Failing to receive documents from the Industrial Development Commission concerning the Virgin Islands Telephone Corp.’s tax breaks, Sen. Adlah "Foncie" Donastorg is threatening to take the commission and its executive director to court.
In a letter Wednesday, Donastorg notified Frandelle Gerard, IDC executive director, that she had five days to supply him with documents relating to Vitelco’s IDC compliance records and information on consolidation moves by Innovative Communication Corp., Vitelco’s parent company. Donastorg said he will take legal action against Gerard and the IDC if the documents aren’t delivered by Aug. 9.
Vitelco is an IDC tax beneficiary and receives almost 100 percent tax breaks. For the past two months, Donastorg has alleged that ICC has placed workers from its subsidiary companies onto the Vitelco payroll to reap that company’s tax benefits. Both ICC and Gerard say the transfer of employees is legal and part of a consolidation process.
In trying to prove his claims, Donastorg has requested documents from Gerard regarding quarterly and annual IDC reports that pertain to the transfer of ICC’s subsidiary employees to Vitelco. The senator maintains that the information is public.
"As the legal custodian of these documents, you are personally responsible for making them available to the public," Donastorg wrote, citing the V.I. Freedom of Information Act. "The law is clear and your attempts to withhold information are in blatant violation of this statute."
Gerard was off-island Wednesday and couldn't be reached for comment. But in a previous interview, she said that if V.I. Attorney General Iver Stridiron advised her to release the documents, she would. If not, Donastorg would not be able to view them.
At issue is confidentiality, Gerard said, noting that the reports contain information about employees, including salaries, Social Security numbers and addresses.
But Donastorg said two months have passed and Stridiron hasn’t responded. He said the lack of action on Gerard’s part is intentional.
"I think it was simply a stall tactic on the part of Frandelle Gerard until the beneficiary could prepare the documents," Donastorg said but suggested that he would include Stridiron in his lawsuit if Stridiron rules the documents shouldn't be released.
Donastorg claims that by placing employees of ICC subsidiaries onto Vitelco’s payroll, telephone ratepayers are being forced to subsidize ICC’s other enterprises. ICC owns Vitelco, Vitelcellular, Vitelcom, the Virgin Islands Daily News, St. Thomas-St. John Cable TV, St. Croix Cable TV, ICC TV and V.I. Powernet. ICC employs approximately 660 people. ICC is owned by St. Croix businessman Jeffrey Prosser.
Donastorg points to a July 1998 letter from former IDC chairman Wylie Whisonant that states tax benefits cannot pass through a beneficiary company to a subsidiary.
"The Virgin Islands government is nearly bankrupt and much of the blame can be placed on the IDC’s program's ill-advised granting of tax benefits and its total failure in enforcing existing agreements," Donastorg told Gerard.
