USVI Senate panel clears $739M spending package for fiscal 2027

Lawmakers on the Senate Committee on Rules and Judiciary voted Wednesday to move forward with the US Virgin Islands' fiscal year 2027 budget, paving the way for a full Legislature vote scheduled for Friday.

Chaired by Senator Carla Joseph, the committee approved 28 separate bills totalling hundreds of millions to fund territorial agencies beginning October 1. The centrepiece is a $739.2 million General Fund appropriation covering routine government operations. The package also includes $66.5 million for hospital and health services, $49.5 million for the Judicial Branch and public defender, and $34.1 million for the University of the Virgin Islands.

The bills will advance under a closed rule, preventing lawmakers from making changes during the full Legislature's Friday session.

During the committee's review, several senators expressed worry about how the government collects revenue and manages spending. Senator Avery Lewis, the secretary and a supporter of Governor Albert Bryan Jr., cautioned that current practices cannot continue and flagged the possibility of spending restraints. Senator Alma Francis Heyliger pushed for reductions across all departments, pointing to the Waste Management Authority's $32.5 million General Fund allocation as an example of unnecessary expenditure.

"I knew when waste management was initially created, it was supposed to be set up to ultimately be able to pay for itself, and here we are," Heyliger said. "I mean, almost 20 years later, still dumping in almost thirty-five million dollars into an agency that is ultimately supposed to be self-run."

Budget Committee Chairman Novelle Francis Jr. indicated he plans to tie future spending plans to concrete performance measures. He also raised concerns about the reliability of federal funding from HUD and FEMA, and warned of potential reductions to federal food assistance programmes.

Senator Angel Bolques Jr., who participated in the review sessions though not a regular committee member, described the budget as the product of thorough examination. "This fiscal year 2027 budget really reflects many months of hearings and careful review and decisions about how to properly invest the people's resources," he said.

Before the committee advanced Bill No. 36-0390, which redirects unused Department of Education funds toward outstanding bills, Lewis proposed adding roughly $500,000 for school food programmes on St. Croix and St. Thomas to purchase equipment and make repairs. The committee accepted the change.

Other significant allocations direct $45.95 million from the Tourism Advertising Revolving Fund to multiple agencies and $26.1 million to the Legislature.