> You may have to do a couple of things to get people. 1) Increase salary/benefits 2) Thechnical people are often lured to high-tech jobs, so you may need to move to the cutting edge of technology to lure them 3) Do a nationwide search and pay someone to move there.

I wish our Corporate Personnel Director could here you say that :(
I cant find any skilled VFP programmers in my area either. Atleast not one that doesn't want a salary and relocation compensation equal to 1/2 the department's total salaries. It's to the point where corporate has all but told me to forget about hiring a permanent person and just stick to using consultants. ;) I figure that will change once they see a year's worth of consultant fees.