The Senate Rules Committee passed four bills, held another, and let one die in committee Thursday.
Starting off the meeting, committee chair Violet Anne Golden read a letter from V.I. Housing Authority executive director Conrad Francois II objecting to a bill to consolidate VIHA with other government agencies. The bill, proposed by Senate president Vargrave A. Richards at the request of the governor, seeks to combine VIHA with the Housing, Parks and Recreation Department and the Housing Finance Authority.
But that is not all the cumbersome bill covers. It contains provisions that affect the police, taxis, and adult education functions, Francois noted. He recommended that the consolidation of territorial housing functions "stand alone, and be separated from any other . . . unrelated mattters." The bill, for example, includes a section authorizing the police commissioner to "establish fees to defray the cost of providing extra police officers during concerts and similar events."
The measure was held in committee at the call of the chair. Golden said she expected it would be addressed again soon.
A bill which would make it a felony to furnish false information to peace officers during the investigation of a felony, when put up for vote, did not get a second on the motion and died in committee. The bill, sponsored by Operations Committee chair Gregory Bennerson, was passed by that committee last week by a vote of 6-0.
The approved bills are to:
– enact the Emergency Management Assistance Compact Act,
– increase mandatory penalties for armed robbery to seven years from three years,
– grant peace officer status to the Legislature's security personnel, and
– change the effective date of the 911 Emergency Services Fund tax from Jan. 1 to April 1 of this year. At the direction of the government, the tax is collected as a monthly $1 surcharge on telephone bills by the V.I. Telephone Corp., which in fact began assessing the fee in its April billings.
Three of the four bills passed unanimously. Sen. Judy Gomez cast the sole "nay" vote on the measure to increase penalties for armed robbery.
Attending the meeting were Sens. Bennerson, Adlah "Foncie" Donastorg, Golden, Gomez, Almando "Rocky" Liburd and Richards. Committee member Adelbert Bryan was absent. The four measures approved now go to the full Senate for a vote.
