Sen. Kaine talks with Stafford business leaders
U.S. Sen. Tim Kaine assured Stafford business leaders Wednesday that although the county has robust economic development opportunities, he wants to help create jobs here.
In an informal chat at the Quantico Corporate Center, the Virginia Democrat noted that Naval Support Facility Dahlgren and Marine Corps Base Quantico are anchors of the Fredericksburg economy, but federal budget sequestration is hurting the installations and the contractors around them. He called sequestration “stupid,” because it makes across-the-board cuts rather than targeted reductions.
“We need to find something better, more focused to replace sequestration,” he said.
By doing that, he hopes to improve the outlook for local contractors and government workers who have seen training and research dollars cut.
Stafford Supervisor Laura Sellers, who researches law enforcement and government agencies for Via Global Group LLC, said she knows first-hand about cuts in training for federal officers. Sellers said many officers who used to get training and certification locally now drive to Maryland, where the closest facility is located, for that.
Fairfield Technologies President Ken Fried said his company spent a decade researching the effects of certain vaccines and how they interact with each other, since soldiers going overseas receive multiple immunizations. But the money for that research has dried up, he said.
“It’s essentially a big data program, but with that stopped, there are issues that potentially could have been prevented with further research,” he said.
Kaine responded, “That’s the foolishness of a sequester.”
Those attending the meeting were also concerned with trade issues.
In a visit to Richmond-area business owners with U.S. Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker Monday, Kaine talked about the benefits from the Trans–Pacific Partnership. The trade deal between the United States and a dozen countries around the Pacific Rim is now before Congress.
With resources such as robust ports and international airports, he said Virginia businesses have a greater potential than most states to grow from trade overseas.
Kaine told Stafford businesses that they, too, could benefit from the deal.
One of the biggest concerns for local businesses represented at the roundtable discussion was cybersecurity.
Joel Griffin, co-founder of Dependable Global Solutions and chairman of the Stafford Economic Development Authority, said he would like to see a national cybersecurity academy where Americans could gain professional certifications and learn to protect the government’s data.
“This affects everyone and our competition have national academies devoted to it,” he said.
Kaine said he was aware of a similar Russian program, but had not heard anyone suggest doing that in the United States before.
“This is why I do these roundtables—for great ideas,” he said.
Kaine also talked to a group at Germanna Community College’s Culpeper campus Wednesday about his initiatives for career and technology readiness.
He said state funding for community college career and technical certifications should be supported by the state government to provide area workers with the ability to get jobs, such as cybersecurity posts in Stafford where employees to fill them are in demand.
###