News

North Carolina Rural Profile chronicles more than a decade of progress
The Rural Center has released the third edition of its North Carolina Rural Profile, a comprehensive report on the leading indicators for rural North Carolina. The profile includes data on population growth and trends, employment, migration, agriculture, income, poverty, education, health, and technology. The profile highlights the rural North Carolina of the 1990s, a time that brought rural counties substantial progress in the strong economy of the decade, but also continued gaps in income, educational attainment and poverty as compared to urban areas of the state. The profile also details the economic turmoil taking place in rural North Carolina today, as rural counties contend with economic restructuring and a lingering national recession. Those challenges are having a serious impact on rural counties, 18 of which lost population between 2000 and 2003. Comparatively, only three rural counties lost population in the 1990s. Data for the profile is gathered from several state and national sources, including those released by the U.S. Census Bureau. Funding for the production of the report, as well as the center’s online Rural Data Bank, is made possible by a grant from the Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation. To receive the printed report, contact Kelly Griffin at the center, at (919) 250-4314.

Center releases report on the growing health insurance crisis in North Carolina
Health insurance is becoming an increasingly troublesome issue for North Carolinians, particularly for the more than 92,000 small businesses throughout the state faced with spiraling premiums that are leaving some employers with little choice but to reduce health benefits or eliminate them altogether. As the state struggles with how to address the problem, the Rural Center has released a report on small business health insurance that looks closely at the state’s growing reliance on small business, the factors behind double-digit premium hikes, and the reasons why rural people are more likely to be uninsured than their urban neighbors. Among the findings of the report: North Carolina ranks 8th nationally in the number of uninsured people under age 65; less than half of North Carolina’s small businesses provide health coverage; in 34 rural counties, 20 percent or more of the non-elderly population is uninsured; and small business owners in the state cite health insurance as the biggest challenge facing them today. A pdf copy of the report is available on the center web site at www.ncruralcenter.org. To receive a printed copy, call Kelly Griffin at (919) 250-4314.

Legislative panel’s economic stimulus plan includes rural development initiatives
Small business development has emerged as a top priority of the Legislature’s Joint Select Committee on Economic Growth and Development. The committee will present its recommendations on an economic stimulus package aimed in large part at rural North Carolina during the short session which convened this week, including $15 million for rural small business loans and infrastructure development, a tax break aimed at small businesses that would exempt the first $10,000-$20,000 in annual earnings, $10 million for the governor’s One North Carolina fund to attract new businesses, and a change in the way economic tiers are designated to reflect shifts in regional economies. Businesses whose annual earnings are below a minimum threshold would be exempt from corporate income taxes altogether, bringing the total cost of the tax exemptions to about $31 million annually. The committee has also recommended an expansion of the state’s research and development tax credit, $225 million to purchase new equipment at state community colleges, and a new state-of-the-art cancer center at UNC-Chapel Hill.

Gov. Easley’s plan for small business hinges on corporate income tax cut
To boost the state economy, Gov. Easley has unveiled his own plan for small business growth and development. Easley’s $47.6 million proposal would exempt the first $20,000 in net earnings for all North Carolina businesses; in effect, eliminating the tax for about half of state businesses now required to pay it at an annual cost to the state of about $33 million. The tax cut is part of an overall small business package proposed by Easley that includes more than $14 million in tax breaks and incentives aimed at helping small businesses buy down the cost of health insurance, export their products, and access research and development funding. Easley’s proposal has the backing of small business advocates across the state, including the National Federation of Independent Business. To read more on the governor’s plan, visit his website by clicking here.

‘Cautious optimism’ as unemployment falls in all 100 counties in March
‘Historic’ is what the state Employment Security Commission is calling the drop in unemployment rates for March, when all 100 North Carolina counties reported employment gains. It’s the first time such an event has taken place since the state began collecting countywide data a decade ago. In a joint statement, Governor Easley and ESC Chairman Harry Payne Jr. appeared cautiously optimistic about the state’s economic situation, with Easley predicting employment numbers would remain volatile for the foreseeable future due to the long-term effects of foreign trade policies, and Payne citing the growing number of out-of-work North Carolinians that are finding new jobs. The data does not reflect unemployed North Carolinians that have given up the job search, however. According to ESC data, the state’s major metropolitan areas of Raleigh, Charlotte, Greensboro and Asheville added 13,300 jobs in March alone, many of them in the financial services and health care industries. The news is good for rural counties, too, where the unemployment rate dropped from 7.2 percent in February to 5.9 percent in March.

Reports and Research

Half of American Internet users have access to broadband, while rural areas lag according to new report
Half of all American Internet users have access to high-speed or broadband service at home or at work, according to a report by the Pew Internet & American Life Project. The survey found that 68 million adults log on to the Internet either at home or at work, and that high-speed subscriptions jumped 60 percent last year alone. Not surprisingly, high-speed access is not as readily available in rural areas, mainly due to a lack of technology infrastructure, according to the report. To download the full report, click here.

Institute of Government offers bulletin on community and economic development issues
The UNC-Chapel Hill School of Government is offering a new bulletin series of interest to community and economic development directors, city and county managers, community college presidents, councils of government, and others. Issues of the Community and Economic Development Bulletin will be available electronically on the School of Government's new Community and Economic Development web site. The first issue, "2003 Legislative Action in Community and Economic Development," is now posted in pdf format. This site also contains information on how you can join the new Community Development and Economic Development listservs. To download the report, visit the web site at www.ncinfo.iog.

New web site offers resources, technical help for small businesses
Entrepreneur.com is a new website devoted to the entrepreneur, offering everything from the latest news and trends on small business ownership, advice on business marketing and opening a successful franchise, tax tips and help with finding a business loan. The site also includes a long a list of entrepreneurial rankings as well as where to find the most entrepreneurial communities, universities, banks, etc. The web address is www.entrepreneur.com.

Protecting Your Community's Assets: A Guide for Small Wastewater Systems
The National Environmental Training Center for Small Communities is making available on its website a guide to help utility managers, operators, and local officials improve security and plan for emergency situations affecting wastewater treatment systems. The guide is designed for those who work with systems serving fewer than 10,000 people, although it may also be of use to those who work in larger systems. To receive a printed copy of the guide, call (800) 624-8301. To download the web version, visit the website at www.nesc.wvu.edu.

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Meetings and Events

Women in Business conference to be held May 22 in Charlotte
The annual KEYS (Knowledge Enhances Your Success) Conference will be held on May 22, 2004, at the Charlotte Coliseum on Tyvola Road. The one-day event is sponsored by the Women’s Business Center, NCIMED, the U.S. Small Business Administration and the City of Charlotte. Featured are educational sessions, vendor trade show and keynote speaker Deborah Owens, author of Confident Investing – 5 Basic Principals Women Must Understand to Build Wealth. Sessions topics include learning how to market a business at trade shows, keep a business legally healthy and leverage technology on a limited budget. For more information, or to register, click here.

U.S. Small Business Administration Expo to be held May 19-21 in Orlando
The SBA’s 2004 Expo, held this year at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, will honor the nation’s leading small business entrepreneurs, one of which will receive the National Small Business Person of the Year award. Special events include a small business expo, business seminars, a town hall meeting, and the announcement of state and national small business winners. Deputy Administrator Melanie Sabelhaus is conducting a Women’s Breakfast and award ceremony honoring women entrepreneurs on May 20th. Expo ’04 will also feature speakers from business and industry, trade associations, and state level and federal government. To find out more, or to register, visit the SBA’s website at www.sba.gov/50.

Southern Growth Policies Board to hold annual conference June 13-15 in Oklahoma City
Join the Southern Growth Policies Board and leaders from across the region on June 13-15 in Oklahoma City to explore how Southern communities, states and entrepreneurs can more fully engage in the global economy. Keynote and panel presentations will suggest exciting new strategies for creating jobs and wealth, fostering more effective relationships across national borders, and building the knowledge and skills needed to compete globally. The conference will also showcase Southern innovators who are already leading the way. For a complete agenda, or to register, visit www.southern.org.

Training for small community environmental professionals to be held July 27-30
The National Environmental Training Center for Small Communities (NETCSC) will hold its annual Environmental Training Institute for small community officials and environmental professionals July 27-30 in Morgantown, West Va. The 2004 institute features four training tracks: drinking water, wastewater, managing and protecting assets, and finance. The institute’s training sessions are geared specifically to meet small community needs and will be of interest to assistance providers, local officials, operators, state regulatory officials, environmental consultants and trainers, community development professionals, emergency services personnel, and others interested in small community health and environmental management. To register, visit the website at www.netc.wvu.edu, or call Sandy Miller at (800) 624-8301.

UNC-Chapel Hill to hold conference on globalization of the South in 2005
In collaboration with the Center for the Study of the American South, the University Center for International Studies (UCIS) at UNC-Chapel Hill will host a major interdisciplinary conference, March 3-4, 2005, on the globalization of the American South. The conference commemorates UCIS' six-year exploration of the Global South, funded by the Rockefeller Resident Fellowship Program. Conference sponsors invite proposals for presentations by scholars, policymakers, activists, artists, and other professionals on a wide range of topics relating to contemporary issues of the Global American South. For more information, visit www.ucis.unc.edu. The deadline for submissions is September 30, 2004.

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At the Rural Center

New Generation Cooperatives project under way after April 7 kick off event
A center-led project to spur new and innovative farm cooperatives that are more entrepreneurial and investment-oriented than traditional co-ops is under way after a successful April 7 kick off event. The center’s Agricultural Advancement Consortium is leading the New Generation Cooperatives project, the broad aim of which is to stem the declining number of farms in North Carolina by encouraging more producer-owned, value-added businesses. Unlike traditional co-ops, which generally exist to bring higher prices to its members, a ‘new generation’ cooperative is formed through substantial equity investments of member producers. Over the next year, the project will grow to include several components, including legal research that will look at how other states are structuring cooperatives, market research that will identify where cooperatives have the most potential for success, and an outreach and training initiative to assemble vital information into an on-line reference manual. The program is being funded by a $134,200 grant from the Tobacco Trust Fund Commission and $25,000 from the consortium. For questions, call project director Charles Hall at (919) 250-4314.

Funding Sources

Rural, distressed communities encouraged to apply for after-school grants The Duke Endowment is accepting applications for grants of up to $10,000 to improve after-school programs for children who are at risk for abuse and neglect. Programs must serve at-risk children and should be located in high-need communities. The deadline to apply is June 15th. To find out more about this grant, or for application requirements, visit the web site at www.dukeendowment.org.

Increasing access to affordable housing in rural communities is focus of online resource The Housing Assistance Council provides low-interest loans to finance affordable and mixed-income housing projects in rural communities. Financing is available for single-and multi-family housing with various forms of ownership. The organization also has an online guide to fundraising for rural housing nonprofits which outlines strategies for raising operating funds. To find out more, visit the website at www.ruralhome.org.

From the N.C. Press

Associated Press: OLF case personal to federal judge Boyle
Federal judge Terrence Boyle, who last week froze the Navy's plans to build a remote runway near Plymouth for fighter jets to practice landing on aircraft carriers, has tested the military with his keen knowledge of the back roads, lakes and birds of northeastern North Carolina. He should know: He lives there. Boyle, the chief U.S. District Court judge in Eastern North Carolina, halted the Navy's project while he considers environmental lawsuits against it. The question is whether the Navy can build the landing strip where it wants -- near a federal wildlife refuge where 100,000 birds could collide with the jets. Opponents suggest a giant farm northeast of Morehead City. Maybe the Navy, which is used to navigating in the ocean, should look more closely at its land maps. If the Navy puts the airstrip where it wants to, then fighter jets from a base at Virginia Beach will fly right over Edenton - - where Boyle and his wife live. But if the Navy builds the practice runway at Open Grounds Farm, as environmentalists suggest, a straight shot would take the planes over Elizabeth City -- where Boyle works. The Navy might boast shiny brass and advanced weapons, but the Republican Boyle has an independent streak and a lifetime job. There's no word on when the judge will rule.

Winston-Salem Journal: U.S. leaf companies complete tobacco deal with China
It took years of diplomatic and scientific efforts to knock down trade barriers, but four U.S. leaf dealers completed the first sale of U.S. flue-cured tobacco to China in decades last week. "It's the first significant sale of flue-cured tobacco to China in more than half a century," said Tommy Bunn, the executive vice president of the Leaf Tobacco Exporters Association in Raleigh. Together, four U.S. leaf dealers -- Universal Leaf Tobacco Co., Dimon Inc., Standard Commercial Corp. and Export Leaf Tobacco Co. -- agreed with a Chinese delegation to sell 9 million pounds of flue-cured tobacco to China. The sale follows 12 years of industry officials fighting a Chinese trade barrier that forbade imports of U.S. tobacco because the Chinese said that it could contain blue-mold spores. Officials here countered that since U.S. tobacco has been heat-cured, any spores it carries couldn't be alive anyway. The N.C. Rural Prosperity Task Force, headed by Erskine Bowles, estimated in early 2000 that removal of the Chinese import ban could increase exports of U.S. tobacco by 15 percent to 20 percent. And although the 9 million pounds that the Chinese bought is relatively small, leaf dealers are optimistic that it is a sign of much bigger deals to come.

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Copyright by N.C. Rural Economic Development Center, Inc. 2002. We encourage you to share this UPDATE with interested individuals, organizations, or agencies. Material may be reproduced in electronic or print form. We ask that you please cite the Rural Center as the source.

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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
www.ncruralcenter.org