Taking matters into their own hands, senators spent until the early hours of Friday morning putting together and passing their own austerity package in hopes of stirring up some revenue for the government, but whether it’s enough to get the territory through its current $75 million shortfall is yet to be seen.
The package contains two bills. The first cuts the budgets of central government departments and agencies by approximately 3 percent, and the miscellaneous section of the fiscal year 2011 budget by 5 percent, though some of its appropriations, according to Senate staff, were further reduced or eliminated completely.
"What we have here is a line-item budget for every major department in every major category," Sen. Usie R. Richards said, adding that the dollar value of the cuts add up to approximately $25 million. "I don’t care if they have to come down here every day for the next six months to move the money around…let them come."
This first bill garnered much support from the full body, with Sens. Craig W. Barshinger, Carlton "Ital" Dowe, Neville James, Shawn-Michael Malone, Nereida Rivera-O’Reilly, Richards, Ronald E. Russell, Sammuel Sanes, Patrick Simeon Sprauve, Celestino A. White Sr., Alvin Williams and Janette Millin-Young voting in favor.
Sen. Louis P. Hill voted against the bill, while Sens. Alicia "Chucky" Hansen and Terrence "Positive" Nelson abstained.
The second bill, meanwhile, was offered close to midnight Friday as an amendment in the nature of a substitute to the governor’s proposed austerity bill, which was submitted more than a month ago and contained provisions establishing three unpaid government holidays, increasing the gross receipts tax by 1 percent, implementing a $1 surcharge on cell phones and raising the hotel occupancy tax by 2 percent.
The Senate’s version — which passed the full Senate on an 8-to-7 vote — keeps the cell phone surcharge and hotel tax increase, but slashes the section on unpaid holidays.
And despite warnings from members of the government’s financial team that anything less than a 1 percent increase in gross receipts taxes could force hundreds of employee layoffs, the amendment pushes for 0.5 percent, as senators repeatedly said that anything higher would cause local businesses to crumble amidst an already struggling economy.
Interestingly, senators seemed to factor in suggestions brought by union and local clergy members earlier in the session — which began Wednesday and continued through Thursday and onto Friday morning — about regulating the use of government vehicles and cell phones.
Despite the unions’ pleas for the cuts to come from the top, however, most of the new regulations exempt the senators, along with the governor, lieutenant governor, judges and magistrates and emergency employees.
"After the effective date of this act, all employees assigned cell phones are responsible for payment of phone bills with the exception of the governor and lieutenant governor, senators, judges, magistrates and authorized personnel of the Police Department, V.I. Fire Service and emergency service providers," one section of the amendment reads.
Another section, meanwhile, regulates daytime and home use of government vehicles, with exemptions for the same individuals mentioned above and emergency responders.
Voting in favor of the bill were Dowe, Hill, Malone, Richards, Russell, Sanes, White and Williams; while Barshinger, Hansen, James, Nelson, Rivera-O’Reilly, Sprauve and Millin-Young voted against it.
The vote caused an uproar in the audience, which, despite the late hour, had grown substantially since the session began at 10 a.m. Thursday and had, at one point, overflowed into the hallway. Government workers and citizens from across the territory decried the bills and said, in no uncertain terms, that senators’ heads could be on the chopping block if the austerity bill — specifically a provision to freeze government salaries — was passed.
While senators said early on that the unpaid holiday and salary freeze initiatives were not going to be passed, only White came forth with an alternative, suggesting that the government pay full health insurance and retirement contributions for employees who volunteer to go on leave without pay for a year.
Among other measures, the bill also:
- cuts the budget of the V.I. Superior Court and the Judicial Council by 3 percent;
- mandates that government fuel consumption be cut in half if the bill is signed into law, with the exception of fuel used by the hospitals, law enforcement, fire department and health and human services agencies;
- suspends the government’s authority to procure professional and personal service contracts for two years (this provision is not applicable to contracts already in progress); and
- puts a two-year ban on the purchase government vehicles — except for vehicles needed by Health, V.I. Fire Service, VIPD, the territory’s two hospitals and Bureau of Corrections.
All senators were present during Thursday’s session.
Alana Mawson
It seems to me that our Senators and our Governor are out of touch with the population of the Virgin Islands that they are elected to serve.
Either, they haven’t noticed or don’t care that they are taxing an already overburdened, money strapped population who have for the last couple of years been tightening their belts until there are no notches left.
Hey guys: “THE WELL IS ALREADY DRY!”
This is all the while Senators have been spending money willy nilly on their pet projects.
Prices have all risen. We are paying more for just about everything: Electricity, Fuel, Groceries, and many basic services have also increased over the years. This year we can add all those old property tax bills to the list.
Any ideas on where the public is going to get money to pay for ALL the increase?
We get very little, if anything, in terms of services for those taxes we pay every year. Good roads, well lit roads with sidewalks, garbage pick up or recycling, Administrators and commissioners that actually respond to inquiries and pleas for help, to name a few.
The Government is is debt because our elected Government officials cannot and did not create a proper budget YEARS AGO and stick to it. Now, they want a cash strapped people to pay for their lack of judgement and foresight.
Here are some ways our Senators and our Governor can make simple budget cuts and show the voters that they are willing to put their money where their mouth is:
RESCIND THE PAY RAISES THEY VOTED THEMSELVES at the 11th hour a few years ago. This would save us a BUNDLE!
Use their own vehicles and pay their own gas. Rescind all the freebies and perks that they get and cut back on staff and do their own work.
If the Government is so financially strapped then it ought to make sure that the employees it hires, especially the various Commissioners and Administrators, actually do the jobs they are hired to do. Right now it seems that some people get paid whether they perform or not, so why should they bother actually working?
If they were serious about raising money for government coffers, then they need to go after ALL of those people that have zoning violations.
This includes people that have livestock and fowl on residential property that drive their neighbors insane and all those zoning violations that are constantly ignored.
We have hundreds of homes in R-1 zoning that have more than 2 kitchens as prescibed by law. There are many that have 4 and more apts. on property not zoned for such population. This includes poeple that have illigal businesses in residential areas and do not have proper or any business licenses.
Raise the fees on establishment that offer gambling and cock fighting. Implement or adhere to the laws already established and fine those found to be in defiance of the laws.
There are plenty of create ways to raise money without taxing the hardworking public.
While we are at it:
Why on earth is it taking our senators so long to come up with a proper zoning code. We have been promised this for eons and still nothing! We do not even bother to inforce the laws we already have in place, especially if you happen to be in violation and know “someone” or you happen to be an elected official.
I have to wonder how many senators and other government officials are guilty of any of the above zoning violations?
Alana Mawson
It seems to me that our Senators and our Governor are out of touch with the population of the Virgin Islands that they are elected to serve.
Either, they haven’t noticed or don’t care that they are taxing an already overburdened, money strapped population who have for the last couple of years been tightening their belts until there are no notches left.
Hey guys: “THE WELL IS ALREADY DRY!”
This is all the while Senators have been spending money willy nilly on their pet projects.
Prices have all risen. We are paying more for just about everything: Electricity, Fuel, Groceries, and many basic services have also increased over the years. This year we can add all those old property tax bills to the list.
Any ideas on where the public is going to get money to pay for ALL the increase?
We get very little, if anything, in terms of services for those taxes we pay every year. Good roads, well lit roads with sidewalks, garbage pick up or recycling, Administrators and commissioners that actually respond to inquiries and pleas for help, to name a few.
The Government is is debt because our elected Government officials cannot and did not create a proper budget YEARS AGO and stick to it. Now, they want a cash strapped people to pay for their lack of judgement and foresight.
Here are some ways our Senators and our Governor can make simple budget cuts and show the voters that they are willing to put their money where their mouth is:
RESCIND THE PAY RAISES THEY VOTED THEMSELVES at the 11th hour a few years ago. This would save us a BUNDLE!
Use their own vehicles and pay their own gas. Rescind all the freebies and perks that they get and cut back on staff and do their own work.
If the Government is so financially strapped then it ought to make sure that the employees it hires, especially the various Commissioners and Administrators, actually do the jobs they are hired to do. Right now it seems that some people get paid whether they perform or not, so why should they bother actually working?
If they were serious about raising money for government coffers, then they need to go after ALL of those people that have zoning violations.
This includes people that have livestock and fowl on residential property that drive their neighbors insane and all those zoning violations that are constantly ignored.
We have hundreds of homes in R-1 zoning that have more than 2 kitchens as prescibed by law. There are many that have 4 and more apts. on property not zoned for such population. This includes poeple that have illigal businesses in residential areas and do not have proper or any business licenses.
Raise the fees on establishment that offer gambling and cock fighting. Implement or adhere to the laws already established and fine those found to be in defiance of the laws.
There are plenty of create ways to raise money without taxing the hardworking public.
While we are at it:
Why on earth is it taking our senators so long to come up with a proper zoning code. We have been promised this for eons and still nothing! We do not even bother to inforce the laws we already have in place, especially if you happen to be in violation and know “someone” or you happen to be an elected official.
I have to wonder how many senators and other government officials are guilty of any of the above zoning violations?