The Virgin Islands Senate postponed a vote Tuesday on a racetrack and gaming bill, scheduling August hearings amid disputes over St. Croix’s 10-year wait and Southland Gaming’s long-term gaming provisions.
The 36th Legislature met in special session Tuesday, called by Gov. Albert Bryan Jr., to consider Bill No. 36‑0313, which would approve long-term lease and franchise agreements with Southland Gaming for the Randall “Doc” James Racetrack on St. Croix and the Clinton E. Phipps Racetrack on St. Thomas and amend provisions of the Virgin Islands Code concerning gaming and taxation.
Senators voted 8-6, with one abstaining, to send the measure to the Committee of the Whole for a hearing Aug. 19 on St. Croix. The full Senate is scheduled to reconvene Aug. 21 to vote on the bill.
The debate centered on whether the bill should move quickly to restart horse racing on St. Croix, where the Randall “Doc” James Racetrack has been closed for about a decade, or receive additional scrutiny because of its broader gaming provisions.
Sen. Kurt A. Vialet, who made the motion to send the bill to the Committee of the Whole, said the measure should not be viewed only as a way to restart horse racing and argued that its long-term gaming provisions made it more complex. “This is a gaming bill,” Vialet said, warning that the agreements would remain in effect until 2049 on St. Thomas and 2046 on St. Croix.
Vialet said he supports bringing racing back but objected to provisions he said would grant Southland Gaming long-term gaming rights on St. Thomas. He pointed to language he said would give the company exclusivity over video lottery terminals and “all gaming devices” on the island, requiring the Legislature to deal with Southland if it ever authorized casino gaming there. “There’s a clause in here that gives them exclusivity for all gaming devices in St. Thomas,” Vialet said. “It’s in the agreement.” He raised those concerns as he argued for sending the bill to the Committee of the Whole for an August 19 hearing.
He also questioned whether some colleagues had fully reviewed the agreements and a 2007 U.S. Department of the Interior Office of Inspector General report on video lottery terminals, citing the recent federal action against the Virgin Islands Housing Finance Authority as a warning about the consequences of overlooking federal oversight findings. “I support horse racing,” he said. “Take out the exclusivity, take out the self-regulation, and you have my vote.”
Sen. Dwayne M. DeGraff raised similar concerns, saying he supported horse racing on St. Croix but opposed using a racetrack bill to advance broader gaming changes. He said any move to expand or alter casino and video lottery terminal law should be debated openly and on its own terms rather than wrapped into the racetrack agreements. He argued that “if we’re going to change the laws, let’s do it,” but not “under the guise of horse racing.”
Sen. Novelle E. Francis Jr. argued that St. Croix had already waited too long. Francis noted that the Randall “Doc” James Racetrack has been closed for about 10 years and said St. Croix has been waiting a decade for racing to return. He said he supported vetting the bill but wanted it heard sooner, objecting to scheduling the hearing for Aug. 19 after an earlier date had been set aside for Water Island development. “When are we going to stand up and ask for some priority for St. Croix?” he asked.
Sen. Carla J. Joseph also opposed the delay, saying the Legislature could have convened as a Committee of the Whole during the special session and taken testimony from horse riders participating from St. Croix. She said Southland Gaming had already shown it could complete work at the Clinton E. Phipps Racetrack on St. Thomas. “Southland Gaming has demonstrated they can get things done,” Joseph said. “We have a track and they’ve been having races periodically on time and it’s safe. So I was ready to vote today.”
Sen. Alma Francis Heyliger also opposed the delay, saying lawmakers should have used the special session to take up the bill rather than summon senators to return later in the month. She said she expected to fight for a St. Croix racetrack with the same determination used to secure one for St. Thomas and questioned why the Senate could not have held a Committee of the Whole hearing that day before deciding how to proceed.
Several senators also questioned the Legislature’s broader priorities. Sen. Kenneth L. Gittens asked why the Legislature had convened a special session on the racetrack and gaming measure while other issues, including federal recovery funds, crime and the reliability of the territory’s power system, remained unresolved. “We can’t even keep the lights on,” Gittens said, noting that the Legislature was without power when senators arrived for the session.
In closing remarks, Senate President Milton E. Potter said horse racing was “woven into the cultural fabric” of the territory, particularly on St. Croix, but argued that the long-term implications of the proposed agreements justified additional review.
“I don’t believe that a couple more weeks of us vetting the bill and getting it right is going to cause any harm,” Potter said. “We are not saying that we’re not voting for the bill, we’re not saying we don’t support the bill. We’re saying the bill has far-reaching implications. Let us review it.”
The Committee of the Whole is scheduled to consider Bill 36-0313 on Aug. 19 on St. Croix, with a full Senate vote planned for Aug. 21.
