Eight senators have petitioned Senate President Vargrave Richards to convene a meeting on Friday to consider the Prosser-V.I. land-for-tax-breaks deal.
The petition was started by Sen. Alicia "Chucky" Hansen, who has been in favor of the so-called Prosser deal since it was first publicized. Informed sources said the petition was signed by all of the St. Croix senators except for Richards, plus Almando "Rocky" Liburd and Donald "Ducks" Cole. No one in Richards' office could produce the petition, but it was confirmed that Richards had received it.
The Prosser deal hinges on trading land for retroactive wages owed to government workers. When the deal was initially revealed, Luis "Tito" Morales, president of the Central Labor Council, said the union workers he had heard from didn't want land —- they wanted money.
On Wednesday Glenn Smith, president of the St. Thomas-St. John American Federation of Teachers, said the teachers were "adamantly opposed" to any land-for-wages deal.
"It's really disgusting that these senators have brought this up again," Smith said. "They are not the ones to negotiate this matter. By going on their knees to Mr. Prosser they have seriously undermined the government's negotiating posture."
On April 1 the Daily News, the newspaper owned by businessman Jeffrey Prosser, ran a headline saying "Prosser bails out the V.I."
The paper said Prosser had cut a deal with the V.I. government to pay off retroactive wages, build a new library in St. Thomas, give St. Croix a ballfield and drag strip and build a new multipurpose community center in St. John.
In exchange, Prosser would get long-term tax breaks for his Innovative Communications Corp. that the Daily News said would amount to $6 million a year for 30 years. Prosser is the sole owner of ICC.
On April 28 the same Prosser-owned paper ran a headline saying "Prosser bails out."
In a release from Innovative Communications Corp., Prosser said he was withdrawing his offer because "we understand that the majority of labor leaders representing government workers would prefer cash payments instead of land for the $200 million in retroactive pay. I can't blame them for wanting cash."
Prosser went on to say that the government and labor leaders feel confident they can "float $1 billion in bonds, which would result in enough cash to pay the retroactive wages."
The $1 billion bond issue has not resurfaced since the remark was quoted in the Daily News.
Smith said, "It's a rumor — gossip and innuendo."
Gov. Charles W. Turnbull has never commented publicly on the Prosser deal.
