Political Quotes

“Mr. President, today, I am pleased to join my bipartisan Virginia colleagues Senator Mark Warner and Congressmen Robert Hurt and Morgan Griffith in introducing the Commonsense Permitting for Job Creation Act of 2015, a bipartisan, bicameral piece of legislation to address an aspect of water permitting law that has touched several economic development projects in Virginia. Southern Virginia has seen great economic challenges in recent years due to the overall economic downturn compounded by fundamental changes to the region's traditional industries such as manufacturing, textiles, and tobacco. Throughout this region there are several business park sites that could be developed to accommodate one or multiple manufacturing operations. County economic development authorities have worked to secure all necessary permits and authorities to develop these sites but have encountered an issue pertaining to Clean Water Act Section 404 permits. Several of these counties have had difficulty securing approval from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for 404 permits because the Corps is reluctant to issue a permit without a company that has committed to the site and prepared detailed development blueprints. In speaking to potential companies, county officials have heard that it is difficult for a company to commit to a site without assurance that all government permits are secured.…”