A Superior Court judge has ordered the Government Employees Retirement System and the V.I. Water and Power Authority to return to mediation to resolve a $7.7 million debt dispute that has been grinding through the courts since 2022.
GERS filed the lawsuit after WAPA failed to pay millions in employer and employee pension contributions. The utility also deducted loan payments and membership service fees from worker paychecks but did not pass the money on to GERS, according to the complaint.
The two sides entered mediation in March but the proceedings were suspended. At a status conference in September, Superior Court Judge Renee Andre ordered them to resume talks by November 13 and file a report by November 20 on whether they have reached a settlement.
WAPA has struggled for years to meet its financial obligations. A February 2021-2022 audit by Inspector General Delia Thomas found that the utility prioritized fuel costs over other expenses, causing it to delay sending $447,950 in employee loan deductions to GERS and credit union payments. WAPA had caught up on those loan payments by April 2023.
When GERS rejected a payment plan proposed by then-CEO Andrew Smith in 2022, the pension system took the utility to court. Smith cited soaring fuel prices following Russia's invasion of Ukraine as the reason WAPA could only cover debt service, fuel, and payroll.
Smith left in June 2024 and was replaced by Karl Knight, the former Chief of Staff to Governor Albert Bryan Jr. Knight recently asked the Public Services Commission to approve a 3-cent emergency increase in the fuel rate, citing rising costs tied to conflict in the Middle East.
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