Feb. 26, 2003 – Senate President David Jones said on Wednesday that he has called a Committee of the Whole public hearing for March 13 on St. Croix to take testimony from opponents and proponents of video lottery gambling.
Gov. Charles W. Turnbull sent the Legislature a bill on Jan. 21 repealing a new law legalizing video lottery operations in the St. Thomas-St. John district. But Sen. Adlah "Foncie" Donastorg said on Wednesday that he had requested a draft of similar legislation almost two weeks earlier.
In a release distributed Wednesday, Donastorg said he had asked Jones to assign his bill to the Economic Development, Agriculture and Consumer Protection Committee. "We must begin public hearings on this matter immediately," Donastorg said.
Jones said later in the day that Donastorg's bill will be the basis for the hearing on the evening of March 13 "so all the senators can be present." While the Committee of the Whole can conduct hearings on St. Croix, it can vote on legislation only in the Senate chambers on St. Thomas.
Jones, who will chair the hearing, said he expects a big turnout. "We're bringing everybody," he said. Those invited to testify, he said, will include members of the Casino Control Commission and the V.I. Lottery Commission; officials of Southland Gaming, the company contracted by V.I. Lottery to distribute video lottery terminals; and developers of two major resort and casino complexes planned for St. Croix.
Meanwhile, Jones said, he also has assigned to the Education Committee a bill sponsored by Sen. Carlton Dowe to earmark 35 percent of VLT proceeds for public education.
Jones has been an advocate of video lottery operations throughout the two years that VLT's have been an issue in the Virgin Islands. In those two years, the 24th Legislature three times approved their introduction, and Turnbull three times vetoed the measures. The 24th Legislature in its last session, on Dec. 23, overrode the governor's third veto.
Advocates including Jones have argued that the gambling machines could bring the government as much as $14 million a year in much-needed revenues.
It took a two-thirds majority, or 10 votes, to override the governor's veto in December. It will take a simple majority vote now to repeal the law by enacting new legislation. Which way the 25th Legislature is leaning remains unclear. (See "Odds uncertain on prospects for VLT repeal".)
Donastorg voted for the Dec. 23 override. But he says now that he did so only after he heard "misleading" information on the Senate floor. "It was indicated that the machines would be confined to the tourist areas and the docking facility only, according to the information disseminated to me," he said Wednesday. "It turns out that the machines were placed all over the island."
According to Southland Gaming attorney Arturo Watlington, the company has installed machines at three St. Thomas sites: Bluebeard's Castle, The Old Mill and the Caribbean Saloon in Red Hook.
Donastorg said he drew up his repeal bill in the first week of January after the VLT invasion was well under way. "The subsequent protests only served to solidify my decision to go forward," he said.
Sen. Raymond "Usie" Richards had also drawn up a repeal bill, Donastorg said, so the two co-sponsored a single piece of legislation. Other lawmakers who have since attached their names to the measure include Sens. Louis Hill, Ronald Russell and Douglas Canton, Donastorg said.
According to Donastorg, the governor acted "way after the fact" in submitting a similar bill. "The governor should've checked to see if anyone in the Senate already had that legislation," he said.
Turnbull pledged in his State of the Territory address on Jan. 13 to submit a repeal bill amid much public concern over the terminals, especially on St. Croix. (See "Governor submits bill to repeal VLT legislation".)
The developer of one of St. Croix's two planned casino/hotel complexes vowed on Tuesday to pull out if the government does not repeal the VLT law by March 20. According to Curtis Robinson of Robin Bay Associates, VLT gaming, even if only in the St. Thomas-St. John district, jeopardizes his ability to secure commitments from international investors for his $500 million Seven Hills Beach Resort and Casino.
(He also demanded that the V.I. Code be amended by that date to allow for construction of a 12-story building. No previously published plans made mention of such a high-rise structure.)
Robinson said on Tuesday that construction on the half-billion-dollar project could begin as soon as July. However, Jones said on Wednesday that the company has yet to apply for any of the necessary Coastal Zone Management or building permits — a process that involves public hearings and can take many months.
"I don't know how realistic or practical those demands are," Jones said of Robinson's ultimatum. "There's no way that I personally would support amending the Code to include 12-story buildings." But he added that he could support a zoning variance to accommodate the project.
Referring to Robinson's local attorney, Jeffrey Moorhead, Jones added: "I don't know what building code Moorhead's been reading, but as far as the process and procedure in the Virgin Islands, it would take those [permits] being in place before any construction can begin."
Many who see the casino industry as a ray of economic hope for St. Croix where there otherwise are few also see VLT's as a threat.
"St. Croix is dying a slow death," Donastorg said. "We have to be careful that we don't kill the goose that laid the golden egg."
No action can be taken on repeal legislation by the Committee of the Whole at the March 13 hearing on St. Croix, but senators could move to convene another committee meeting at the time and vote the bill on to the Rules Committee or fail it. If it were to succeed, it would then either clear Rules and go on to the full Senate or die for lack of support.
The Democratic Party Territorial Committee on Jan. 11 called for repeal of the VLT legislation, saying it was taking the stand because of a policy of "special emphasis on St. Croix's economic development." Turnbull is a Democrat; so is Jones. The new Democratic majority in the 25th Legislature includes four senators who voted for the override: Lorraine Berry, Donastorg, Emmett Hansen II and Jones.
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