Senators OK range of bills including $250M in bonds to fund new ferry, road repairs

ST. THOMAS — Senators approved a wide range of bills during Wednesday’s Legislative session, including up to $250 million in bonds to fund infrastructure projects such as road repair and a ferry between St. Thomas and St. Croix, elimination of the statute of limitations for civil claims by childhood sexual abuse survivors, leases, honors for community leaders and more.

Senators began the day in the Committee of the Whole and heard testimony on Bill No. 35-0415 authorizing the issuance of up to $250 million in bonds by the V.I. government and the V.I. Public Finance Authority. V.I. Department of Public Works Commissioner Derek Gabriel explained the proposed allocation of $156 million in GARVEE, or Grant Anticipation Revenue Vehicle, federal bond funding. The bonds are a funding mechanism that leverages future federal grants, “ensuring that projects can begin immediately rather than waiting for yearly funding allotments,” Gabriel said.

A 2015 GARVEE bond provided $91 million in funding for road improvement projects, such as $16 million for Melvin Evans Highway, and $40 million for Veterans Drive. The new $156 million bond issuance would cover critical infrastructure projects, such as $20 million for fabrication of a new ferry linking the territory’s two largest islands, $48 million for Phase 2A of the Veterans Drive Project, $54 million to refinance existing bonds and $28 million for additional eligible road projects on St. Croix.