
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: THURSDAY, October 7, 1993                   TAG: 9310070336
SECTION: VIRGINIA                    PAGE: C-3   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: 
DATELINE: TOKYO                                LENGTH: Short

WILDER SAYS 1-TERM RULE STUNTS ECONOMIC GROWTH

Gov. Douglas Wilder says the one-term limit for Virginia governors harms the state's economic development efforts.

Wilder said he favors a change in the Virginia Constitution to permit governors to serve two four-year terms in succession or to extend the one-term limit to six years.

Wilder made his comments Tuesday in Tokyo, a stop on his 19-day trade mission to Europe and the Far East.

Wilder, who has about 100 days remaining in office, said the one-term limit undermines the value of continuity and long-term focus in attempts to increase exports and lure investment and business to Virginia.

"There's a strong sense of competitiveness among the states," Wilder said. Other governors are able to capitalize on contacts developed over a long term, he said.

"The four-year term doesn't make any sense," he said. "Four years are not enough."

- Associated Press

by CNB