With intense attention to financial accountability and efficient resource use, lawmakers scrutinized the spending strategies of the Agriculture Department and the Local Food and Farm Council, raising pointed questions over unspent funds and staffing inefficiencies at the Committee on Budget Appropriations and Finance hearing Thursday.
Louis E. Petersen Jr., commissioner of the Department of Agriculture, presented a proposed budget in the amount of $6,327,890 for fiscal year 2025. He pointed out that this represented a marked decrease of 24.42 percent below the previous fiscal year’s budget.
Some key elements of the budget included $4,334,669 for personnel and fringe benefits, $262,260 for supplies, $160,000 for utilities, and $570,930 for other services. It also included projected revenue of $1,000,000 from Tourism Funds, $270,805 from Agriculture Revolving Fund, and various Federal grants in the sum of $2,054,777.
These allocations, however, were made despite concerns about the effect of the reduced budget on the department’s ability to sustain and advance its initiatives. Sen. Dwayne M. DeGraff commented, “Our agriculture sector is key to our food security and economic sustainability; at a time when we’re looking for growth and improvement, reducing the budget is, quite literally, counterproductive. What we need to do is have our department equipped financially to meet its goals.”
Petersen informed the Committee about the challenges of working within the agreed-upon budget cuts but assured them that they would make the most of the available resources.
“We are indeed facing a significant budget cut, but we are determined to optimize our operations and prioritize critical areas to ensure that our agricultural sector continues to grow and thrive,” he said
Another major concern was the lack of adequate staffing. Maintaining full operational efficiency with six vacancies is difficult. Sen. Frett-Gregory pointed out, ” We have to fill those positions as quickly as possible to ensure that we have the expertise that will help our farmers and move our agricultural initiatives forward.”
Petersen outlined plans for improving the department’s recruitment efforts, including a collaboration with the University of the Virgin Islands to establish training programs in agricultural sciences for local students. “We are working closely with the University of the Virgin Islands and other educational institutions to develop training programs that will equip local students with the requisite skills and knowledge for these critical work roles. Our goal is to create a sustainable pipeline of talent to support our agricultural sector,” said Petersen.
David Hall, co-chair of the Local Food and Farm Council, put forward a proposed budget of $4,157,500 for fiscal year 2025. Among the things the budget addressed were ways to continue implementing objectives outlined in the Virgin Islands Agriculture Plan, which will help provide greater food security and sustainability.
In the proposed budget, there were allocations made for critical roles such as the Local Food and Farm coordinator, civil engineers and soil scientists, as well as initiatives like the Public Private Partnership Investment Fund. He said what was important was adding more money to most of the allocations, especially increasing the investment fund’s budget from $500,000 to $3,000,000.
However, there was criticism about the financial management and expenditure strategies. Frett-Gregory questioned the large amount of money remaining from last year while requesting new monies. Hall explained that some of the unused money had been set aside to pay for long-term projects, like setting up an agriculture business center and introducing new agricultural technologies. These things take several years to fund and plan.
Frett-Gregory concluded, “We want to ensure that every dollar is working efficiently toward improving the outcomes of our community. We must be transparent and have accountability for those dollars moving forward so we understand exactly the path we need to take to achieve our goals and meet the needs of our residents.”
Senators present at Thursday’s committee hearing included Frett-Gregory, Novelle E. Francis, Jr., Samuel Carriόn, Diane T. Capehart, DeGraff, Marise C. James, and Javan E. James, Sr.
