News

Senate bill would replenish $20 million rural infrastructure fund through mid-2007
A group of Senate lawmakers has introduced legislation to replenish a center-led fund to stimulate job growth in rural North Carolina. The North Carolina Economic Infrastructure Fund was established in 2004 to pump $20 million into the beleaguered rural economy through investments in water and wastewater systems, technology needs, small town building reuse projects and innovative research and demonstration projects. Under the terms of Senate Bill 55, the fund would be replenished with $40 million – half of which would be invested by the center in FY06 and half in FY07 – to increase job development efforts across North Carolina. The state’s initial round of funding is already making a measurable impact in rural and distressed communities, where more than 75 new and expanding business are expected to put more than 4,500 people to work by late 2006. To view the full text of the bill, click here.

Plans to help small businesses provide health coverage pushed by lawmakers, former Gov. Hunt
Former North Carolina Gov. Jim Hunt closed out the 2005 healthcare-themed Emerging Issues Forum with a charge to state leaders to ‘get passionate about healthfulness’ by making it more affordable for small businesses to provide health benefits, helping the working poor and their families access coverage and curbing childhood obesity. State lawmakers studied the issue of small employer health insurance last session, and now a group of House lawmakers is proposing a $400 per-employee tax credit for small business owners who cover all eligible workers in the company. Less than half of North Carolina’s small businesses provide health coverage for their employees, and most employers cite high costs as the reason. House Bill 20 awaits a hearing in the House Finance Committee. To view the full text of the bill, click here.

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At the Rural Center

Center and legislative leaders come together Feb. 22 to celebrate impact of 1998 Clean Water Bonds
In 1998, North Carolina voters approved a $1 billion bond referendum that allowed the state to invest $800 million in water and sewer infrastructure projects and $200 million in natural gas extensions – projects that have moved the state forward by cleaning up the environment, creating jobs, and extending services to thousands of residents and businesses. As the Rural Center and its board of directors prepares to announce a final round of Clean Water Bond grants on Feb. 22, it will join with Senate President Pro Tempore Marc Basnight, House Speaker Jim Black and leaders from across the state to celebrate the significant impact these investments have made, along with the announcement of new awards under the N.C. Economic Infrastructure Fund. The event will be held at 4 p.m. in the auditorium of the N.C. Museum of History, 5 East Edenton Street, downtown Raleigh. To find out more, contact Patricia Johnson at the Rural Center, (919) 250-4314.

Reports and Research

Growth in the rural economy outpaced that of metro areas in 2004, according to report
Rural America is emerging from an economic slump faster than some analysts predicted, according to a report published by the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas that found rural economic growth outpacing that of metro areas last year. The first quarter 2005 issue of the Center for the Study of Rural America’s Main Street Economist provides a closer look at the rural economy and the challenges that lie ahead. Rural economies were buoyed by a record net farm income of $73.7 billion and a surge in high-skill industry jobs, according to the report. To view the report, click here.

Online resources available to help small business owners find affordable health coverage
The Aspen Institute has compiled a list of healthcare resources for small business owners struggling to find affordable health insurance. The institute’s FIELD (The Microenterprise Fund for Innovation, Effectiveness, Learning and Dissemination) initiative includes a comparative analysis of health insurance options for low-income, self-employed individuals, a summary of insurance gaps, policies and promising strategies for microentrepreneurs and links to useful websites. To view the list of online resources, click here.

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Meetings and Events

New organization for Triad entrepreneurs kicks off at March 1 event in Greensboro
A new organization to help young entrepreneurs in the Triad access resources and network with other area entrepreneurs is set to hold its first meeting on March 1 in Greensboro. The Young Entrepreneurs' Organization has chapters across the South, including Atlanta, Miami, New Orleans, Nashville and Charlotte. Members from all over the southern region will be on hand to share experiences and answer questions. Andrew "Flip" Filipowski, a successful high-tech entrepreneur and well-known philanthropist, will speak at the 6:30 p.m. event to be held at the O.Henry Hotel. For more information, log on to https://www.yeo.org/

Microenterprise regional training institute offered March 21-22 in Jackson, Miss.
Microenterprise and small business development professionals in the region have an opportunity to receive expert training on microenterprise development as a viable strategy for encouraging entrepreneurship in low-and-moderate income communities. The Association for Enterprise Opportunity (AEO) Regional Training Institute is a two-day event that focuses on building the skills of professionals engaged in microenterprise development training, lending and management. Topics include sustainable tourism; advanced technical assistance, energizing rural entrepreneurs; best practices in underwriting micro loans; and serving entrepreneurs with disabilities. To download an agenda and registration form,click here: PDF (Adobe Acrobat) format. Registration should be faxed to AEO, attention Haydee Grijalva, at (703) 841-7748.

Western Carolina University to hold regional economic development forum April 13
Western Carolina University will host a regional economic development forum April 13 in Cullowhee. The “i7 Futures Forum” will bring together more than 500 thought leaders in science, engineering, technology, government, the arts and humanities to explore opportunities created by the western region’s shifting economic base and changing way of life. The forum will explore the region’s changing lifestyle and increased commercialization; capacity building in applied science, biotech and native botanicals; crafts, music, film, and performing arts; entrepreneurship and the healthcare industry, among other topics. Registration for the event is free. To download an agenda, or to register, visit the Center for Regional Development’s website.

Council for Entrepreneurial Development to hold venture capital conference April 26-27 in Pinehurst
North Carolina-based entrepreneurs seeking venture capital are encouraged to attend the Council for Entrepreneurial Development’s Venture 2005 conference, held in Pinehurst at the Pinehurst Resort and Country Club. The annual conference provides an opportunity for entrepreneurs to present their investment opportunities to early and main-stage technology development companies. Since 1999, companies that presented at CED's annual conference have raised more than $1.6 billion in venture capital. Approximately 25-35 companies will be selected to present to an audience that will include more than 300 expected investors. The application deadline to present at the conference has already passed, but entrepreneurs are still encouraged to attend, network, and learn valuable tools for seeking out investment capital. To find out more, or to register, click here.

Participate in Southern Growth’s online survey, results announced at annual conference June 12-14 in Point Clear, Alabama
Southern Growth is polling citizens of the South to gather their ideas for creating prosperous rural regions. Share your opinions on possible strategies for rural development and see the comments of others in the region. Visit http://www.southern.org/survey.shtmland your views will be included in the Southern Growth's 2005 Report on the Future of the South. Survey results will be announced at Southern Growth’s annual conference, held this year in Point Clear, Alabama June 12-14. The 2005 conference, “Rising Together: The Summit on the Rural South,” will be held at the Grand Hotel Point Clear Resort on Mobile Bay. To learn more about the conference and to register, click here.

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From the N.C. Press

The Associated Press: Federal land grabs should stop, lawmakers say
House members whose districts include the proposed site of a training airstrip the Navy wants to build in Washington and Beaufort counties filed a bill amending a 98-year-old state law giving the federal government the exclusive right to use land it buys in North Carolina as it wishes. The bill sponsored by Reps. Bill Culpepper, D-Chowan, and Arthur Williams, D-Beaufort, would limit the federal government's exclusive jurisdiction to total land acquisitions of 25 acres or less. Culpepper said his intent is to give the General Assembly the right to approve any federal project involving more than 25 acres in the state. Opponents of the 30,000-acre Outlying Landing Field urged that the General Assembly be called into special session last year to change the 1907 state law, but Gov. Mike Easley declined to do so.

The Raleigh News and Observer: Leandro judge losing patience on education plan
Wake County Superior Court Judge Howard Manning Jr. delayed ruling Tuesday (2/15/05) on whether to include a challenge of Charlotte-Mecklenburg school system's divisive school assignment policy in a wider suit to improve educational quality in the state. But he signaled he's running out of patience with state political leaders' response to his 2002 Leandro decision ordering a "sound, basic education" for every North Carolina child. Manning said during one of the periodic hearings he has held since the state Supreme Court upheld his ruling in most respects last summer that he is waiting to see Gov. Mike Easley's proposed budget, scheduled to be released within a few weeks, for the administration's plans. "If we end up with no response from the executive or legislative branches, we have a problem," Manning said after the hearing. Manning also said that he plans to wait until next month, at the earliest, to consider a request to join the suit filed last week by four Charlotte parents who contend their children are being denied a sound education because of the local school system's assignment policy. That policy, adopted by the Charlotte-Mecklenburg school board in 2000, has resulted in schools sharply divided by race and income. Educational opportunities are severely limited in schools with high levels of poverty, the legal challenge states.

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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
Kelly Tucker Griffin, UPDATE production manager
Elaine Matthews, vice president for communications and development
4021 Carya Drive, Raleigh, NC 27610
(919) 250-4314 Fax: (919) 250-4325
http://www.ncruralcenter.org/