Bryan signed 13 bills and acknowledged two veto overrides

Gov. Albert Bryan Jr. took action on legislation sent by the 34th Legislature after its August 3, 2021 session and signed 13 bills, according to a Government House statement published August 23, 2021.

The measures he signed included Bill No. 34-0077, which enabled repayment of the 8% in wages withheld from government employees in 2011; Bill No. 34-0071, which established the Virgin Islands Timeshare Act; and Bill No. 34-0095, which extended the COVID-19 state of emergency to January 10, 2022.

The statement said Lt. Gov. Tregenza A. Roach, serving as acting governor, sent a letter on August 20, 2021 to Senate President Donna Frett-Gregory acknowledging the Legislature’s overrides of vetoes on Bill No. 34-0021 and Bill No. 34-0026. The two measures became Acts 8471 and 8472.

Act 8471 made the Virgin Islands Public Services Commission a semiautonomous agency, required Public Services Commission regulation of the Virgin Islands Waste Management Authority, and authorized the Virgin Islands Water and Power Authority to hire a turnaround management company. Act 8472 concerned the makeup and number of members of the WAPA governing board.

In his transmittal letter on Bill No. 34-0077, Bryan said the measure still required amendments to include all employees affected by the salary reduction under Act No. 7261, appropriate additional funds for those employees, and close the VIESA Contingency Reserve Fund established by Act No. 7987.

Bryan also signed Bill No. 34-0060, establishing the First-Time Homebuyers Program Act, while noting in his transmittal letter that the measure needed amendments to set a repayment time frame for certain construction loans and to address the removal of a cap on home-improvement loans.

Other bills signed were Bill No. 34-0066 on foreclosure for delinquent property taxes and public sewer fees; Bill No. 34-0076 on preference and expedited trials for seniors and terminally ill people in civil actions; Bill No. 34-0058 establishing the Virgin Islands Catalyst Fund; Bill No. 34-0037 on decedents’ estates and payment of certain debts without administration; Bill No. 34-0034 enacting the Uniform Electronic Legal Material Act; Bill No. 34-0030 removing Superior Court jurisdiction to consent to the marriage of a child under 18; Bill Nos. 34-0031 and 34-0032 requiring counseling for people convicted of child abuse or child neglect; and Bill No. 34-0004 changing the time for remittance of fuel taxes to the Bureau of Internal Revenue.

Official source: https://www.vi.gov/governor-bryan-takes-action-on-legislation-3/