SENATOR URGES DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION TO RELEASE FUNDS TO FOOD SERVICE WORKERS

CHARLOTTE AMALIE — On September 17, 2021, the 34th Legislature of the Virgin Islands passed Bill No. 34-0106, a supplemental budget to the already enacted FY 2022 Government of the Virgin Islands operating budget. Subsection R, section 1(c) was amended by Senator Sarauw to insert the following language: “

No Virgin Islands Child Goes Hungry” feeding initiative service workers $200,000.00. A payment of $1000 must be remitted to each service worker of the “No Virgin Islands Child Goes Hungry” feeding initiative who worked from March 1, 2020 to May 13, 2021. Payment must be remitted by December 31, 2021.

The bill, which became Act 8473 upon the Governor’s signature on September 21, 2021, has not been fully executed, as some three months later, the money still has not been disbursed. In the height of the ongoing pandemic, the feeding initiative by the Department of Education saw service and school lunch workers providing breakfast and lunch to students attending public, private and parochial schools in the territory.