Organizations announce partnership to conduct research on economic impact of COVID-19

BECKLEY, WV (WOAY) – The New River Gorge Regional Development Authority has announced a partnership with state agencies to measure the economic impact of COVID-19.

They are partnering with the West Virginia Development Office, Association of Regional Councils, and the chamber of commerce to measure the impact.

Joe Brouse, the executive director of the Regional Development Authority says the measurements will be necessary to figure out how to further proceed. 

“While we were trying to get businesses steered to the appropriate help that they needed, we also realized that we needed to be collecting data on that impact. We needed to dig into the industries. Who they were, what were they expecting in terms of job losses,” Brouse said.

The measurements will be primarily conducted through voluntary polls on the agencies’ websites and through direct communication with businesses.