The HRPDC set its regional legislative priorities for the 2017 General Assembly session during its Annual Meeting on October 20, 2016. The Commission began working on the list in May of this year identifying programs or initiatives that would have regional significance. Throughout the summer and early fall, HRPDC refined the list through meetings and discussions with regional partner organizations (HRTPO, HRTAC and HRMFFA) as well as with the region’s chief administrative officers, the jurisdictions’ legislative liaisons, and of course, with the Hampton Roads Caucus of General Assembly members.

The resulting list is a broad yet concise list of programs and initiatives that the region’s elected officials can support.

The HRPDC Regional 2017 Legislative Priorities are:

K-12 Education - The  HRPDC  overwhelmingly  supports  a  continuation  of  efforts  from  the  2016  General  Assembly session to provide increased state funding for K-12 public education.

Summer Enrichment Program - The HRPDC requests financial support through the General Assembly to support a regional Summer  Enrichment  Program  that  provides  employment  opportunities  to  youth  in  the  Hampton Roads region.

Veterans Transition Employment Center - The  HRPDC  supports  the  efforts  of  the  Hampton  Roads  Chamber  of  Commerce,  the  Peninsula Chamber of Commerce and the region’s workforce investment boards to receive state funding to support an employment transition center for our region’s veterans.

Hampton Roads Sanitation District (HRSD) Groundwater Injection Project - The  HRPDC  requests  that  the  General  Assembly  consider  funding  for  a  land  subsidence monitoring program in support of the HRSD groundwater injection project.

Urban Areas Security Initiative (UASI) - The HRPDC requests assistance from our state and federal partners to restore the Hampton Roads region’s UASI designation.

Click on the link to download a copy of the HRPDC/HRTPO 2017 Regional Legislative Priorities (PDF).