                                 CODE OF VIRGINIA

DECLARATION OF PUBLIC PURPOSE (§ 56-575.2)

A. The General Assembly finds that:

   1. There is a public need for timely acquisition, design, construction,
   improvement, renovation, expansion, equipping, maintenance, operation,
   implementation, or installation of education facilities, technology
   infrastructure and other public infrastructure and government facilities
   within the Commonwealth that serve a public need and purpose;

   2. Such public need may not be wholly satisfied by existing methods of
   procurement in which qualifying projects are acquired, designed, constructed,
   improved, renovated, expanded, equipped, maintained, operated, implemented, or
   installed;

   3. There are inadequate resources to develop new education facilities,
   technology infrastructure and other public infrastructure and government
   facilities for the benefit of citizens of the Commonwealth, and there is
   demonstrated evidence that public-private partnerships can meet these needs by
   improving the schedule for delivery, lowering the cost, and providing other
   benefits to the public;

   4. Financial incentives exist under state and federal tax provisions that
   promote public entities to enter into partnerships with private entities to
   develop qualifying projects;

   5. Authorizing private entities to develop or operate one or more qualifying
   projects may result in the availability of such projects to the public in a
   more timely or less costly fashion, thereby serving the public safety,
   benefit, and welfare.

B. An action under &#xA7; 56-575.4 shall serve the public purpose of this
chapter if such action facilitates the timely development or operation of
qualifying projects.

C. It is the intent of this chapter, among other things, to encourage investment
in the Commonwealth by private entities and facilitate the bond financing
provisions of the Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001 or
other similar financing mechanisms, private capital and other funding sources
that support the development or operation of qualifying projects, to the end
that financing for qualifying projects be expanded and accelerated to improve
and add to the convenience of the public, and such that public and private
entities may have the greatest possible flexibility in contracting with each
other for the provision of the public services that are the subject of this
chapter.

D. This chapter shall be liberally construed in conformity with the purposes
hereof.

HISTORY: 2002, c. 571; 2003, c. 1034; 2005, c. 865.