BRADENTON, Fla. — Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe Friday signed a $2.24 billion bond bill into law to finance a wide variety of state projects.
Most of the new debt will be issued as revenue bonds by the Virginia Public Building Authority and the Virginia College Building Authority, according to legislation passed by the General Assembly in April.
"This bond package builds on our Commonwealth's unique strengths while addressing the challenges we face," McAuliffe said as he signed the bill at Virginia Tech Carilion Research Institute. "It will help us diversify our economy through investments in research that will yield commercially viable products, new cutting-edge businesses and high-paying jobs."
McAuliffe proposed the bond package with his fiscal 2018 budget, though the final amount is less than he had suggested.
The bonds will finance key capital projects for research and economic development infrastructure at colleges, universities and research institutions, as well as the state's port, juvenile justice system, and parks.
Funds will also be provided for veterans' services and water quality improvements.
More than half of the borrowings, a total of $1.35 billion, will go toward colleges and universities.
The "bond package will make our education system the envy of everyone on the planet," Secretary of Education Anne Holton tweeted on Friday:
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@GovernorVA : "bond package will make our education system the envy of everyone on the planet."#HigherEd #CotR2016 pic.twitter.com/ZclFYys5qu — Anne Holton (@VASecofEdu)
May 6, 2016
