Two bills seeking to reduce Industrial Development Commission tax benefits were tabled indefinitely Tuesday by the Senate Finance Committee.
One measure, proposed by Sen. Norman Jn Baptiste, would lower property-tax exemptions for future IDC beneficiaries by 20 percent and deposit the proceeds into special Education Department accounts. Baptiste tacked on an amendment Tuesday to earmark 3 percent of Education's budget for maintenance, supplies and other purposes.
Education Commissioner Ruby Simmonds and IDC director Frandelle Gerard testified against the bill. Gerard said an investor who had "sunk millions in property in St. Croix" called her asking if the measure would be passed. Simmonds said a 3 percent reduction would force layoffs, and that her department's current appropriation level is barely sufficient to meet operating expenses. She added that she was capable of prioritizing her own funds.
Legislative post-auditor Campbell R. Malone, in his analysis, termed the original bill "faulty." He added that "the amendment causes further confusion" and would not achieve "what a reasonable person can conceive to be the objectives of the sponsor."
Sens. Violet Anne Golden, George Goodwin, Lorraine Berry, Donald "Ducks" Cole and Alicia "Chucky" Hansen all expressed concern that the bill could send the wrong message to potential investors.
The other bill, proposed by Sen. Adelbert M. "Bert" Bryan, who was absent, called for decreasing all tax exemptions by 10 percent for three years pending completion of a comprehensive study by the V.I. Tax Study Commission.
Charles Hensley, president of the St. Croix Chamber of Commerce, told the committee that he saw "no redeeming value in the bill." He said it would send an "inappropriate message to new investors."
Gerard said the measure would "chase investors away at a time when we need to make the V.I.'s tax benefits more attractive, not less." Malone pronounced it "confusing "and "impractical" and said it carried uncertain consequences.
