The Commission shall have the following powers and duties:

1. Provide a demographic analysis of minorities residing in Virginia by locality and educational, employment, and economic status;

2. Determine the overall and minority population change since the 2010 United States decennial census in Virginia and project the minority population change for the decennial census in 2020 and 2030 to assess education, employment, housing, entrepreneurship, and job creation needs for minorities;

3. Evaluate whether a nexus exists between education, higher education, poverty, familial and disparate health status, unemployment, imprisonment, housing patterns, job skills training, access to technology, entrepreneurship, and economic opportunities among minorities;

4. Assess the impact of federal, state, and local fiscal and economic conditions and social policies on economic opportunities for minorities;

5. Identify state, local, and community organizations that provide or refer members of aspiring and diverse communities to job skills training, angel investments, and other economic opportunities;

6. Develop strategies and recommendations to increase and improve economic opportunities for members of aspiring and diverse communities in Virginia;

7. Collaborate with the Virginia Employment Commission, the Weldon Cooper Center for Public Service of the University of Virginia, and other appropriate entities to facilitate the Commission's work and mission;

8. Solicit, accept, use, and dispose of gifts, grants, donations, bequests, or other funds received by the Commission for the purpose of aiding or facilitating its work; and

9. Perform such other duties, functions, and activities as may be necessary to facilitate and implement the objectives of this chapter.

2016, c. 650.