For better or worse, the commonwealth continues to be highly sensitive to changes in federal expenditures — and this is particularly true in Northern Virginia and Hampton Roads. Federal wages and salaries, procurement and other activities account for more than 40 percent of the Washington, D.C. metropolitan economy, and defense spending by itself accounts for approximately 39 percent of all economic activity in Hampton Roads.

Defense spending in Virginia will approximate $60 billion in 2015. To place this in context, the commonwealth’s state government spends only about $46 billion annually.

But here’s the really good news: Virginia is a pretty good place to be, economically speaking. The report reveals that the real, price-adjusted 2013 income of the average household in Virginia ($61,925) was more than $13,000 higher than the comparable number for Charlotte, more than $20,000 higher than Atlanta, and a whopping $24,000 higher than New York City’s Manhattan. Even Virginia’s rural Scott County boasts a median household income that is $2,000 higher than that of Manhattan. It’s not such a bad time to live in the commonwealth.

Read the full op ed at http://www.richmond.com/opinion/their-opinion/guest-columnists/article_aff377ee-ad27-5635-855d-c532fcc77ac5.html?_dc=369428792269.90045