Senate Approves Three-Step Financial Fix for WAPA

Lawmakers of the 35th Legislature approved a three-step solution to ease financial pressures on the V.I. Water and Power Authority. Votes taken on three bills — which also include a measure to define when a state of emergency can be declared — came in rapid succession on Thursday afternoon at the end of a six-hour session.

It was the second special session called by Senate President Novelle Francis — the first was Wednesday — in the wake of Gov. Albert Bryan Jr. declaring a state of emergency on Monday following more than a week of rotating power outages. Bryan said he would tap into funding to help cover the outstanding WAPA bills of the Waste Management Authority and the territory’s two hospitals, along with a $2.3 million payment to Aggreko, which leases WAPA a set of generators on St. Croix.

The public portion of Thursday’s Senate session, carried over live stream video, lasted about an hour. Francis convened the session shortly after 1 p.m., called for a two-minute recess and returned three hours later.

Before opening a round of debates among colleagues in attendance, the Senate president said they were still working on details of the measures sought as a solution. “ … I want to apologize for the delayed start. We continue to work through the legislation,” Francis said.