July 13, 2007 — The Department of Planning and Natural Resources defended and explained its total budget request of $29 million for fiscal 2008 to the Senate Finance Committee during budget hearings Friday in Frederiksted.
The multifaceted agency oversees a panoply of divisions: Comprehensive and Coastal Zone Planning, Coastal Zone Management, Fish and Wildlife, Environmental Protection, Environmental Enforcement, Building Permits, Archeology and Historic Preservation, Libraries, Archives and Museums and Business and Administrative Services. DPNR has traditionally also handled the distribution of federal community development block grants and housed the V.I. Energy Office, but Mathes said Gov. John deJongh Jr. has decided to separate these two functions.
The total budget includes $16 million in federal grants, $5.3 million from special funds created by department fees and fines and $8 million from legislative appropriation to the General Fund, said DPNR Commissioner Robert S. Mathes.
“I have met with … staff … to hear their concerns and recommendations on how to make the department more responsive to its mandates while being more customer-friendly,” Mathes said, echoing the responsiveness and customer-service mantra the deJongh administration has emphasized since the 2006 campaign.
Mathes presented a baker’s dozen of initiatives that came out of those staff discussions.
“We are going to develop a comprehensive strategy to ensure compliance for the Sirenusa and Grand Bay projects,” Mathes said, calling it the first item on his list. The Sirenusa project has come under fire from many residents of St. John, and its recent approval generated some controversy. (See “Despite DPNR Objections, Senate Approves Added Units for Sirenusa Condos.”)
Mathes’ other major initiatives include certifying earth-moving-equipment operators on environmental sensitivity, and developing a database tracking all earth-moving permits and violations; developing and “expedited” major CZM permitting process; reforming the building and zoning codes to make them more clear; and, more generally, “to mitigate conflicts with present-day societal needs, as well as to keep pace with development trends.”
Sen. Carlton Dowe, who often has sharp questions for department heads with large numbers of unfilled job vacancies, commended Mathes.
“The number of vacancies at DPNR was very high,” Dowe said. “I want to put on the record that you have cut the number in half.”
Sen. Celestino White wanted to know what Mathes was doing to boost morale after recent scandals.
“Before taking over your department, there were things that occurred criminally,” White said. (See “Ex-DPNR Official Sentenced to Four Years for Defrauding V.I. Government.”) “They have nothing to do with you, but they affect public confidence and can be demoralizing. How are you going to address this?”
“I’m a down-the-hall style of manager,” Mathes said. “I’ve spoken with everyone, and everyone knows they can talk to me.”
White also relayed constituent complaints about paying to park at Cyril E. King Airport on St. Thomas, then paying for permits from DPNR.
“That’s the paying-to-pay issue among our initiatives,” Mathes said. “We are in negotiations with the Port Authority to see what we can do to solve this.”
Sen. Liston Davis asked Mathes about efforts to beef up enforcement. DPNR is hiring several new enforcement officers who have been vigorously pre-screened before being accepted into the V.I. Police Academy, Mathes said.
“We have at least six good new enforcement officers out of the 20 in the current class at the Police Academy who met those criteria,” he said.
“I see you have at least one vehicle as old as 1996,” Sen. Carlton Dowe said. “Sometimes we believe the government isn’t supposed to operate. We are afraid to change a vehicle in government because someone may write about it in the press. You need good vehicles to drive around these hills if the people want the inspections and enforcement they say.”
Mathes was noncommittal in response.
“If a vehicle still runs OK, we will still use it,” he said. “Property and Procurement has initiated a vehicle-retirement program, and we will participate in that.”
According to the Legislature’s post-audit of DPNR, the department has 86 vehicles: 12 paid for out of the General Fund, 18 at least partly from in-house funds from fees and fines and the other 56 paid for by the federal government. Most are assigned to divisions of DPNR that have enforcement or inspection functions. The vehicle’s use is not listed, only the division it is assigned to. The Division of Building Permits has 10 vehicles.
According to later testimony from the building-permit director, there are three building inspectors in that department. Mathes did not request any new vehicles.
Back Talk Share your reaction to this news with other Source readers. Please include headline, your name and city and state/country or island where you reside.
