On Thursday, June 24, Gov. Albert Bryan Jr. met virtually with new Office of the Interior Secretary Deb Haaland, who awarded the territory $3.4 million and assured the governor that the Office of Insular Affairs (OIA) will work with the Government of the Virgin Islands (GVI) in its discussions with the Environmental Protection Administration (EPA) about Limetree Bay and about streamlining the fiscal processes between the GVI and the U.S. treasury.
Of the $3,417,256 in discretionary grants awarded by Secretary Haaland, $2,560,260 is distributed through OIA’s Technical Assistance Program (TAP) and $856,996 is awarded through OIA’s Maintenance Assistance Program (MAP).
The TAP funding is for the following projects:
$630,872 to the V.I. Territorial Emergency Management Agency for its 911 Emergency Communications Center Phone System Upgrade Project
$375,000 to the Department of Finance for its Electronic Payment Process Solution
$350,000 to the Bureau of Information Technology for its Cybersecurity Vulnerability Prevention Project
$122,000 to the V.I. Fire Service for the procurement of two Cascade Units
$10,000 to the Department of Sports, Parks and Recreation to hire a temporary capacity building grant writer
In addition, OIA is also awarding TAP funding to nonprofit organizations and educational institutions for the following projects:
$495,000 to the University of the Virgin Islands for the UVI Business Innovation Center
$250,000 to UVI for the Capacity Building in the US Virgin Islands to Increase Constitutional Development and Self-Determination Project
$286,310 to the V.I. Centre for Architecture, Crafts and Build Heritage Inc. for its Project Development Conference for Design, Construction and Curriculum Project
$41,079 to Beyond Visions, Inc. for its Capacity Building and Technical Assistance Virtual Workshops Project
MAP funding is being awarded to the GVI for the following projects:
$267,996 to the V.I. Waste Management Authority for the procurement of mini-excavators and utility pickup trucks
$208,000 to the V.I. Water and Power Authority for the procurement of a zero turn mower and tractor mower and trailer
$206,000 to WAPA for the procurement of a Mack dump truck
$175,000 to the Bureau of Information Technology for its Data Center Maintenance Management Solution Project.
