It’s not enough that Loudoun is the Internet capital of the world – the members of the Science and Technology Cabinet want the county to be the global center of science and technology as well. And Sen. Mark Herring (D-eastern Loudoun) thinks they’re right on track.

Herring was the keynote speaker at Loudoun’s Science and Technology Cabinet at its June 2 meeting. He is the recent recipient of the state Legislator of the Year award by the Biotechnology Industry Organization.

He told the group of nearly 30 members that the subject they’re working on – developing the county and the region as a global center of science and technology – is vitally important.

Herring said he deems the biotechnology sector significant in the global and local economies. Therefore, he spends a large chunk of his time as a legislator focused on technology-based economic development.

Herring listed his top three reasons for pushing the technology sector in Virginia:

1. Our future depends on it

Those places in the world that are going to succeed in the future are going to have a strong, diverse and innovative technology sector because it has high growth potential, he said. He wants Virginia to be one of those places. The tech industry will continue to experience growth and become successful, which will drive employment and command higher wages, he said.

“We can’t be afraid to compete in a globally competitive sector,” he said. “Virginia can not only survive in that kind of economy, but we can thrive in it.”

Virginia is rooted in commercial and entrepreneurial spirit, he said. Risk-taking and rewards, capitalism and private enterprise are in the commonwealth’s DNA, he said. Virginia has more information technology workers per capita than any other place in the world, and the commonwealth is home to the first technology secretary, he said.

“Virginia can help lead our country in the global economy in the future,” he said.

2. We owe it to the next generation of Virginians

Simply put, Herring said he hopes the next generation of Virginians make their homes and start their technology companies in the commonwealth.

“When our children in Virginia think about where they need to go to accomplish their hopes and dreams, they need to think Virginia, because we have the opportunities,” he said.

3. Northern Virginia is full of opportunity

Loudoun and Fairfax have a base of creative, innovative workers who are poised to grow the science and technology sectors here, he said.

“We really are the Internet capital of the world,” he said.

The emergence of the science and technology sector has been in the county’s economic development plan for decades, he said.

Loudoun has skilled, knowledge-based workers, but we struggle with the commercialization of the discoveries that are made here, he said.

Virginia needs to figure out a way to monetize the scientific research that is conducted at Loudoun-based organizations such as the George Washington University Ashburn campus, the Howard Hughes Medical Institute and George Mason University, he said.

Unfortunately, Virginia is in danger of losing its hold on research funding, he said.

The commonwealth places 38th in state higher education research funding per capita in all U.S. localities (compared to Maryland at second and North Carolina in eighth). Additionally, Virginia places 52nd in U.S. localities in terms of changes of total funding, he said.

While Herring said we’re trending in the wrong direction, it’s important Virginia be a partner with the business community, the technology sector, universities and centers of research to keep us competitive in the global economy in the future.

How to get there
For his part, Herring said he’s created a series of steps to help Virginia expand the presence of the advanced technology industry here.
First, he developed an angel investment tax credit to make the state’s tax code more inclusive for small startup tech companies and give more state money to research and development in the technology sector – an industry where Loudoun is hoping to increase its presence.
“If you bring your research to Virginia, we’ll match it up to $50,000,” he said.
Herring’s sponsorship and passage of the Virginia Innovation Investment Act translated into long-term capital gains tax exclusion for Virginia bioscience investments, according to Mark Herzog, executive director of the Virginia Biotechnology Association.
Herring is also a sponsor of the Science and Technology Research Development and Commercialization Act.
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