The Madison County Commission and its International Trade Development Center (ITDC) are profiled as a case study in a new report entitled Strong Economies, Resilient Counties: The Role of Counties in Economic Development. Featuring a photo of all the commissioners attending a ceremony at Toyota's manufacturing plant, it explains that collaboration is key to county economic development. It goes in to say that the ITDC is a true public-private partnership that collaborates with the private sector to promote economic growth through international trade education, training, and networking.

District 6 Commissioner Bob Harrison mentioned the recognition at this week's county commission meeting saying he was proud to see Madison County honored as "resilient county" when attending a session on strong counties.

"We would not have been able to accomplish this without our economic development people," he said.

District 2 Commissioner Steve Haraway said he was pleasantly surprised to hear Madison County's name praised while attending a conference session with about 300 other county officials from America. Madison County was recognized as "the shining example" of involvement in international trade, he said.

Madison County Commission Chairman Dale Strong said ITDC provides Madison County businesses "with increased exposure, training and opportunities to expand into foreign markets, which helps our local businesses grow."

"Strong local economies enable counties to sustain and enhance the quality of life for their residents, while helping to support the local business community and the county tax base," he said.

The NACo study examines county involvement, challenges, and solutions in economic development across 3,069 counties. This research developed 35 case studies of county economic development initiatives from around the country, featuring a wide range of activities from workforce training, regional marketing and business recruitment and retention to infrastructure financing, small business support, business incubators, disaster preparedness, industry diversification and international economic development.

The NACo study is accompanied by an interactive map that provides more information about the 35 case studies and the full text of each of the case studies. While each initiative provides an economic development solution within the framework of specific local resources and constraints, these case studies highlight some of the current county practices in economic development worthy of replication.