News

Lt. Gov. Beverly Perdue announces members of special state health care task force
Lt. Gov. Beverly Perdue this month formally announced members to a special health care task force that will examine factors that limit access to health care insurance, especially those barriers that make it difficult for small businesses to provide coverage to their employees. The 12-member panel will also study additional state assistance for Medicare Part D prescription coverage and access to the N.C. Health Choice insurance program for children of the working poor. The state s Health and Wellness Trust Fund partnered with the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in forming the task force, whose membership includes Perdue; state Sen. Bill Purcell; Carole Bruce, a Greensboro attorney; state Rep. Verla Insko; state Rep. Danny McComas; state Sen. Vernon Malone; Dr. Olson Huff, an Asheville pediatrician; Karen McNeill-Miller, president of the Kate B. Reynolds Charitable Trust; Valeria Lee, president of the Golden LEAF foundation; Norma Mills, former chief of staff to Senate leader Marc Basnight; Kel Landis III, principal at Plexus Capital; and Daniel Gitterman, public policy professor at UNC-Chapel Hill.

Immigrant entrepreneurs prominent on U.S. economic scene, but lack presence in North Carolina, study finds
A recent national study on immigrants and their effect on entrepreneurship in the U.S. finds that one-quarter of the venture-backed companies that went public over the last 15 years were started by non-native U.S. residents. The study, commissioned by the National Venture Capital Association, found that immigrants had an even more profound effect on our nation s high technology sector, where they are responsible for 40 percent of the publicly-traded companies launched within the past 15 years. The majority of these immigrant-founded firms are located in California-- 62 percent, in fact. Massachusetts, New Jersey, Washington and Texas are home to sizable numbers of these businesses, though North Carolina is not, according to the report. The study did not include rankings for individual states where the number of immigrant-founded, publicly-traded entrepreneurial companies was considered negligible. So where are these entrepreneurs coming from? According to the study, 32 percent of them are from India, 17 percent are Israeli and 16 percent are Taiwanese. To read the full report, click here.

Mountain Christmas tree farmers set for banner harvest, thanks to year s moderate weather
North Carolina s 2006 Christmas tree crop is sure to be a good one thanks to moderate temperature levels and rainfall amounts in the mountains this year, according to state forestry extension specialists. Growers say they were due some relief this year after spending the last several worrying about higher-than-normal temperatures and the effects of several flood-producing storms. The state is on tap to harvest more than 4.5 million trees with a wholesale value that will exceed $100 million, extension agents reported in early November. The vast majority of the trees harvested and sold in North Carolina this year will be the popular Fraser fir, which comprises 95 percent of North Carolina s Christmas tree crop. The Fraser fir requires cool temperatures and a consistent moisture level in the soil. Holiday shoppers can expect tree prices to be about the same as last year-- about $5-$8 per foot. According to the N.C. Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, the North Carolina Christmas tree industry is ranked second in the nation behind Oregon. The department ranks Ashe, Avery, Alleghany, Watauga, and Jackson as the state s top-producing Christmas tree counties. To learn more about North Carolina-grown Christmas trees and the location of choose and cut farms throughout western North Carolina, visit the N.C. Christmas Tree Association website.

Meetings and Events

CED to host annual conference," Opportunity 2006, Dec. 4-5 in Wilmington
The Council for Entrepreneurial Development (CED) will host its fourth annual Opportunity Conference Dec. 4-5 in Wilmington. This year's conference will feature presentations from experienced entrepreneurs as well as discussions on how to build a brand, develop sales channels and secure sufficient capital. The conference will also provide "curbside counseling," a free, confidential 30-minute consulting appointment to discuss business issues or concerns with an expert team. To learn more about Opportunity 2006, visit the website or contact CED at (919) 549-7500.

2007 Economic Forecast Forum to be held Jan. 2 in Research Triangle Park
The North Carolina Bankers Association and North Carolina Citizens for Business and Industry (NCCBI) will host the 2007 Economic Forecast Forum at the Sheraton Imperial Hotel in Research Triangle Park on Jan. 2. The annual forum will feature presentations from key state leaders and economic analysts who will provide insight into the economic trends and issues that will impact North Carolina and the nation throughout the year. This year s event will be preceded by a special session on the transformation of Eastern North Carolina into a globally competitive economic region. To find out more or to register, contact Blair Wicket at (800) 622-7044.

First annual Southeast Venture Conference to be held Jan. 31-- Feb. 1 in Research Triangle Park
The first-ever Southeast Venture Conference will be held Jan. 31-Feb.1 at the Umstead Hotel and Spa in Research Triangle Park. The conference will be an opportunity for technology firms, entrepreneurs and venture capitalists to network. The event will feature investor/executive panels and keynote speeches from Jim Goodnight, founder and CEO of SAS Institute, and Ryan Wuerch, CEO of Motricity. The fee to register is $470 if completed prior to the event, $560 the day of. To find out more about the conference or to register, click here.

Center to host 2007 Entrepreneurship Summit Feb. 27 in Raleigh
The Rural Center and statewide partners will host the second annual Entrepreneurship Summit Feb. 27 at the North Raleigh Hilton." Framing our Economic Future: An Entrepreneurship Agenda for North Carolina will feature the announcement of several new initiatives designed to stimulate growth of small businesses and establish an entrepreneurship support system in communities throughout North Carolina. On hand to make the announcements will be state and national officials, business leaders and leaders from the educational community. The event also will showcase North Carolina entrepreneurs and provide insight into their secrets for success. Sponsors include the North Carolina Business Resource Alliance, Rural Entrepreneurship Development System, North Carolina Entrepreneurial Association and the Rural Economic Development Center. For more information, contact Michelle Hall at the Rural Center, (919) 250-4314.

Reports and Research

North Carolinians paying more for less health care coverage, study finds
A recent study by the health care advocacy group Families USA finds that health-care premiums are significantly outpacing North Carolinians' incomes. According to the Washington, D.C.-based group s report, North Carolinians saw their health-care premiums rise 86 percent from 2000 to 2006, while median household wages only went up about 11 percent during the same period. And while we are paying substantially more for our health plans, we are receiving less and less benefit from those plans, the report found. The report found that while employers' costs for family health coverage rose 80 percent in the six-year period, workers' costs rose nearly 102 percent. For individuals, workers' costs rose 66 percent, while their employers' costs rose 53 percent. As expected, the higher costs are sending more North Carolina residents into the ranks of the uninsured. To read the full report, click here.

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Funding Sources

Cost-share grants of up to $18,000 available in tobacco-dependent communities
The Rural Advancement Foundation International (RAFI USA) announced it will accept applications to its Tobacco Communities Reinvestment Fund through Jan. 26, 2007. The grant program will make cost-share grants to farmers, farm organizations, and community groups in Alamance, Carteret, Franklin, Granville, Hoke, Jones, Onslow, Robeson, Rockingham and Stokes counties for demonstration of new alternatives to replace lost tobacco income. Cost-share support will be up to $10,000 for individual producers and up to $18,000 for group projects. To be eligible, a farmer must be engaged in full or part-time farming and have earned income from tobacco at the time of the Master Settlement Agreement in 1997-1998. Eligible community projects must directly benefit eligible farmers and have farmers in the leadership of the project. RAFI-USA will hold' how-to-apply workshops in Oxford on Dec. 4, Louisburg on Dec. 5, Lumberton on Dec. 7, and Reidsville on Dec. 12. For more information or to learn how to apply, contact Jason Roehrig at (919) 542-1396.

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From the N.C. Press

Charlotte Observer: Gaston joins growing number of counties in U.S. cutting programs for illegal immigrants
Gaston County commissioners have approved a resolution directing county officials to stop funding local programs for undocumented immigrants, joining a small number of local governments across the nation imposing greater restrictions on illegal immigrants. The resolution, passed Thursday by the all-Republican board, says an increasing illegal immigrant population largely contributes to overcrowded schools, highway deaths and increasing crime. It also says communities are impacted by illegal immigrants' "lack of social and personal health care standards." Under the resolution, county officials are expected to stop funding any portion of local services that goes to illegal immigrants, stop unmandated programs that serve illegal immigrants and end contracting with companies that employ them. The resolution also updates the minimum housing requirements to limit the number of people who can live in rental homes and orders local law enforcement to check the immigration status of undocumented immigrants upon arrest and any infraction. Critics of the resolution say it only encourages hysteria and will have little effect, noting that many services are federally mandated or are already barred from going to illegal immigrants. The Supreme Court has also found immigration law falls under federal authority. More than half of the estimated 600,000 Hispanics in the North Carolina are believed to be in the country illegally.

Raleigh News & Observer: UNC will ask General Assembly for $29 million annually for Kannapolis biotech campus
University of North Carolina leaders plan to ask legislators for as much as $29 million a year for the system's participation in a new biotechnology campus in Kannapolis, according to draft legal agreements. The money would cover new equipment, salaries for 75 or so new faculty positions, and lease payments for three research buildings to be used by UNC campuses. The agreement calls for the buildings to become the property of either the university or the state after 20 years. The project is the brainchild of Dole Food owner David Murdock, who has pledged about $1 billion of his own money to develop the public-private research campus on 350 acres that used to house the Pillowtex textile mill in Kannapolis. Murdock's contribution would help cover items including top-of-the-line equipment for the core laboratory and as much as $200 million for a venture capital fund to attract private companies to the campus. Two companies have announced plans to move to the campus. The draft agreement on the university system's participation still awaits the signatures of Murdock and UNC President Erskine Bowles. Bowles recently warned members of the UNC Board of Governors about the high price tag, saying, "We're not spending everything ... (Murdock) would like us to spend, but we're spending a gracious plenty." The Legislature isn't bound by the agreement, but already has set aside $6 million to help the project get off the ground.

North Carolina Associated Press: Road to Nowhere officially going& nowhere
Heath Shuler's defeat of Republican U.S. Rep. Charles Taylor has probably marked the end of the so-called "Road to Nowhere." Taylor was one of the major supporters of the road and revived its construction in 2000, when he included $16 million to resume building the road in the federal budget. But Shuler, a Democrat and former NFL quarterback, opposes spending hundreds of millions of dollars to build the road through an undeveloped section of Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Only seven of the road's proposed 42 miles were completed before high costs and environmental concerns halted construction in 1972. "We've said from the very beginning that we think the road has the appropriate name," Shuler told The Associated Press. "We don't need to build that road. The appropriation to build that road is now a dead issue."

Asheville Citizen-Times: Burley growers to sell more crop this year, though their numbers are fewer
Tobacco buyers say they expect high burley tobacco sales out of western North Carolina this year, despite the number of burley farmers decreasing by half in the past year. Marty Owen, owner of the Dixie Big Burley tobacco warehouse in Asheville, says he expects local growers to sell about 2 million pounds, up from 1.4 million last year. Ray Anders of Planters Tobacco Warehouse in Asheville plans to buy about half of it, up from 600,000 pounds last year. Owen opened his warehouse Monday and Anders is scheduled to start up business Saturday. The buyout of the federally regulated tobacco program two years ago put the industry in turmoil. Since last fall, about half of the mountain region's 4,000 growers have quit the business. But demand remains high for burley, which grows particularly well in the mountains because of the soil and climate. The variety is prized for its flavor and absorptive qualities and makes up about one-third of a typical cigarette. Even if this year's crop is better than it has been in previous years, cigarette companies still likely want more. "We still have a short supply of burley," said Blake Brown, an agricultural economist at North Carolina State University. "I think the companies are trying to get a regular supply of burley to meet the demand, but they haven't found that yet."

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The mission of the North Carolina Rural Economic Development Center is to develop, promote, and implement sound economic strategies that improve the quality of life of rural North Carolinians, with a special focus on individuals with low to moderate incomes and communities with limited resources.

N.C. Rural Economic Development Center
Michelle Taylor, UPDATE editor
Courtney Tieman, UPDATE production manager
Elaine Matthews, senior vice president
4021 Carya Drive, Raleigh, NC 27610
(919) 250-4314 Fax: (919) 250-4325
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