Delegate to Congress Donna Christian-Christensen has asked President Bill Clinton to intervene in the confiscation of tobacco products from tourists returning from the Virgin Islands.
Christensen met with President Clinton and Treasury Secretary Lawrence H. Summers Wednesday to brief them on the cigarette prohibition issues that surfaced last week and threaten to impact the territory's coffers.
"The president was unaware that the recent actions of the U.S. Customs Service with regards to the enforcement of a 1997 statute which prohibits the re-importation of U.S.-made, tax-free tobacco products labeled 'for export only' into the U.S. mainland once they have been exported outside of the continent, also affected us," Christensen said in a release from her office. "He asked that I forward a memo explaining the situation and pledged to see what could be done administratively to resolve the issue."
In her letter Christensen asked Clinton to direct U.S. Customs officials and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms to halt any further enforcement action against tourists who bring tobacco products back from the Virgin Islands while legislation is being considered to amend the 1997 act.
Christensen said she believes current enforcement against tourists is due to a misinterpretation, or over-broad interpretation, of the statute.
In her letter to the president, she said she and the governor have been advised by counsel that given the context in which the law was enacted, the section in question only applies to attempts by distributors or other commercial entities to evade the increased tobacco taxes and should not affect personal exemptions.
If a change cannot be made administratively, a technical amendment to the law must be submitted by the House Ways and Means Committee and the Senate Finance Committee to correct the problem. That amendment has already been drafted, according to Christensen.
Rep. Charles Rangel, ranking member of the Ways and Means Committee, would make the amendment retroactive to Jan. 1, 2000, which is why Christensen is asking the president to suspend seizures until the matter can be appropriately addressed.

Teachers at Charlotte Amalie High School are considering a job action to protest the return of students involved in a fight a few weeks ago that left two students wounded.
Teacher Arthur Solomon called Radio One early Thursday morning to ask teachers and other workers to report to the cafeteria instead of their stations to discuss a job action.
Solomon said the students had been allowed to return to school even though CAHS principal Jeannette Smith had recommended expulsion.
The teachers will ask Deputy Superintendent William Frett to reverse the decision, Solomon said.
After the fight last month, in which several weapons were openly brandished, police took two students into custody.

Gov. Charles W. Turnbull has given the green light for Public Works, its commissioner and associated government departments to buy whatever is needed to repair the territory's sewer system without going through the competitive bidding process.
A release from Government House said the governor had "declared a state of emergency to enable" DPW to "obtain supplies, materials, equipment and contractual services necessary for the repair of the public sewer system in the open market, without advertising for public competitive bidding requirements."
"Our aging sewer system, which teeters on the brink of collapse and places all residents and our environment in jeopardy, must be addressed immediately," Turnbull said.
Last week a sewage-line break in Frederiksted caused classes to be cancelled at St. Patrick's School and left a stench of raw sewage in the air as an estimated 100,000 gallons of raw sewage a day was being pumped into the sea.
As Public Works, Planning and Natural Resources and a contractor worked Wednesday and Thursday to repair the break and eliminate the odor, two cruise ships called on the island.
Federal officials have expressed concern for years about the territory's broken-down and poorly maintained sewage-treatment system along with its landfills and other environmentally sensitive facilities.
Turnbull said he had directed the commissioners of Public Works, Property and Procurement, Health, Finance and Justice, as well as the heads of other agencies, to cooperate in instituting the emergency procedures at Public Works.
The release did not make clear the scope of his "state of emergency" declaration at Public Works, including whether it encompasses areas other than the sewer system.

Gov. Charles W. Turnbull has given the green light for the Public Works Department, its commissioner and associated departments to buy whatever is needed to repair the territory's sewer system without going through the competitive bidding process.
A release from Government House said Turnbull had "declared a state of emergency" to enable Public Works to "obtain supplies, materials, equipment and contractual services necessary for the repair of the public sewer system in the open market, without advertising for public competitive bidding."
The governor said: "Our aging sewer system, which teeters on the brink of collapse and places all residents and our environment in jeopardy, must be addressed immediately."
Last week a broken sewage line in Frederiksted caused classes to be canceled at St. Patrick's School and left a stench in the air as an estimated 100,000 gallons of raw sewage a day was pumped into the sea.
As Public Works, the Planning and Natural Resources Department and a contractor worked Wednesday and Thursday to repair the break and eliminate the odor, two cruises ships called at the Frederiksted pier.
Federal officials have expressed concern for years about the territory's broken-down and poorly maintained sewage-treatment system, along with its landfills and other environmentally deficient facilities.
Turnbull said he had directed the commissioners of Public Works, Property and Procurement, Health, Finance and Justice, as well as the heads of other agencies, to cooperate in instituting the emergency procedures at Public Works.
The release did not make clear the scope of his "state of emergency" declaration at Public Works, including whether it encompasses areas other than the sewer system.

Gov. Charles W. Turnbull has given the green light for Public Works, its commissioner and associated government departments to buy whatever is needed to repair the territory's sewer system without going through the competitive bidding process.
A release from Government House said the governor had "declared a state of emergency to enable" DPW to "obtain supplies, materials, equipment and contractual services necessary for the repair of the public sewer system in the open market, without advertising for public competitive bidding requirements."
"Our aging sewer system, which teeters on the brink of collapse and places all residents and our environment in jeopardy, must be addressed immediately," Turnbull said.
Last week a sewage-line break in Frederiksted caused classes to be cancelled at St. Patrick's School and left a stench of raw sewage in the air as an estimated 100,000 gallons of raw sewage a day was being pumped into the sea.
As Public Works, Planning and Natural Resources and a contractor worked Wednesday and Thursday to repair the break and eliminate the odor, two cruises ships called on the island.
Federal officials have expressed concern for years about the territory's broken-down and poorly maintained sewage-treatment system along with its landfills and other environmentally sensitive facilities.
Turnbull said he had directed the commissioners of Public Works, Property and Procurement, Health, Finance and Justice, as well as the heads of other agencies, to cooperate in instituting the emergency procedures at Public Works.
The release did not make clear the scope of his "state of emergency" declaration at Public Works, including whether it encompasses areas other than the sewer system.

The Joseph Sibilly School PTA meets at 5:30 on Wednesday, March 15 at the school grounds. All parents and teachers are invited to attend. For more information call PTA president Vinnie Mohanani at 776-8511.

The Joseph Sibilly School PTA meets at 5:30 on Wednesday, March 15 at the school grounds. All parents and teachers are invited to attend. For more information call PTA president Vinnie Mohanani at 776-8511

Four men from the Ralph de Chabert housing community have been indicted by a federal grand jury for a December drive-by shooting that wounded a 6-year-old boy.
The alleged gunmen, Marciano Matta Ayala, 28, Frank Wilson, 28, and Carlos Martinez, 29, were apparently aiming for Eddie Martinez, Lucien Spencer and Raheem Christian as they walked through the JFK housing community on Dec. 18, 1999. The gunmen were attempting to avenge the Christiansted murder of Angel Felix about a week before.
Along with wounding the 6-year-old, two adult males were also hit by shots fired from a sawed-off shotgun.
Also charged was Raymond Jarvis, 31, who is accused of aiding and abetting the three gunmen. Jarvis and the gunmen were charged Tuesday with attempted first-degree murder, firearm possession, discharging a gun in a school zone and aiding and abetting.
Because the attempted murder took place in the vicinity of an elementary school, federal prosecutors will handle the case. Wilson, Martinez and Ayala face up to 155 years in prison and $272,000 in fines. Jarvis faces 77 years in prison and $136,000 in fines.
According to the V.I. Daily News, Jarvis turned state's witness and has been in protective custody. The men are scheduled for an advice-of-rights hearing on Thursday in District Court.

In an amendment hastily tacked onto the tobacco settlement bill, Sen. Alicia "Chucky" Hansen Tuesday made good on her promise to keep Memorial Day a school holiday. The amendment was approved by the Senate Finance Committee.
An Education Department task force had last week announced plans to use Memorial Day as a makeup day, compensating for time lost last year, largely due to storms. Hansen had then vowed to challenge the decision.
When Hansen added the amendment to the bill on the floor addressing redistribution of the tobacco settlement funds, Finance Committee Chair Lorraine Berry told her the resolution wasn't "germane" to the proceedings.
Hansen, however, stood her ground, demanding the motion be heard. She said that failure to observe Memorial Day as a holiday would be an "insult" to veterans.
The amendment, which passed on a 3-2 vote, states that "all legal holidays outlined in the V.I. Code that were not repealed by Act. No. 0333 … shall remain legal holidays in the Virgin Islands, including Veterans Day and Memorial Day, and all government offices including the Department of Education shall be closed on those days."
At the end of 1999 four government holidays were eliminated as part of the Omnimbus Act of 1999.
Voting for the amendment were Sens. Hansen, Berry, and Roosevelt David. Sens. V. Anne Golden and George Goodwin opposed the measure.

The third scheduled Senate Government Operations Committee in a row was canceled Wednesday for lack of a lack of quorum.
According to committee chair Gregory Bennerson, out of seven members, only he and Sens. Roosvelt David and Donald "Ducks" Cole showed up. The other four had all been excused — Sens. David Jones, who was off island; Allie-Allison Petrus, who was sick; and Sens. Lorraine Berry and Adelbert "Bert" Bryan, who had previous commitments.
Bennerson complained not only of Wednesday’s lack of a quorum but also of those on Feb. 14 and 16. He said he favored a proposal to dock the pay of those $65,000-a-year senators who miss a scheduled vote.
Senators are supposed to "legislate and protect the interests of the people," he said, and are paid a full-time salary to do so.
Bills that were to have been addressed Wednesday would:
– establish a voter identification and registration fund;
– allow for the assignment of income-tax refunds to satisfy rental payments, hospital bills, education, land and other long-term loans; and
– subdivide about 107 acres of land given to the government by the Alumina Corp. for sale as homesites.
The committee is scheduled to meet next on March 15 on St. Thomas.