In keeping with the upcoming holiday, Gov. Albert Bryan Jr. expressed his gratitude toward the 35th Legislature on Monday and said he planned to sign into law a measure authorizing the issuance of $156 million in GARVEE bonds — or Grant Anticipation Revenue Vehicle bonds.
The Legislature approved the measure, meant to fund infrastructure projects including the revitalization of Veterans Drive and expanded ferry service between St. Croix and St. Thomas, during a session on Wednesday. Bryan said this will be the second issuance of GARVEE bonds, which are loans the government takes out against anticipated grants the government receives for transportation and highway projects, and approximately $56 million will go toward repaying GARVEE bonds the government issued in 2015.
One provision of the bill requires that the incoming funds be distributed equally across the St. Thomas-St. John district and St. Croix, and Bryan highlighted the ferry project, which is being designed to carry approximately 200 people, 12-16 cars and cargo — and take 90 minutes to travel between islands.
“So this is huge for us. I think it brings the economy closer together, and it’s going to be heralded as one of the significant moves to improve not only our quality of life but our economy in the Virgin Islands,” he said.
Acknowledging recent calls to repair territory roads — which a Government House spokesperson addressed during a briefing last week — Bryan said the territory has already issued a billion-dollar procurement package to underground water, sewer and some electric infrastructure on the eastern side of St. Croix.
After all of the necessary digging, Bryan said, “those roads are going to be repaired anyway.”
Bryan later said he will travel to the mainland this week to meet with members of the U.S. Congress as well as officials with both the Biden and incoming Trump administrations, noting that he had fielded calls from Virgin Islanders concerned about the impact of a Republic-controlled Congress, Senate and White House.
“These conversations are critical because they ensure that the federal government remains a strong partner for us,” he said, “and we need them to transform our territory and improve the quality of life for all Virgin Islanders.”
Bryan said the territory will continue to push to re-extend the rum cover-over rate to $13.25 per proof gallon, which is critical for keeping the Government Employees’ Retirement System from future insolvency.
“Something is going to move for us,” he said. “In respect to the traditional standoff we have between the Democrats and the Republicans: having both houses controlled by one party, we’re hoping that it’ll move rather quickly, and we can get this attached as there is no strong opposition.”
Other priorities Bryan stated included disaster recovery funding, lifting a cap on Medicaid and restarting the St. Croix refinery.
With one exception, members of the media were unable to ask questions during the briefing. A Government House spokesperson told The Source afterward there may have been a technical issue because the crew operating the call-in system were on St. Croix, while Bryan spoke Monday from Government House on St. Thomas.
The bifurcation did not affect a reporter calling in from the V.I. Consortium, and Bryan spent the last third of Monday’s briefing comfortably fielding questions on subjects ranging from the incoming federal administration and St. Croix’s Paul E. Joseph Stadium construction to voter turnout on St. Thomas and the status of tax refunds.
Bryan said the contractor behind the stadium project had assessed a $2 million delay against the territory for a work suspension that occurred during the Mapp administration and did not offer a firm timeline for the next issuance of tax refunds.
Asked whether he had a chance to speak with U.S. Housing and Urban Development Secretary Adrianne Todman during a recent visit, Bryan told The Source by phone Monday that he met with Todman but said they “didn’t really get a chance to get into everything.”
“Of course, she expressed her concern with the HUD money and that we should do more with that money — but more than that, not really,” he said, adding that Todman was particularly concerned about the incoming administration.
Bryan also addressed whether the territory was in danger of leaving federal dollars on the table due to inaction.
“I think, like many of our federal partners, they look at it one way. I mean, $2 billion is half of our economy — that’s the first thing,” he said. “And then when you look at, you know, we have a four percent unemployment rate, it’s like OK, you want to spend faster, but who really does the work?”
The territory’s historically low unemployment rate is cited often, but Labor Commissioner Gary Molloy told lawmakers on the Senate Education and Workforce Development Committee in November 2023 that the figure only measures Virgin Islanders 16 years old or older who are full- or part-time employed — or who are actively looking for work. When it was recorded in 2022, the territory’s labor participation rate was 49.5 percent.
Bryan said the territory has been using the same method to calculate the unemployment rate for at least the last 20 years.
“So the same calculation that said 12 and 13 percent during COVID is the same calculation that’s saying 3.6 percent, four percent now,” he said.
Bryan said that the current unemployment rate is so low that the government has accumulated around $40 million in its local unemployment insurance fund — and is preparing to use half of that to begin paying down the approximately $78 million in federal loans the territory received for unemployment during the 2008 recession.
Government House also announced the schedule for holiday closures and administrative leave on Monday:
Tuesday, Dec. 24 – Christmas Eve: Executive Branch employees will be granted administrative leave from noon-5 p.m.
Wednesday, Dec. 25 – Christmas Day: Closed
Thursday, Dec. 26 – Boxing Day: Closed
Wednesday, Jan. 1 – New Year’s Day and St. Croix Festival J’ouvert: Closed
Thursday, Jan. 2 – Crucian Christmas Festival Food, Arts and Crafts Fair: St. Croix employees will be granted administrative leave from noon-5 p.m.
Friday, Jan. 3 – Crucian Christmas Festival Children’s Parade: Executive Branch employees territory-wide will be granted administrative leave from 8 a.m.-5 p.m.
Saturday, Jan. 4 – Crucian Christmas Festival Adult’s Parade
Monday, Jan. 6 – Three Kings Day: Closed
Monday, Jan. 20 – Martin Luther King Jr. Day: Closed
