News Articles

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE October 7, 2026 JAMES CALLS FOR PUBLIC REVIEW OF RECENT GASOLINE-PRICE INCREASES Requests initial public report within 15 days and findings within 60 days ST. CROIX, U.S. Virgin Islands - Raymond T. James, Esq., Republican candidate for Senate in the District of St. Croix, called on the Department of Licensing and Consumer Affairs to undertake a focused, publicly reported 60-day review of recent gasoline-price increases. “Residents need to see that

A.J. Pike USVI - A three-cent-per-kilowatt-hour rate increase may sound small until it lands on a monthly WAPA bill. For a household that uses 500 kilowatt-hours in a month, that request would add about $15 before any other charges, fees, or taxes. For restaurants, grocery stores, hotels, laundromats, and other power-heavy businesses, the added cost could be far larger. The Virgin Islands Water and Power Authority’s request comes at a time when electric rates in the U.S. Virg

M.A. Dworkin St. Croix- Fine particles are tiny enough to pass deep into the lungs, which is why a technical air quality label can matter far beyond a regulatory filing. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s proposal to classify the U.S. Virgin Islands as attainment/unclassifiable under the annual fine particle standard is one of those technical decisions that deserves a plain-language explanation. At its core, the proposal says EPA does not see evidence that the Territo

Governor Bryan Signs Fiscal Year 2027 Budget, Ensuring Continued Funding for Government Operations and Essential Services Spending package funds healthcare, education, public infrastructure and government operations for the new fiscal year U.S. VIRGIN ISLANDS — Governor Albert Bryan Jr. earlier this week signed the Fiscal Year 2027 budget bills passed by the 36th Legislature, authorizing funding for government operations, healthcare, education, infrastructure and other

St. Croix Times Staff USVI - A one-time $90 Medicare payment may sound modest on paper, but for seniors watching every dollar of a fixed monthly budget, it lands in a very real place: the cost of staying insured. President Trump’s announcement of a one-time $90 payment to about 20 million U.S. seniors enrolled in Plan B Medicare, commonly understood as Medicare Part B, puts health care costs back at the center of the national conversation. The payments are set for early Octob

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE October 1, 2026 JAMES CALLS FOR URGENT CRIME RESPONSE, FEDERAL HELP AND ADDITIONAL FUNDING ST. CROIX, U.S. Virgin Islands - Raymond T. James, Esq., Republican candidate for Senate in the District of St. Croix, called today for immediate action and additional resources to protect residents, children, businesses and visitors from violent crime. James urged the Governor and Police Commissioner, if they have not already done so, to request additional as

M.A. Dworkin St. Croix - The St. Croix Rain Forest feels wild, but it is not untouched. Its shady roads, tall mahogany trees, mango groves, streambeds, and old stonework hold one of the island’s most layered histories. This forest in western St. Croix is more than a scenic escape. It tells the story of Indigenous knowledge, European colonization, forced labor, resistance, farming, water engineering, and modern conservation. It also reminds the U.S. Virgin Islands that nature

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE September 30, 2026 PLASKETT STATEMENT ON FEMA REVIEW OF VIRGIN ISLANDS RECOVERY SPENDING UNITED STATES VIRGIN ISLANDS — Congresswoman Stacey E. Plaskett issued the following statement after senior members of the Government of the Virgin Islands met with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) in Washington, D.C last week. The meeting followed FEMA's August 24, 2026, letter placing t

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE October 1, 2026 James Honors Contract Day Heroes and Trailblazers, Calls for Timely Union Contracts ST. CROIX, U.S. Virgin Islands — Raymond T. James, Esq., Republican candidate for Senate in the District of St. Croix, joined Governor Albert Bryan Jr. in honoring the workers behind the 1878 Fireburn uprising and called for carrying their legacy forward through greater opportunity for working families and responsible government budgeting. “Contract Da

A.J. Pike St. Croix - A single fruit fly can look harmless. The Mediterranean fruit fly is not harmless. The discovery of the medfly on St. Croix has triggered a level of response the U.S. Virgin Islands has never seen before: the first USDA-approved federal quarantine in the USVI for this pest. That step signals more than a technical change in regulation. It means federal and local agricultural officials see a serious threat to crops, food security, backyard fruit trees, and

Advertisement St. Croix - Raymond T. James, Esq. Republican candidate for the Senate in the District of St. Croix, today expressed support for Governor Albert Bryan Jr. September 24, 2026, Washington Examiner opinion article calling for a coordinated federal pathway to evaluate, permit and finance a qualified restart of the St. Croix Refinery. Separately, Mr. Janes proposed that the Virgin Islands Legislature explore whether the Territory could participate as an equity inves

For Immediate Release FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE September 25, 2026 Press Contact: Louis E. Petersen, Jr. Commissioner louis.petersen@doa.vi.gov VI Department of Agriculture Declares a Phytosanitary Emergency and Quarantine Measures Due to the Detection of the Mediterranean Fruit Fly [St. Croix, Virgin Islands] — The Virgin Islands Department of Agriculture is alerting the Virgin Islands community of a state of emergency (relating to the health of plants) to the recent de