By Susan Mann
Caribbean Net News St Thomas-St John Correspondent
Email: susan@caribbeannetnews.com
ST THOMAS, USVI: Legislation which repeals a 1936 federal law limiting the authority of the Virgin Islands Government to administer its own property tax system was signed into law Friday by President George W. Bush.
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USVI Governor John
deJongh, Jr. Photo:
Susan Mann |
“This bill will now provide the VI Government with the authority required to protect home ownership in the Virgin Islands and it also grants the flexibility to fairly administer our tax laws,” Governor John P. deJongh Jr. said Friday evening, having learned of the presidential action.
The bill was sent to the President on June 20, after its passage in the US Senate.
The 1936 statute, which was resurrected by the US District Court for the Virgin Islands in an earlier action by several property owners, prevents the Government from exercising authority, enjoyed by all other States and Territories, to tax real property at different rates, depending on the type or use of the property.
For example, the District Court relied on the 1936 statute to overturn the territory’s ten percent cap on increases in residential property tax assessments during any assessment period --- a practice used by many local governments on the mainland to protect homeowners from soaring property values.
“My administration remains enormously grateful to the US Senate and the House for passage of this bill and to the Bush White House for today’s signing of the legislation into law,” said deJongh. In particular, the Governor thanked Chairman of the Senate Energy Committee Jeff Bingaman (D-New Mexico) and the Committee Ranking Member Pete Domenici (R-New Mexico) for their assistance earlier this month in moving the bill through the US Senate.
DeJongh said Congressional Delegate Donna Christensen offered leadership in guiding the House version through the legislative process as one of the first orders of business in this session of Congress.
DeJongh said that without the repeal of the statute, the local government would have continued to operate under a court injunction which would have limited the authority of the territorial government to assess and collect real property taxes in the Virgin Islands.
The office of Lt. Gov. Gregory R. Francis oversees property assessment and taxation in the Virgin Islands. | 
