Sept. 12, 2006 — Senators voted Tuesday to increase the fiscal year 2007 executive budget by approximately $79 million — an increase that senators called "conservative."
The budget totaled $749 million when it was submitted in May by Gov. Charles W. Turnbull. At a budget hearing held in June, members of the government's financial team projected that there would be just enough revenues coming in – from taxes, various government fees and fund contributions – to sustain that level of spending.
However, Sen. Louis P. Hill said after a Finance Committee meeting Tuesday that the government's revenue projections have changed – increasing to $835 million. Hill said the news came directly from members of the government's financial team, who told senators at a recent meeting that more money will be coming from excise, gross receipts and corporate income taxes.
"All tax categories, basically, have been adjusted upwards," Hill said.
During the budget markup process, which ran from Aug. 24 to Sept. 6, majority senators used this information to make significant changes to the executive budget – bringing it up to approximately $828 million.
Specifically, Hill said, more money was given to various government departments and agencies to pay utility bills. With the increases made in this specific category, the total amount appropriated for government utility costs totals almost $23 million – approximately $12 million more than what was appropriated last year.
Included in this figure is $6 million for the territory's two hospitals to pay outstanding debts owed to the Water and Power Authority.
A budget increase was also given to the University of the Virgin Islands, along with the Office of the Inspector General for the purpose of constructing an office on St. Croix.
During Tuesday's committee meeting, Hill said an amendment, which gives the inspector general the ability to adjust employee salaries and hire individuals without having to go through the Division of Personnel, would be introduced at a later date.
Smaller agencies, such as the V.I. Cultural Heritage Institute, the Women's Coalition of St. Croix and the V.I. Council on the Arts, among others, also received budget increases, Sen. Ronald E. Russell said.
Adjustments were also made to the miscellaneous section of the budget, which totals $191.4 million. According to the majority senators, the changes include additional appropriations for youth programs, after-school initiatives, additional emergency medical technicians (EMTs) for all three islands, and ambulances.
Other portions of the revised budget include: $10 million annually for the government's Rainy Day Fund (Turnbull's original budget submission stipulates that at least $5 million be deposited into the fund annually); $4 million for the construction of a parking garage on St. John; and $40 million to cover debt-service requirements once a pension obligation bond is floated by the government to alleviate a large portion of the more than $1 billion unfunded liability plaguing the Government Employees Retirement System.
In outlining the major aspects of the revised budget, Russell explained that no central government department or agency – with the exception of the Office of the Governor – was given a lump-sum appropriation. "Instead, we carefully reviewed the requests of each agency and provided for a delineation of the expenditures," he said.
Hill explained that senators decided to give the Office of the Governor – whose request included approximately $598,000 worth of accrued annual leave payments for Turnbull and members of his staff – a lump-sum budget to "allow the incoming administration some flexibility in managing its resources."
While a majority of the senators present during Tuesday's meeting wholeheartedly supported the revised budget, Sens. Norman Jn Baptiste and Usie R. Richards said they were concerned about a few of the appropriations.
In particular, Richards said that an appropriation made to the Tourism Department from the Tourism Advertising Revolving Fund did not earmark money for the Crucian Christmas Festival, or carnivals held on both St. Thomas and St. John.
Hill said an amendment would be made at the next Rules Committee meeting to address the issue.
During the meeting, senators also approved 27 other appropriations bills which transferred money from various government fund accounts to departments, agencies and the General Fund.
Richards said he was particularly opposed to a bill that transferred $5 million to the General Fund from the interest earned on debt services reserves – a government account which was recently over-appropriated by approximately $14 million.
Richards recommended that the bill be tabled, since there was no way to guarantee that the account would be able to sustain the $5 million transfer.
Despite the objections, the bill, and the budget, were approved.
Voting in favor of the FY 2007 budget were Sens. Roosevelt C. David, Pedro "Pete" Encarnacion, Juan Figueroa-Serville, Hill, James and Richards.
Jn Baptiste, who said that certain appropriations included in the budget favored the St. Thomas-St. John district instead of St. Croix, voted against it.
Senators also approved bills:
–appropriating money from the Anti-Litter and Beautification Fund to the Waste Management Authority for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2007, and for other purposes;
— appropriating money for the operating expenses of the Bureau of Motor Vehicles Fund of the Government of the Virgin Islands during the fiscal year October 1, 2006 to September 30, 2007;
–appropriating money for operating expenses of the Business and Commercial Properties Revolving Fund of the Government of the Virgin Islands during the fiscal year October 1, 2006 to September 30, 2007;
–appropriating money from the Caribbean Basin Initiative Fund for fiscal year October 1, 2006 to September 30, 2007;
— appropriating funds from the Government Insurance Fund for operating expenses of the Department of Finance and the Department of Labor for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2007;
— providing for a lump-sum appropriation from the Health Revolving Fund for fiscal year October 1, 2006 through September 30, 2007;
–providing for the lump-sum appropriations from the Indirect Cost Fund for salaries, operating expenses and for other purposes, of the Office of Management and Budget, the Division of Personnel, the Department of Property and Procurement and the Department of Finance for the fiscal year October 1, 2006 through September 30, 2007;
–appropriating the sum of $5 million from the Interest Revenue Fund as a contribution to the General Fund;
–providing appropriations from the Internal Revenue Matching Fund for the fiscal year October 1, 2006, through September 30, 2007;
–appropriating money for the operating expenses of the Public Employees Relation Board and the Labor Management Committee for fiscal year October 1, 2006 to September 30, 2007;
— appropriating funds to the Public Services Commission for fiscal year October 1, 2006 to September 30, 2007 for operating expenses;
–providing an appropriation for operating expenses of the Waste Management Authority from the Sewage System Fund of the Government of the Virgin Islands during the fiscal year October 1, 2006 through September 30, 2007;
— providing an appropriation for operating expenses of the Department of Public Works and the Waste Management Authority from the St. John Capital Improvement Fund of the Government of the Virgin Islands during the fiscal year October 1, 2006 through September 30, 2007;
–providing an appropriation from the Tourism Advertisement Revolving Fund to the Office of the Governor, the Department of Tourism and the Department of Public Works during the fiscal year October 1, 2006 through September 30, 2007;
–appropriating $15 million from the Transportation Trust Fund as a contribution to the General Fund;
–providing a contribution
from the Union Arbitration Award and Government Employees Increment Fund to the General Fund for fiscal year October 1, 2006 to September 30, 2007;
–appropriating money for salaries for the University of the Virgin Islands for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2007, and for other purposes;
— appropriating the sum of $4.54 million from the General Fund to WTJX Public Television System for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2007;
— appropriating funds to the Virgin Islands Taxicab Commission for the fiscal year October 1, 2006, to September 30, 2007, for operating expenses;
–appropriating the sum of $28.3 million from the General Fund to the Virgin Islands Waste Management Authority for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2007;
— amending the V.I. Code relating to lapse of appropriated funds;
–amending the V.I. Code as it relates to the molasses subsidy;
–suspending "The St, Croix Capital Improvement Fund";
— appropriating $450,000 from the Land Bank Fund to the Department of Public Works for the implementation of road hazard mitigation measures at Hull Bay road, St. Thomas and for other related purposes;
–providing appropriations for salaries and operating expenses of the Superior Court of the Virgin Islands and the Judicial Council for the Fiscal Year October 1, 2006, to September 30, 2007, and for other purposes; and
–providing an appropriation for operating expenses of the Territorial Public Defender during the fiscal year October 1, 2006, to September 30, 2007, and for other purposes.
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