This series contains monthly reports from 2005 regarding employees assigned to the Office of the Secretary of Agriculture and Forestry from agencies under the office's control. Each report includes the employee's name, home agency, the number of days the employee worked, and the project to which he or she was assigned. Many reports record that no agency employees were temporarily assigned to the office for a given month. Also included in this series are two reports from 2004 and 2005 by Sandra D. Bowen, Secretary of Administration, detailing the same information outlined above but for all of the Governor's cabinet secretaries. This series is organized chronologically.

This series contains a single appointment calendar book containing the schedule of Secretary Robert S. Bloxom for 2005. It documents the daily appointments of Secretary Bloxom and other members of his office.

This series contains records relating to Secretary Robert S. Bloxom's participation in Governor Mark R. Warner's cabinet meetings. Records in this series include cabinet meeting schedules annotated by Secretary Bloxom, weekly reports of the Office of the Secretary of Agriculture and Forestry, and notes on topics to be discussed with Commonwealth policymakers both during cabinet meetings and afterwards. The annotated schedules in this series include Secretary Bloxom's thoughts and questions regarding topics brought up during cabinet meetings. Topics of particular interest in this series include the distribution of wine by Virginia wineries and the Small, Women and Minority-owned Businesses (SWAM) procurement initiative, an effort to promote fairness and impartiality in the award of state contracts. This series is arranged chronologically.

This series contains the monthly business prospect lists submitted to the Office of the Secretary of Commerce and Trade by the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. Following Robert S. Bloxom's appointment as Secretary of Agriculture and Forestry in December 2004, the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services reported directly to his office. A business prospect list is typically created by a business to document potential clients who might be interested in using a particular product or service. The business prospect lists in this series were created to measure the level of interest individual agribusinesses have in either selecting Virginia as a home or in expanding within Virginia. An agribusiness is a business that derives most of its revenue either directly from agricultural products or from providing products and services to agricultural enterprises. It is part of the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services' mission to entice agribusiness to Virginia and to assist agribusinesses interested in moving to or expanding in the Commonwealth by helping them navigate issues of finance, site selection, regulatory law, and resource procurement. Accordingly, every business prospect list in this series records the names of potential agribusinesses interested in moving to or expanding within the Commonwealth, the area to which they wish to relocate, the amount of money they wish to invest in their venture, the number of jobs they will create, the type of project in which they are engaged, their site requirements, the name of the manager assigned to handle their case, their current progress, and any other pertinent notes. Business prospect lists created in 2005 are filed in Series VI: Correspondence and Supporting Documentation: Assigned State Agencies, 2000-2006, box 2, folder 12. This series is arranged chronologically.

This series contains constituent correspondence that relates to the activities of the secretariat or its assigned agencies. The majority of this series is comprised of email, but typed and handwritten correspondence is also included. Most of the correspondence was originally addressed to Governor Mark R. Warner and then rerouted to the Office of the Secretary of Agriculture and Forestry or its assigned agencies. Information regarding each instance of correspondence received by the Governor's office was entered into a database along with notes, assigned a control number (a partial index is available in the library,) and then routed to the appropriate agency for a response. A printout of the database entry created for each piece of correspondence is included with the correspondence for which it was written. In some cases, the notes included in the correspondence database entries speak to the tone of the correspondence and offer suggestions as to how replies should be written.

This series addresses a broad number of topics including but not limited to consumer complaints against apartment landlords, hospitals, and automobile dealers, letters expressing concern over gasoline prices, calls for legislation regarding issues of agriculture and forestry, letters expressing concern over pesticide usage, letters expressing indignation over the consumption of horse meat, "cold contact" letters offering products and services to the Commonwealth, and letters asking for drought disaster declarations. Further records regarding drought can be found in Series VI: Correspondence and Supporting Documentation: Assigned State Agencies, 2000-2006, box 2, folders 20 and 21, and in Series XII: Special Project Files, 2002-2003, box 5, folders 2-6 and box 6, folder 1.

One major topic addressed in this series is the regulation of the manufacture, storage, and sale of milk and cheese. The vast majority of the correspondence for January 2005 is from small dairy farmers and dairy enthusiasts regarding the sale of unpasteurized dairy products. The regulations they protest against within the correspondence are State Economic Regulations 2 VAC 5-501 and 2 VAC 5-531, "Regulations Governing the Cooling, Storing, Sampling, and Transporting of Milk" and "Regulations Governing Milk for Manufacturing Purposes," respectively. The regulations require dairy farmers to sell pasteurized products that have been handled according to health regulations set forth by the Commonwealth. Those in opposition to the regulations feel that the equipment required to meet the requirements of the regulations would prove to be cost prohibitive and would drive small dairy farmers out of business. This series is organized chronologically.

This series is the largest in the collection. It contains correspondence and supporting documentation sent by the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services and the Department of Forestry to either Secretary of Commerce and Trade Michael J. Schewel or Secretary of Agriculture and Forestry Robert S. Bloxom, depending on the date. Control of the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services and the Department of Forestry was transferred from the Office of Secretary of Commerce and Trade to the Office of the Secretary of Agriculture and Forestry following the office's creation and the appointment of Bloxom in late 2004.

This series contains correspondence of various types sent internally (within departments and agencies and then forwarded to the appropriate secretary) as well as external communications sent from private individuals and businesses. Much of the correspondence in this series is not directly addressed to either secretary, but rather lists the appropriate secretary as one recipient among many. Types of materials within this collection include emails, letters, newsletters, reports, and newspaper clippings. Incoming correspondence is filed along with outgoing correspondence and in many cases replies are affixed to the instances of correspondence that sparked them. The physical format of records varies in this series and includes a CD-ROM and a videocassette among the instances of paper correspondence.

There are a wide variety of subjects addressed in this series. Topics of particular interest to researchers include the use of biodiesel fuels, pesticide usage near schools, and the Small, Women and Minority-owned Businesses (SWAM) procurement initiative. The SWAM records, found in box 2, folder 25, document the office's efforts to promote fairness and impartiality in the award of state contracts. Further topics of interest include land easement agreements, biosecurity, the protection of the Chesapeake Bay, water quality, the reforestation of timberlands, and doubling the net agricultural receipts of Virginia. The records in this series documenting the effort to double Virginia's agricultural receipts, found in box 3, folder 28, will prove to be of extreme interest to researchers interested in the creation of the Office of the Secretary of Agriculture and Forestry because they document in part a task force created to determine strategies for doubling the net profits of Virginia's agricultural sector. One of their recommendations was the creation of the Office of the Secretary of Agriculture and Forestry.

Some topics in this series are also addressed elsewhere in the collection. One such topic is requests for drought disaster declarations as well as the actual declarations themselves. Further information regarding drought disaster declarations can be found within Series V and also within Series XII: Special Project Files, 2002-2003, box 5, folders 2-6 and in box 6, folder 1. Business prospect lists for 2005 are found in this series and, for years prior, in Series IV: Company Files - Prospects and Development, 2002-2004. Similarly, information regarding the secretary's website is included in this series as well as in Series XI: Secretary's Website, 2005.

The organization of the records in this series reflects the transfer of the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services and the Department of Forestry from the Office of the Secretary of Commerce and Trade to the Office of the Secretary of Agriculture and Forestry. Records created prior to the transfer are arranged first by the originating agency and then alphabetically by topic with files marked as general correspondence filed in front of the alphabetical files. It appears that several of the files created by agencies prior to their transfer from the control of the Office of the Secretary of Commerce and Trade have been appended at a later date with the inclusion of records created after their transfer to the Office of the Secretary of Agriculture and Forestry. Records created after the December 2004 appointment of Robert S. Bloxom as the Secretary of Agriculture and Forestry are arranged separately but in exactly the same fashion; the post-December 2004 files are organized first by agency and then alphabetically by topic with files designated as general correspondence filed before the alphabetical files. Files created during Bloxom's control of the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services and the Department of Forestry represent the bulk of this series.

This series contains hiring requests submitted by the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services as well as the Department of Forestry to their designated Cabinet Secretary. The requests document instances of agencies seeking authorization to fill a vacant position. Each request contains the position title, the position pay scale, a narrative explanation of why the position needs to be filled, alternatives to filling the position with a paid employee, and the impact the agency may expect if the position goes unfilled. The requests bear either the approval or disapproval of either Secretary of Commerce and Trade Michael J. Schewel or Secretary of Agriculture and Forestry Robert Bloxom. Control of the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services and the Department of Forestry was transferred from Michael J. Schewel, the Secretary of Commerce and Trade, to Robert S. Bloxom after his appointment to the position of Secretary of Agriculture and Forestry in December 2004. Some requests feature handwritten notes from Michael J. Schewel and Robert S. Bloxom. The requests are organized first by agency and are in chronological order.

This series contains recognition requests sent to the office of Governor Mark R. Warner by the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. Recognition requests are forms that petition for the official recognition of a notable date, person, event, or object through the issuance of a certificate or greeting from the governor. Requests may also petition for the designation of a particular date or span of time in honor of whatever person, object, or concept is being recognized. Forms of recognition may include but are not limited to certificates of recognition, birthday greetings, and anniversary announcements.

The recognition requests in this series are exclusively for certificates of recognition and petition the Governor's office for the designation of certain days, weeks, and months as periods of time to honor different aspects of agriculture. Examples include requests to designate December 2005 as Virginia Christmas Tree Month, October 2005 as Virginia Pumpkin Month as well as Virginia Apple Month, the week of August 7, 2005 as Virginia Farmers Market Week, and September 2002 as the 125th anniversary of the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. Included with each request is a draft of the pertinent information to be included in the desired certificate. The drafts contain the reasons why each object, concept, or entity is worthy of recognition and explain their significance to the Commonwealth. This series is arranged chronologically.

This series contains drafts and completed reports and studies created by the Secretary of Commerce and Trade, the Secretary of Agriculture and Forestry, and the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. The reports were submitted to either the appropriate Secretariat (Commerce and Trade or Agriculture and Forestry), or the Governor, special committees, or the Virginia General Assembly. This series contains reports from the Secretary of Commerce and Trade because control of the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services passed from the Office of Secretary of Commerce and Trade to the Office of the Secretary of Agriculture and Forestry following the Office's creation and the appointment of Bloxom in late 2004. Reports and studies represented in this series include annual agency activity reports and topical reports concerning issues such as the purchase of land development rights from land owners, the Virginia equine industry, agency budgets, agricultural development problems, and agency performance goals among other topics. As many of these reports are drafts, this series may be of interest to researchers who desire to see changes between the draft report and the report in its final form. This series is arranged chronologically.

This series contains proposed agricultural regulations submitted to Secretary of Commerce and Trade Michael J. Schewel and the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services for comment. Regulatory topics included in this series include the storage of milk, the removal of three species from the List of Threatened and Endangered Plant and Insect Species, the development and review process for regulations proposed by state agencies, and pesticide regulations. Prior to the creation of the Secretariat of Agriculture and Forestry, the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services and the Department of Forestry reported to the Secretary of Commerce and Trade. This series is arranged chronologically.

This series contains several different types of records pertaining to the creation of the Secretary of Agriculture and Forestry's website. Included in this series are draft versions of individual website pages, content notes, biographical information about the Secretary and Deputy Secretary, and email regarding the website's creation. The draft website pages included in this series range from strictly informational to nearly complete formats and include handwritten annotations discussing potential changes in the draft's informational content and artistic design. Most of the documents in this series are handwritten drafts of agency mission statements and synopses of agency projects written for the viewing public. The email in this series discuss what agency facts and services will be placed on the website and how the website will be structured. Two items of particular interest in this series are highly detailed biographical sketches of Secretary Robert S. Bloxom and Deputy Secretary William P. Dickinson, Jr. Further information regarding the creation of the Secretary's website can be found in box 3, folders 14 and 15 of Series VI: Correspondence and Supporting Documentation: Assigned State Agencies, 2000-2006.

This series contains the files of what the Secretary of Commerce and Trade classified as special projects. The files in this series were created before the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services was transferred from the Office of the Secretary of Commerce and Trade to the Office of the Secretary and Agriculture and Forestry after December 2004. Major topics represented in this series and of interest to researchers include avian influenza and drought. The avian influenza epidemic file documents the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services' response to the 2002 outbreak of avian influenza (commonly referred to as "avian flu" or "bird flu") that began on a turkey farm in Virginia's Shenandoah Valley and the department's efforts to provide guidance and relief to affected poultry farms and farmers. Documents in the avian influenza epidemic file include statistical sheets detailing the number of afflicted birds and their values, correspondence from poultry flock owners requesting assistance in dealing with the outbreak and removing dead flocks, and plans concerning the possibility of indemnity payoffs to poultry growers who experienced losses.

The drought disaster designations files document Virginia's response to instances of significant drought in 2002 and early 2003. Documents include, among other things, letters from county officials and residents to the office of Governor Mark R. Warner and from Governor Warner to the U.S. Department of Agriculture asking for declarations of drought disasters in affected Virginia counties. Damage assessment reports from the U.S. Department of Agriculture are also included, and were used to determine a particular area's worthiness while deciding if the area should be declared a disaster area. The Virginia Drought Task Force file documents a Commonwealth effort to draft a comprehensive plan for drought assessment and response. The creation of the task force was brought about by Governor Warner's Executive Order # 39, the Virginia Water Supply Initiative. Documents in the file include the taskforce's final plan, task force status reports, correspondence from Governor Mark R. Warner and others, presentation materials, and articles about drought among other things. Further information regarding drought can be found among the correspondence ain Series V: Constituent Correspondence, 2004-2005, and in Series VI: Correspondence and Supporting Documentation: Assigned State Agencies, 2000-2006, box 2, folders 20-21. This series is arranged alphabetically by topic. This series is arranged alphabetically by topic.

This series contains domestic and foreign travel authorization requests submitted by the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services to either the Secretary of Commerce and Trade or the Secretary of Agriculture and Forestry, depending on the date of the request. The Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services was removed from the control of the Secretary of Commerce and Trade and placed under the control of the Office of the Secretary of Agriculture and Forestry following Robert S. Bloxom's appointment as Secretary of Agriculture and Forestry in December of 2004. The travel requests are authored by Commissioner J. Carlton Courter, III, Commissioner of the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services and were written on behalf of agency employees the department desired to send to conferences, tradeshows, or fact-finding trips.

Each request includes a cover sheet detailing the rationale behind the proposed trip. Many requests include conference schedules, literature, and travel accommodation information. The requests themselves are standard forms that document information regarding the employee going on the trip, the length of the trip, the total cost, the justification for the trip, and any justifications for exceeding the allowance the agency will pay. Researchers may find this series particularly useful for examining both the outreach efforts and the day to day business of the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services as each authorization includes a justification stating why the trip supports the business of the department. This series is arranged by the type of travel, foreign or domestic, and then chronologically.

This series contains the records of "A Day in Richmond" and "Norfolk Port Day," two events in 2005 designed to showcase Virginia's agricultural products and the Port of Norfolk to trade attaches from Near Eastern and North African communities. Both events were designed to stimulate trade between Virginia and Near Eastern nations such as Libya, Greece, Algeria, and the Arab Republic of Egypt, among others. The intended goals of the "A Day in Richmond" event were to establish contacts with foreign emissaries, improve trade with Middle Eastern, North African, and Mediterranean countries, and to gain an appreciation for the views of the region's diplomats. The overall goal of "Norfolk Port Day" was to demonstrate Virginia's capacity for handling trade with foreign countries. Records of these events include schedules, guest lists, logistical information, and drafts of follow-up letters thanking participants and guests.