One of the largest agencies in the V.I. government took its turn before the 35th Legislature Committee on Budget, Appropriations and Finance on Tuesday. The team from the Human Services Department and Commissioner Averil George gave a detailed presentation defending their fiscal year 2025 budget request of $68.3 million.
As the third largest agency in the executive branch, Human Services provides support for about one-third of the territory’s population, George said. Its 651 employees will be asked to serve the young, the elderly, disabled and homeless individuals, and others with 7.7 percent less funding than they had in FY 2024.
Maintaining staff levels in critical areas became a major topic of discussion throughout the three-and-a-half-hour budget hearing. George told the committee there were 68 vacancies in all, five of which were paid for through the V.I. government’s General Fund.
Several committee members questioned the prospects. “How many can you realistically see your agency filling?” said Sen. Javan James.
“All,” the commissioner replied.
George said 63 of those positions receive federal funding, and filling some of them was required to meet federal mandates. Committee member Sen. Ray Fonseca admonished her to trim her expectations. DHS cannot find funds to fill all the openings in the next fiscal year, he said.
“Work to getting those critical positions filled by utilizing your available resources,” Fonseca said. Consolidating positions where possible might be one way to achieve that, the commissioner said.
Fonseca also asked for a list of outstanding vendor payments.
Committee Chair Sen. Donna Frett-Gregory asked for further clarification on the staffing request. “We need an updated personnel listing from the Department of Human Services and then we need a priorities list,” Frett-Gregory said.
Federal funding was also given credit for the creation of six new Head Start early learning centers. George said construction is expected to be completed on all six within FY 2025, and Human Services will host a Head Start regional conference on St. Thomas in the next few months.
Lawmakers seemed to welcome the update, but some criticized the agency for its handling of facilities that survived hurricanes Irma and Maria in 2017. Word of the pending demolition of the Knud Hansen Complex on St. Thomas was greeted with doubt.
Poor building conditions were making it hard for Human Services to meet clients and properly serve them at Knud Hansen, testifiers said. So bad, they said, that some workers were allowed to work from home.
Questions from the chair brought the problem into focus.
“What does the senior citizen’s affairs office do?” Frett-Gregory asked along with a question about the staff’s work-from-home status.
“The offices where they work have problems causing air quality problems,” the commissioner said. Assistant Commissioner Sean Georges said contractors were working on the problem.
Sen. Kenneth Gittens asked testifiers what became of their promises to rehabilitate the Herbert Grigg Home for the Aged on St. Croix and the Queen Louise Home on St. Thomas.
“I don’t believe our nursing homes are properly placed under Human Services,” Gittens said.
Senate Majority Leader Marvin Blyden asked George what her administration wanted most to achieve in the next fiscal year.
“The goal is to get more funding for the DHS staff to do the work,” the commissioner said.
