Pittsylvania County native Todd Haymore will be the next Virginia Secretary of Commerce and Trade, Gov. Terry McAuliffe announced Thursday.
“Todd brings the right combination of economic development experience, global trade understanding and administrative expertise to build on the outstanding success Secretary Maurice Jones has achieved as a member of my cabinet,” McAuliffe said in a news release.
Haymore is currently the Virginia Secretary of Agriculture and Forestry. In a telephone interview Thursday, he said he was excited for the opportunity to continue working on building new economic development opportunities for Virginia.
“The next few months will be fun, exciting and filled with new challenges and opportunities,” Haymore said.
McAuliffe said Haymore had been instrumental in making the industries innovative and robust during his time in the position. McAuliffe said he believed Haymore would bring the same success to his new appointment.
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“The agencies that comprise the Secretary of Commerce and Trade are at the epicenter of my administration’s efforts to grow and diversify our economy, and I know that Secretary Haymore will hit the ground running creating jobs and new economic opportunity for families in every corner of our Commonwealth,” McAuliffe said.
Haymore said he was moving up from overseeing three state agencies to 13. Haymore said he was familiar with some of the agencies from economic development work, such as the Tobacco Commission and the Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development. Haymore said he planned to work soon to familiarize himself with the others.
“I have a learning curve I’m about to get on, and I am looking forward to learning more about those agencies,” he said.
On Tuesday, Haymore joined McAuliffe in Chatham to announce additional funding of $2 million for the Agriculture and Forestry Industries Development Fund, adding four additional positions to the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services staff.
Haymore was born and raised on his maternal grandparents’ farm in Pittsylvania County. He graduated from George Washington High School in Danville. Haymore said his time in the region gave him a first-hand appreciation on the value of farming, textiles and even furniture making.
“No doubt, I am a product of Southside Virginia,” Haymore said
Haymore has served as Secretary of Agriculture and Forestry since 2010, and was reappointed to the position by McAuliffe in 2014. In the position, Haymore has overseen the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, the Virginia Department of Forestry and the Virginia Racing Commission.
Maurice Jones will leave the McAuliffe administration in September to become the chief executive officer of the Local Initiative Corporation, which works with low-income communities to create new opportunities for businesses and residents.
Trevor Metcalfe reports for the Danville Register & Bee. Contact him at tmetcalfe@registerbee.com or (434) 791-7983.