabled us over 250 years to be at the forefront, and that's what the Lieutenant
17:16Governor and I plan on us continuing to be. Virginia is stronger than she has ever been.
17:24Stronger economically, stronger from an opportunity standpoint, and I believe it is
17:32that strength that allows us also to face our challenges with confidence.
17:41Today we know we have a federal government that is facing huge fiscal issues,
17:49$37 trillion in debt, with $2 trillion being added every year.
17:58And what that is requiring is real action quickly. Striving to gain efficiencies and
18:07reduce costs in the federal government is at the heart of regaining our fiscal, fiscal
18:15responsibility as a nation. And I recognize that what comes with that is dislocation.
18:22As a state that's home to more federal workers than any other, we are really quite aware
18:31and incredibly empathetic towards what this could mean for many of Virginia's citizens.
18:42Job dislocation, job loss, is real. I experienced it as a child growing up twice.
18:50It's the reason why my family moved from Richmond down to Virginia Beach. My dad lost his job.
18:54My mom did what so many moms do, and she grabbed our family and said,
18:58let's go. And we restarted in Virginia Beach. And then three years later, the company that
19:05my father worked for was sold, and he got laid off. Job loss is real. It's hard.
19:15And that's why at a time where we are going to see some job loss in Virginia,
19:25we are able to meet that loss with strength. The strength of our job opportunity,
19:34the strength of the economy that I think is so uniquely Virginia today, where we see a state
19:40that is roaring. And it is that strength that allows us to provide opportunity and hope
19:50to those that may experience job disruption. That's why the initiative around Virginia has jobs
20:01is so important. Because let me be clear, Virginia has jobs, a lot of them. And we
20:09not only respect the capabilities of our federal workforce, we actually want them in
20:17the Virginia job market. And therefore, helping them understand where those opportunities are
20:25and how to get them is really important. And therefore, the Virginia has jobs.com website
20:34is a fabulous starting point. It's much more than a website. It's a broad recognition
20:41that opportunity abounds in the Commonwealth. And if you experience job dislocation,
20:47we want to help you along the path to a new career. And through Virginia has jobs,
20:55you can first understand how to apply for and receive unemployment benefits to make sure that
21:02you keep your health care and that you can find that bridge to your next thing. On top of that,
21:10there are 250,000 jobs that are available through this website that connects you with opportunities
21:17all over the state. On top of that, resources that allow you to find training and education
21:26opportunities that will help you match the needs of an employer to your skill set. And if you need
21:34an incremental credential or an extra class or more training, you can find it. And then finally,
21:40many people haven't written a resume or been through a job interview in a long time.
21:45And there's substantial resources to help people prepare for that journey.
21:50I'm reminded of my own family where my own sister decided she needed to make a midlife career change.
21:57And what did she do? She went to our community college system, to the fast forward program,
22:04and was able to receive a new credential and change careers. This isn't easy,
22:11but the resources and the support are there and the opportunities abound.
22:19And this is our chance for a strong state with strong opportunities to step up and help people
22:27who might need the help find that opportunity. There's a big distinction between states today.
22:36And the success of Virginia over the last three years enables us to be in a position
22:41that a lot of other states aren't in. I mean, there really are states that have
22:46been winning, states that have had substantial job growth, states that are the destination
22:53as people look for new opportunities. And we want to make sure that we compete with those states
22:59every single day and not only compete, but win. And that's why we constantly keep our eye
23:08on what's happening in Tennessee and North Carolina and South Carolina and Georgia,
23:12Florida and Texas, and now Virginia. Virginia among the states that are routinely looked upon
23:20as the winning states. And there are other states that have fallen behind,
23:26states that have piled on regulations, states that have high taxes,
23:32states that are driving businesses away, states that are losing jobs and losing people.
23:38California, Illinois, New Jersey, Maryland, states that can't offer 250,000 open positions for folks
23:50that might need to find a new opportunity. And that's why the building blocks that the Lieutenant
23:57Governor illuminated, the ones that I went through, are so important that we continue
24:05to strive to be a state that invests in sites, a state that deregulates and streamlines burdens,
24:15a state that reduces taxes, a state that recognizes that talent and workforce is at
24:21the top of the list of what companies are looking for, a state that is business friendly beyond
24:26compare. And therefore today, I'm very pleased to be able to sign, among lots of bills that we
24:35released today, some key pieces of legislation that represent this Virginia, the Virginia that
24:44is the very best place to live and work and raise a family. I'll be signing Senate Bill 1208 and
24:52House Bill 2358, a bill that was patroned by Senator Lucas and Delegate Torian that unlocks
24:59an opportunity for Micron to come and build new manufacturing capabilities in Virginia.
25:062.1 billion dollars of investment and they'll hire 340 more people into the Micron family.
25:14House Bill 2540 and Senate Bill 1207, a bill that was patroned by Senator Mulcahy and Delegate
25:20Marshall that provides the economic incentive to microporists to invest 1.35 billion dollars
25:29and hire over 2,000 people in Pennsylvania County. I'll be signing Senate Bill 1275,
25:37patroned by Senator Jordan, which expands our site readiness investment to counties and localities
25:45that are smaller because not everybody has 100 acres available for a company, but they may have
25:5225 and we have so many companies that want to come to Virginia. And of course, I'll be signing
25:59House Bill 1779 and Senate Bill 1338 that were patroned by Senator Marsden and Delegate Sullivan,
26:07which is the bill that brings commonwealth fusion systems to Virginia to build the first ever
26:17commercial scale fusion power plant. My friends, Virginia is winning and it is this strength that
26:25allows us to support other Virginians who may be in a time of need or anxiety. It is this strength
26:32that underpins our financial future. It is this strength that enables us to reduce taxes and have
26:39record investments in education and law enforcement and behavioral health and physical health. It is
26:45this strength that allows us to be the place that not only was the founding of America, but I believe
26:55was the founding of opportunity. And therefore, I want to thank all of you for being part of this
27:01amazing journey. I want to thank all of you for helping us build the strongest Virginia ever and
27:07as we continue to work together to deliver opportunity in an unbridled way to every
27:12single Virginian. God bless you and guess what time it is? Time to go back to work. Here we go. Thank you.
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