Mapp Signs Into Law Senator Novelle Francis’s Phone Surcharge Tax Increase Bill

Governor Kenneth Mapp has signed into law a bill sponsored by Senator Novelle Francis that sought to increase the surcharge tax on communication conduits such as landline and cellphones from $1 to $2 monthly, a law that now stands to adversely affect residents with family plans of multiple phones, as well as businesses with multiple landlines.

Bill No. 31-0508 — An Act relating to the emergency services surcharge was stubbornly revived by Senate Democrats even after being killed in the Committee on Rules and Judiciary last year. During discussion on the measure at the Committee of the Whole session, Mr. Francis chastised residents for expressing their opposition of the then-measure, stating, “I’m asking you for a dollar; people are buying $700 cellphones. Every person we meet in this community has a cellphone regardless of their status. We’re simply asking them to give up an additional dollar to support their emergency services.”

The Virgin Islands Fire Service, the Virgin Islands Territorial Emergency Management Agency and the Department of Health, received over $1 million combined in 2015 from the prior surcharge of $1: $300,000 for the Fire Service, $391,000 for V.I.T.E.M.A., $306,000 for D.O.H., and $121,000 for 911. But senators who supported the increase contended that $1 million was not enough to meet the emergency needs.

Mr. Francis said his support for the increase stemmed from his years at the Virgin Islands Police Department, where he served as officer, police chief and commissioner. “I knew of the benefit of having that simple dollar coming into the Police Department,” he said.

Senator Kurt Vialet also spoke emotionally about the measure during the December session, contending that an extra dollar was insignificant compared to the cellphone bills residents pay. Mr. Vialet and former Senate President Neville James, mentioned the current, high expense of cellphones and how residents had no qualms paying, as justification enough to move forward with the $2 taxation.

“While it’s popular to stand here in this body and say, ‘no, let’s not do it, we’re taxing the people again,’ the same individuals, when they go for an upgrade, when they want to switch their phone from a 5 to a 6 or a 7, they agree to pay $25 extra a month for three years in order to finance the cost of the phone, and they don’t complain,” Mr. Vialet said.

But not all senators were in support of the measure. Senator Tregenza Roach said relegating the extra dollar as insignificant was neglecting how difficult it is for some residents to make ends meet.

“I was very pleased when the measure did not move out of the Rules Committee, and I was surprised when it came back to us yesterday,” he said. “Now, to some of us it’s a dollar, but we ought to remember that there are government employees in particular, if we look at just that group, who struggle from day to day, who had the option of going to the Government Employees’ Retirement System and borrowing money against their money to meet their responsibilities, and that has been taken away from them.”

The new law will apply to cellphones, landlines and even voice over internet protocol services such as Vonage and Skype. Mr. Roach said senators may contend that the extra funds are needed by the emergency services, but he challenged them to find the funds elsewhere, just as they do for other measures that they support.

“[Just as] we could find some of the resources to support the projects that we want to move forward, is the same way we could have responded to that without putting another tax on the people of the Virgin Islands,” Mr. Roach said.

He added: “I remember coming into the supermarket and having people thank me for a simple measure as that, saying, “Yes, I’m glad the Legislature didn’t pursue it.’ So I’m not going to support it.”

Mr. Francis responded by stating, “Those same individuals who will walk up to you in the grocery store and talk about, ‘Oh, I’m glad you didn’t increase,’ those same individuals — three times that amount — blaze us every single day when ambulance isn’t working. They blaze us. A dollar is not too much to ask,” he said.

Voting Yea were Senators Marvin Blyden, Francis, Clifford Graham, Justin Harrigan, Sr., Myron Jackson, James, Almando Liburd, Nereida Rivera-O’Reilly, Sammuel Sanes and Vialet.

Voting No were Kenneth Gittens, Positive Nelson, Roach and Janet Millin Young. Senator Jean Forde was absent.