Legislature pledges to review raises, senators not getting pay hike

Incoming Senate President Milton Potter has pledged to convene a session of the 36th Legislature to discuss raises for some public officials that went into effect on Jan. 1 without public notice — or notice to senators.

Potter said he first learned about a report by the V.I. Public Officials Compensation Commission “through media channels on the evening of January 5, 2025,” according to a statement issued Wednesday. The report had been due in 2022 and was finally completed in August, but it wasn’t made public until Sunday, after a 90-day statutory window for senate review had passed. Gov. Albert Bryan Jr. said in a press release Sunday that the raises had automatically gone into effect on Jan. 1, and his office has not responded to a request for comment from The Daily News. Bryan is among the officials set to receive a raise, and the commission recommended the governor’s salary increase by 22% to $192,088.

On Wednesday, current Senate President Novelle Francis Jr. issued a statement noting that “The alleged issuance of the Public Officials Compensation Study by the Virgin Islands Public Officials Compensation Commission should not constitute official transmittal of this document to the Virgin Islands Legislature. It is unusual that a report of this significance would not also be formally transmitted to the Senate President or Executive Director with a hard copy and a signed receipt for proof of delivery.”