July 17, 2001 — The Senate Rules Committee passed a supplemental funding bill Monday appropriating approximately $58 million –with significant changes, including a good bit of added pork, to the original $47 million bill sent down by Gov. Charles W. Turnbull two weeks ago.
The biggest change was to the $4 million proposed by Turnbull to purchase the Wheaton Estate on St. Thomas. The senators halved that amount for the purchase of the property, which encompasses the Magens Bay watershed, and approved the "other" $2 million for a variety of recreation and road projects on St. Croix and St. Thomas.
The Senate’s pricey wish list was spurred last week by Turnbull administration officials who testified before the Finance Committee. The Management and Budget director, Ira Mills, referred to recent "extraordinary revenue collections" in discussing the administration's most recent FY 2001 projections. According to the projections, $529 million will be collected this fiscal year, including projected income tax revenues. Mills said OMB's projected FY 2001 allotment level is now $484 million, up $54.5 million from the $429.5 set in February.
The Internal Revenue Bureau director, Louis Willis, told senators that the IRB has collected $372 million in taxes so far this year — up $87 million from this time last year. Willis projected $486 million by the end of FY 2001.
The full Senate will likely tweak the appropriations bill over three scheduled days in sessions starting Tuesday. Turnbull will also have a go at the legislation.
The wish list
The Senate, and Turnbull in the original bill he sent down, earmarked tens of millions of dollars from the General Fund for fiscal year 2001, which ends on Sept. 30, to provide $5.3 million in local matching funds for federal disaster assistance and other purposes, including:
– $500,000 to the Education Department, to purchase food for the school lunch program.
– $600,000 for increased rum promotion.
– $248,000 for the Agriculture Department, $50,000 of it to reimburse funds and $160,000 to be divided among the Humane Society on St. Thomas ($75,000), the Animal Shelter on St. Croix ($75,000) and the Animal Care Center on St. John ($10,000).
– $1.5 million in local matching funds so the V.I. Justice Department can replace a computer system in the Paternity and Child Support Division.
– $2.75 million for the Finance Department, for repairs, equipment and hiring personnel "to monitor and facilitate agreed-upon audit procedures and to pay for any additional costs associated with auditing of the government's financial records."
– $4.25 million to the Public Works Department, for road repair and other projects, including $250,000 amended to pave the road to East Caret Bay. Included in that appropriation is an amendment sponsored by Sen. Alicia "Chucky" Hansen for $100,000 to purchase a refrigeration unit for the morgue at St. Croix’s Juan F. Luis Hospital.
– $4.2 million to the V.I. Housing Authority, to reimburse costs incurred in connection with disaster shelter housing in Estate Nazareth that the Federal Emergency Management Agency disallowed. The sum includes $2 million to pay past-due Water and Power Authority bills.
– $14 million to pay past-due WAPA bills owed by the executive branch.
– $1 million, amended to Turnbull’s original bill, for Public Works to pay CAN Enterprises ($800,000) and Silcot Construction ($200,000).
– $208,770, amended to the governor's bill, to pay Bronx Communications for prior-year obligations.
– $156,637, amended to the governor's bill, to pay Rupert Foster Construction ($91,129) and East End Lumber Co. ($65,500) for past-due obligations.
– $78,354 for the Board of Education, to renovate its central office on St. Thomas.
– $395,000 for the Housing, Parks & Recreation Department, to demolish condemned housing.
– $100,000 for a V.I. Justice Department settlement with Abamar-BB, a construction contractor. Turnbull had sought an appropriation of $1 million.
– $70,000 for the following programs and clubs, at $10,000 each: Adullum Shelter for the homeless on St. Croix; Music in Motion on St. Croix; St. Croix Majorettes; and the Education Department’s Geography Bowl, Math Counts, Science Quiz Bowl and Language Arts Showcase. All of these appropriations were amended to Turnbull’s original bill.
– $20,000, amended to the original bill, for the Sixty-plus Baseball Club to attend a national tournament ($15,000) and for the V.I. Women’s Softball Federation for travel to Venezuela ($5,000).
– $20,000, amended to the original bill, for Little League Baseball travel and accommodations.
– $208,200, amended to the original bill, to pay past-due bills to Reginald George ($200,000) and Christopher Wilkes ($8,200) for unspecified services.
– $300,000, amended to the original bill, to the St. Croix Festival Committee for its 50th anniversary.
– $250,000 for the maintenance of the territory’s sewage system.
– $1 million to the Property and Procurement Department, to acquire additional property for a public cemetery and necessary infrastructure on St. Thomas.
– $800,000 for repairs and renovation of Government House on St. Thomas, including the repair of the ballroom floor, replacement of hurricane shutters, renovation of supporting facilities, environmental assessments and mitigation.
– $600,000 to the Economic Development Agency, for operations and other expenses.
– $243,000 to the Bureau of Corrections, to repair and renovate correctional facilities. Turnbull had originally proposed $300,000.
– $500,000 to Fire Services, for personnel and associated costs.
– $450,000 to the Human Services Department, for the Pharmaceutical Assisted to the Aged Special Fund. Turnbull originally proposed $250,000.
– $150,000 to repair the Grove Place Ball Park on St. Croix.
– $250,000, amended to the original bill, to build bleachers and storage areas for sports equipment at Charlotte Amalie High School.
– $1.7 million, amended to the original bill, to build a new central fire station on St. Thomas ($1 million) and a new station in the Bordeaux-Fortuna area ($300,000) and for Emergency Medical Services personnel and equipment ($400,000).
– $200,000, amended to the original bill, for the Education Department to design and implement an "assessment instrument to determine the skill and competency levels of public school students in the Virgin Islands."
– $200,000, amended to the original bill, to expand computer training programs for government workers.
– $360,000, amended to the original bill, for several community groups: $10,000 to the Frenchtown Civic Association for costs incurred in the annual Father’s Day celebration; $100,000 to the V.I. Tennis Association for travel, equipment, tournaments and promotion; and $250,000 to the St. Croix Motor Sports Complex Caribbean Racing Association.
– $500,000, amended to the original bill, to the V.I. Council on the Arts.
– $1,135,000, amended to the original bill, for these purposes: $1 million to build a track at Ivanna Eudora Kean High School; $100,000 for the Education Department to purchase vehicles, $10,000 each for repairs at Elena Christian and Arthur Richards Junior High Schools; and $15,000 to send the Eulalie Rivera School Steppers off-island to participate in events.
– $16,500, amended to the original bill, to the University of the Virgin Islands to evaluate the efficiency of the Education Department’s administration.
– $500,000, amended to the original bill, to the Government Development Bank to establish a "micro-credit loan program."
– $315,000, amended to the original bill, to purchase five ambulances on St. Croix ($300,000) and an air-conditioning unit for the Frederiksted Clinic ($15,000).
– $443,000, amended to the original bill, for a variety of recreation projects o
n St. Croix and St. Thomas, including $100,000 for the Department of Housing, Parks and Recreation to purchase four vehicles, and repairs to stadiums, ball parks and a fish market on St. Thomas.
– $700,000, amended to the original bill, to have WAPA relocate potable water lines to Estate Great Pond.
St. John Capital Improvement Fund
The governor and Senate are also requesting that funds from the St. John Capital Improvement Fund be used for a variety of projects:
– $2.5 million, amended to the governor's original bill, to construct a water plant at Cruz Bay and a substation in Coral Bay.
– $853,000 to Public Works, to pave roads, barge garbage, and operate and maintain a waste-water treatment plant on St. John.
– $250,000 to repair, operate and maintain the Star of Life ambulance boat and pay debts for emergency transportation service between St. John and St. Thomas.
– $1 million for debts owed to St. John vendors by Public Works and other central government agencies.
– $41,500 to Property and Procurement to complete removal of underground storage tanks.
– $150,000, amended to the original bill, to purchase a kidney dialysis unit for the Myrna Keating Smith Health Center.
– $300,000, amended to the original bill, for the installation of water lines by Public Works.
Other funding sources
Turnbull and the Senate are also seeking millions of dollars from the Anti-Litter and Beautification Fund, Indirect Cost Fund and the Industrial Development Fund. The projects:
– $500,000 from the Anti-Litter and Beautification Fund to Public Works for roadside cleanup and territory-wide beautification.
– $600,000 to Public Works from the Anti-Litter and Beautification Fund for the startup and operating costs for the V.I. Waste Management Authority. Turnbull originally proposed $1 million.
– $100,000, amended to the governor's original bill, from the Anti-Litter and Beautification Fund to pay prisoners for roadside clean-up.
– $200,000, amended from the original bill, from the Anti-Litter and Beautification Fund to build a new roof on the Vendors Plaza on St. Thomas.
– $360,000, amended to the original bill, from the Anti-Litter and Beautification Fund to purchase a fire truck and hire personnel for the Cotton Valley fire station on St. Croix.
– $150,000, amended to the original bill, from the Anti-Litter and Beautification Fund to the Housing, Parks and Recreation Department Horsemanship Program ($90,000), to the V.I. Council on the Arts ($50,000) and to fund St. Croix V.I. Star Search International ($10,000).
– $600,000, amended to the original bill, from the Anti-Litter and Beautification Fund for the V.I. Police Department to purchase surveillance cameras.
– $250,000, amended to the original bill, from the Anti-Litter and Beautification Fund to repair the St. George’s Home on St. Croix.
– $130,000, amended to the original bill, from the Anti-Litter and Beautification Fund to the American Legion on St. Croix for building renovations and equipment.
– $300,000, amended to the original bill, to pave roads in William's Delight on St. Croix.
– $650,000, amended to the original bill, from the Industrial Development Fund for the St. Croix Jazz Festival.
– $300,000, amended to the original bill, from the Industrial Development Fund for territorywide school repairs.
– $350,000, amended to the original bill, from the Industrial Development Fund to the Education Department for work at the Dober and Jarvis schools on St. Thomas.
– $110,000, amended to the original bill, from the Industrial Development Fund to pay past-due obligations to the V.I. National Guard.
– $690,000, amended to the original bill, from the Industrial Development Fund for a variety of recreation projects on St. Thomas.
– $50,000, amended to the original bill, from the Industrial Development Fund to the Police Department to pay informants when information leads to an arrest and conviction.
– $200,000, amended to the original bill, from the Industrial Development Fund to the Water Bay Condo Association for repairs.
– $500,000, amended to the original bill, from the Industrial Development Fund to the V.I. Cricket Association ($100,000), St. Thomas Police Activity League ($75,000), St. Thomas Junior Firefighters ($50,000), St. Thomas Soccer Association ($75,000), V.I. Basketball Federation ($150,000) and V.I. Association for Independent Living ($50,000).
– $81,000, amended from the original bill, from the Industrial Development Fund to pay Roger Hinkson for "road clearing" ($73,420) and "electrical installation services" ($8,800).
– $40,000, amended to the original bill, from the Industrial Development Fund to the Deo Sentill League ($20,000) and to Great Adventure Enterprises ($20,000).
– $160,000 from the Indirect Cost Fund to reimburse the U.S. Department of Agriculture for an overpayment of the indirect cost rate for the Women, Infants and Children program.
– $780,000, amended to the original bill, from the Indirect Cost Fund for the St. Croix Educational Complex track team to travel off-island ($30,000), children’s reading program at the Florence Williams Library on St. Croix ($30,000), renovations to recreation areas on St. Croix ($150,000), William’s Delight drainage projects ($150,000), sidewalk and recreation area repair in Mt. Pleasant, St. Croix ($150,000), repair by the St. Croix Community Foundation of the old Alexander Theater ($150,000), St. Croix Heritage Trail Project ($30,000); and $100,000 for music groups: a community band on St. Croix ($80,000) and $10,000 each to the Central High and Complex choirs.
– $40,000, amended to the original bill, from the Indirect Cost Fund for the lining of ponds for the Bordeaux Farmers Association.
– $300,000, amended to the original bill, from the Indirect Cost Fund for inter-island travel by high school sports teams.
– $200,000, amended to the original bill, from the Indirect Cost Fund for the construction of bleachers and storage areas for football equipment and the renovation of the football field at Charlotte Amalie High School.
