{"id":10058,"date":"2014-10-09T16:25:16","date_gmt":"2014-10-09T16:25:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/viconsortium.com\/?p=10058"},"modified":"2014-10-09T16:33:44","modified_gmt":"2014-10-09T16:33:44","slug":"de-jongh-surprised-streetlights-bill-something-ever-envisioned","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/wp.viconsortium.com\/?p=10058","title":{"rendered":"De Jongh Surprised By ‘Streetlights Bill’: “This Is Not Something That We Ever Envisioned”"},"content":{"rendered":"

Governor de Jongh on Monday expressed surprise and disappoint by the 30th Legislature’s controversial ‘Streetlights Bill’\u00a0that gives WAPA the authority to charge residents for street light usage<\/span><\/a>, saying that it is not something his administration “ever envisioned,” and was another example of the 30th Legislature’s “inconsistency” in its annual financial blueprint.<\/p>\n

“I was surprised to see that the Legislature wants to shift the cost of street lights to the consumer through adding the expense to individual Water and Power Authority bills,” de Jongh said. “This is not something that we ever envisioned, and is another example of the Legislature’s overall inconsistency in tackling the budget.”<\/p>\n

He continued, “In a perfect world, the budget process allows for all parties – Executive Branch and Legislature – to work together to develop an annual financial blueprint that is palatable to everyone and minimizes the impact on any particular group or department. That is not what is happening here.”<\/p>\n

The Governor’s chastisement of the Senate’s move to pass on street light usage payments to consumers came as part of broader comments on the fiscal year 2015 budget, passed by the 30th Legislature last week.<\/p>\n

“My proposed budget included measures to increase revenues and decrease expenditures in an effort to close the projected economic gap,” de Jongh said. “However, I’m not sure what message the Senate is sending with this budget, as there is no consistent pattern to the modifications.”<\/p>\n

With that, the Governor said “the senators have reduced the budgets for two departments that are revenue-generating, namely the Bureau of Internal Revenue and the Lt. Governor’s Office, and yet increased the budgets for the Legislature and Superior Court.”<\/p>\n

De Jongh further pointed out he had submitted his budget proposal to the Senate on June 17, in which, he contends, a projected gap of $150 million was addressed.<\/p>\n

“I find this process very frustrating, as the Executive Branch has spent considerable time and manpower on finding workable solutions to the complex financial environment in the Virgin Islands,” he added. “Our overriding goal has been to maintain economic activity in the territory while also maintaining stability for our employees and the business community.”<\/p>\n

De Jongh then revealed the communication between the territory’s leadership is non-existent.<\/p>\n

“The fact of the matter is that there are no dialogues or communications from the Senate to the Executive Branch about the territory’s financial challenges,” he said. “Instead, the senators use media outlets to postulate intents that are not founded in any reality.”<\/p>\n

The Governor has until early next week to review and return the budget to the 30th Legislature with changes, and said the “Legislature will then make its determination as to how it responds accordingly.”<\/p>\n

Recap<\/strong><\/p>\n

Power bills in the territory are expected to be reduced by 30 percent<\/a> <\/span>once WAPA\u2019s propane initiative goes online in the first quarter of 2015. An amendment to the Government\u2019s 2015 budget, championed by St. Thomas Senator Clifford Graham, takes some of the savings away by allowing WAPA to bill streetlight usage fees to residents. The amendment essentially takes a government obligation of keeping roadways\u00a0lit and passes the expense down to customers.<\/p>\n

In early September, WAPA Executive Director Hugo Hodge testified before\u00a0the Senate<\/span><\/a> that the government owed over $11 million in unpaid streetlight bills.\u00a0The funds currently allocated to paying for streetlights, which is taken from property tax revenues, will be restored to the treasury.<\/p>\n

At the Tuesday night hearing, where senators were able to narrowly avoid losing health insurance benefits for over 7,000 government employees, some lawmakers expressed their misgivings\u00a0with the amendment, and St. Croix senator Nereida \u201cNellie\u201d Rivera-O\u2019Reilly advocated for the measure to be placed in committee for further consideration.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf this amendment is approved, then the WAPA bills will drastically increase,\u201d Rivera-O\u2019Reilly said, adding it should be immediately \u201ctaken off the agenda.\u201d<\/p>\n

Graham\u00a0countered, reasoning that the territory\u2019s roads are dark because the streetlights no longer work, and that adding the amendment would not only make the roads safer, but also aid in balancing the budget. The amendment was passed with a majority of eight senators.<\/p>\n

Those who voted for and against the amendment are as follows:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Senator Craig Barshinger \u2014 Yes<\/li>\n
  2. Senator Judi Buckley \u2014 No<\/li>\n
  3. Senator Diane Capehart \u2014 Yes<\/li>\n
  4. Senator Donald G. Cole \u2014 Yes<\/li>\n
  5. Senator Kenneth Gittens \u2014 No<\/li>\n
  6. Senator Clifford Graham \u2014 Yes<\/li>\n
  7. Senator Alicia \u201cChucky\u201d Hansen \u2014 No<\/li>\n
  8. Senator Myron Jackson \u2014 Yes<\/li>\n
  9. Senator Shawn-Michael Malone \u2014 Yes<\/li>\n
  10. Senator Terrence \u201cPositive\u201d Nelson \u2014 No<\/li>\n
  11. Senator Nellie Rivera-O\u2019Reilly \u2014 No<\/li>\n
  12. Senator Clarence Payne \u2014 Yes<\/li>\n
  13. Senator Tregenza A. Roach \u2014 No<\/li>\n
  14. Senator Sammuel Sanes \u2014 No<\/li>\n
  15. Senator Janette Millin Young \u2014 Yes<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    The outcry and subsequent action taken by residents\u00a0have been one of the more pronounced online efforts to affect change in the territory.<\/p>\n

     <\/p>\n

    Image Courtesy: JaxFaxCaribbean<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    Governor de Jongh on Monday expressed surprise and disappoint by the 30th Legislature’s controversial ‘Streetlights Bill’\u00a0that gives WAPA the authority to charge residents for street light usage, saying that it is not something his administration “ever envisioned,” and was another example of the 30th Legislature’s “inconsistency” in its annual financial blueprint.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":10059,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[11,191,8,147],"tags":[612],"yoast_head":"\nDe Jongh Surprised By 'Streetlights Bill': "This Is Not Something That We Ever Envisioned" - V.I. 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