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HomeNewsLocal newsFinal Budget: Cuts Hit Police, Hospitals, Increases at Education, Waste Management

Final Budget: Cuts Hit Police, Hospitals, Increases at Education, Waste Management

Senate President Myron Jackson (File photo from the V.I. Legislature)
Senate President Myron Jackson (File photo from the V.I. Legislature)

Amid pre-election pay raises and promises of free tuition from Gov. Kenneth Mapp, some agencies saw another year of budget cuts as the Legislature approved more than three dozen bills Thursday.

One bill covered General Fund appropriations for salaries and operating expenses for most central government agencies, from the Education to Police, Human Services and Corrections. [32-0267]

That one massive bill appropriates the majority of the entire budget. It anticipates spending $662.6 million from the government’s General Fund, up by $50 million from $612.9 million for FY 2017.

That budget was repeated for FY 2018 due to last year’s storms.

As usual, the Education Department is by far the largest single item, at $172.2 million, up $5 million from FY 2017 and $12 million from the year before.

The Human Services Department is the next largest item, at $65.6 million – a $3 million decline from $69 million for FY17 but up $6 million from FY16.

Next is the V.I. Police Department, budgeted at $60.8 million, down by $3 million from $63.1 million in FY 2017 and slightly more than the $59.9 million budgeted in FY 2016.

The judiciary, University of the Virgin Islands and hospitals were addressed in separate bills. UVI is budgeted at $33.8 million, up $2 million from FY 2017. Separate legislation is expected to appropriate $3 million to pay for free tuition for up to 1,700 out of a student body of 2,500.

The judiciary as a whole, is budgeted at $33.3 million, down by $6.5 million from FY 2017.

Support for the territory’s two hospitals is being cut by $7 million from FY 2017. They are budgeted at $41.7 million, with $19.9 million for Gov. Juan F. Luis Hospital and $21.8 million for Schneider Regional Medical Center. That is a $3.4 million cut for JFL and a $3.7 million cut to Schneider.

The Waste Management Authority is seeing a slight increase at $25.4 million. That is $2.5 million more than the FY 2017 appropriation and $5 million more than Gov. Kenneth Mapp’s original budget proposal. It is also getting $2.8 million from several other sources, including its own fees.

Several senators said Waste Management is not fulfilling its mission adequately.

Sen. Myron Jackson (D-STT) said an open historic gutter near his home has a sewer line that breaks repeatedly, and bins in some neighborhoods being overfilled.

“We have to do better. … We have to make sure we function to the best of our ability,” he said.

“I am very much displeased with the performance of the agency,” Sen. Jean Forde (D-STT) said. “I don’t want to sound like I am beating up on the agency. But something needs to be done.”.

“This body is doing its part by ensuring through this process that agencies are adequately funded, however we need performance. … They must now provide the service they are charged with. Again I don’t mean to beat up on these agencies. That very agency is adequately funded however,” Forde added.

During budget hearings over the summer, WMA officials told senators they did not have enough funding to fulfill their mission and owed $16 million to vendors and major contractors for trash hauling and sewage treatment. Asked how much they really need, WMA officials said they could use an additional $40 million. They also need tens of millions of dollars to pay for closure of the territory’s landfills. Currently, management is in flux at the agency, with the recent departures of most of top management and some of its governing board members.

The Legislature appropriated $23 million for its own budget – a $2 million increase from FY2017. As every year, there was no budget hearing and no breakdown of the Legislature budget.

“I have always maintained throughout my time here that we should have a budget hearing for the Legislature, but it has always fallen on deaf ears,” Sen. Tregenza Roach (D-STT) said.

Senators voted down a proposal from Sen. Dwayne DeGraff to allocate $1 million for pay raises for the Legislature’s staff.

“I am not against raises but was an assessment done of the central staff of the Legislature? … Is $1 million enough? What is the measure of assessment? Sen. Janelle Sarauw (I-STT) said.

“I do believe in giving raises to employees who work hard and deserve it,” Sen. Marvin Blyden said, adding he agrees there needs to be an assessment of performance and a process to determine how the raises would work.

The main budget bill includes $41.4 million in miscellaneous spending. That is down from past years due to many of the expenses being folded into appropriations for Management and Budget and the Division of Personnel. It includes $19 million for outstanding employer contributions to the Government Employee Retirement System. Senators said Gov. Kenneth Mapp had requested the money to fund a three percent increase in contributions but felt it made more sense to pay past due contributions instead of paying new contributions and neglecting past-year’s unpaid balance.

All senators were present for at least part of Wednesday’s session.

Here are the major budget expenditures for FY 2019 that were approved by the Legislature Wednesday:
– Education $172.2 million
– Human Services $65.6 million
– Police $60.8 million
– Division of Personnel: $43.1 million- of this $37.4 million is for health insurance for retirees. and $3.4 million for wages, taxes and benefits
– Hospitals $41.7 million; with $19.9 million for Gov. Juan F. Luis Hospital and $21.8 million for Schneider Regional Medical Center
– Management and Budget: $37.4 million: That sum includes $20.8 million in wage adjustments across agencies; and funding for numerous community organizations from Sports and Recreation’s Amateur Boxing Program to the Girl Scouts, that had previously been placed under “miscellaneous” appropriations.
– Corrections $35.3 million
– UVI $33.8 million
– Courts $33.3 million
– Health $32.7 million
– Waste Management Authority $25.4 million
– Legislature $23 million
– Fire Service $19.5 million
– Public Works $19.1 million
– Justice $16 million
– Finance $13.1 million
– Property and Procurement $11.5 million
– Labor Department $13.7 million
– Internal Revenue Bureau $12.6 million
– Office of the Lieutenant Governor $10.4 million
– Office of the Governor $10.2 million
– Bureau of Information Technology: $8.8 million
– Planning and Natural Resources $8.6 million
– Sports, Parks and Recreation $6.9 million
– VITEMA $5.8 million
– Agriculture $4.5 million
– Public Television $4 million
– Licensing and Consumer Affairs $3.9 million
– Tourism $2.4 million
– Bureau of Motor Vehicles $2.3 million
– Election System and Board of Election $1.8 million
– V.I. National Guard Adjutant General: $1.4 million
– V.I. Energy Office $1.3 million
– Veterans Affairs $816,625
– Law Enforcement Planning Commission $801,153
– Miscellaneous $41.4 million.

Editor’s Note: This story originally, incorrectly indicated a recent proposal by Gov. Kenneth Mapp to try to fund tuition for most applicants would cost UVI money if it is insufficient to cover the costs of tuition for 1700 students. The proposed scholarships would not cost UVI as they are subject to the level of funding provided by the V.I. government. Thanks to reader Bagga Man for pointing out the error.

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