Nov. 20, 2006 — The Senate Rules and Judiciary Committee approved nominations to the Parole Board, the Board of Education (BOE) and the Coastal Zone Management Commission (CZM) in a meeting held at the St. Croix Legislative Conference room Monday.
Approved were Chelsey Roebuck, Parole Board; Nerida OReilly, BOE; Fern LaBorde, Sarah Simmonds and Anthon W. Adams, CZM, St. Thomas; and Tyrone V. Seales, CZM, St. Croix.
Sen. Pedro Encarnacion questioned Roebuck about inmate rehabilitation and job readiness.
"Classes are available," Roebuck said, "but there are no personnel to teach them, and programs are limited." The board still lacks psychologists or psychiatrists to evaluate inmates before they go to the parole board, he said.
O'Reilly was previously nominated to BOE, but chose to leave her position after eight months of service to further her education off island. "My passion for education is very palpable," said O'Reilly, assuring the committee she did not plan to leave the territory if the committee approved her nomination.
Seales, St. Croix CZM chair and part owner of J&T Enterprises in Frederiksted, pointed with pride to his involvement in the dredging of the Frederiksted pier, despite controversy surrounding the activity. (See "Dredging Postponed for North Side of Abramson Pier.")
Eighteen years in real estate on St. Thomas has supplied Simmonds with a good background in the development of St. Thomas, she said: "I feel like I am making a difference."
There should be more communication with the committee regarding the issuance of minor permits, Simmonds and Adams agreed. Some minor permits can cause runoff that affects the shoreline under their purview, they said.
Austin Monsanto's CZM nomination was held until completion of his information packet, delayed because of his concern over private information. Monsanto said the packet was complete except for his Social Security number because representatives were unable to tell him where the information would be used.
The committee chairman, Sen. Ronald E. Russell, assured Monsanto that his Social Security number was necessary to verify his information. "Whatever information you give to us is strictly confidential," Russell said.
All other nominations were sent to the Committee of the Whole with a favorable recommendation. Sen. Terrence Nelson abstained on all St. Thomas nominations. Senators in attendance were Russell, Nelson, Encarnacion, and Juan Figueroa-Serville. Sens. Louis P. Hill, Lorraine L. Berry, and Roosevelt St. C. David were excused from the proceeding.
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