                                 CODE OF VIRGINIA

ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA FOR INCENTIVE PAYMENTS (§ 15.2-1309)

The Department of Housing and Community Development, in setting the criteria for
eligibility for incentive payments under § 15.2-1308, shall require that:

1. A regional partnership shall exist and effectively function in the applicant
region, and membership shall include as broad a representation as is practical
of local government, elementary and secondary education, higher education, the
business community, and civic groups. The partnership should include as many of
the following as is practical: the mayor or chair and the chief administrative
officer of each member locality, president of each institution of higher
education, corporate leaders of the region, and leaders of local civic
associations. The Department shall issue guidelines on the structure and
organization of the regional partnership.

2. Each regional partnership shall develop a regional strategic economic
development plan which identifies critical issues of economic competitiveness
for the region. The plan shall contain, at a minimum, a comparison of the
following criteria for the region, and the primary competitor regions in the
southeast United States:
			a. Median family income;
			b. Job creation; and
			c. Differences in median family income levels among the localities in the
region.

3. Each regional partnership shall issue an annual report, including, at a
minimum, the region&#8217;s progress towards improvement according to the
criteria identified in subdivision 2 and its progress in addressing the critical
issues of economic competitiveness identified in the regional strategic economic
development plan.

4. Each regional partnership shall identify the existing and proposed joint
activities within the region, and the joint activities shall have a combined
point total of at least twenty points, based on the values established in &#xA7;
15.2-1310, in order for the region to qualify for any incentive payments.

5. Subject to the provisions of &#xA7; 15.2-1308, once a region becomes eligible
for the annual incentive payments, it shall receive such payments for at least
five years, so long as regional partnerships continue to exist and effectively
function. The region may reapply before or at the end of the five-year period
for requalification to continue to receive annual incentive payments.

6. Joint activities existing prior to the enactment of this section or prior to
requalification may be considered by the Department of Housing and Community
Development for an award up to the full value established in &#xA7; 15.2-1310.
Existing joint activities which are expanded in scope or number of localities
may be considered a new joint activity but shall not receive the full value of
points as established in &#xA7; 15.2-1310. Points for existing activities (those
initiated prior to July 1 of the year in which the initial qualification or the
requalification is sought) may not constitute more than fifty percent of the
total points assigned.

7. The year for incentive payments shall be the Commonwealth&#8217;s fiscal year
following the calendar year in which the region qualifies, with payments made
annually by the Comptroller upon certification by the Department of Housing and
Community Development. Eligible regions shall receive incentive funds in an
amount equal to the percentage of the funds appropriated for incentive payments
for such fiscal year that represents the region&#8217;s percentage of the total
population of all eligible regions. Within eligible regions, the incentive funds
shall be distributed to the localities on the basis of a formula mutually agreed
to by all of the localities of the region.

HISTORY: 1996, cc. 1045, 1055, § 15.1-1227.4; 1997, c. 587; 2000, c. 749.