ST. CROIX — Senate President Milton Potter has sponsored a bill that would relinquish the Legislature’s responsibility for setting compensation for the Virgin Islands Water and Power Authority’s board members, allowing the governing board to set its own compensation for nongovernment members. The bill also reduces the quorum for the board and its committees to conduct official business.
Nongovernment members of the board are currently compensated at a rate of $175 for each day or fraction thereof spent in the work of the Authority. The board’s quorum would be reduced to three from four. The bill also sets the quorum for the board’s committees at 50% of membership, requiring a majority vote for all committee action.
The bill is scheduled to be heard on Friday before the Committee on Government Operations, Veterans Affairs and Consumer Protection, chaired by Senator Avery Lewis. Maurice Muia, WAPA board chair, is the only invited testifier listed on the Senate calendar.
Muia is a councilman in Richmond Heights, Missouri, where he resides. He was first elected in June 2020 and although his term expired in April 2024, the city’s recent official listing indicates he continues to serve in that role into fiscal year 2025-2026.
Being on the nine-person City Council in Richmond Heights is a part-time position as members receive a stipend of $480 per month, or $5,760 annually.
Muia makes more income on the WAPA board, raking in $32,725 in compensation as a board member in calendar year 2024 and $39,206.56 as of November 2025. His compensation outpaces his colleagues on the board; the next highest paid board member for both years was Hubert Turnbull, who received $17,325 in 2024 and 11,349.48 as of November 2025. Turnbull served as chair from July 2024 to July 2025 and is presently vice chair of the WAPA board.
The WAPA board met 17 times in 2024 and 16 times in 2025 through November.
The sole government employee on the WAPA board, VI Energy Director Kyle Fleming, is not eligible for a stipend.
Muia sees his membership on the board as a job. During a Committee of the Whole meeting on October 29, 2025, Senator Kenneth Gittens asked Muia if being a board member is a job. Muia replied that it is. Gittens said board members are not supposed to receive compensation as a “job.”
Muia justified his duties, stating board members participate in monthly meetings of the board’s Finance and Audit Committee, and Economic Development and Planning Committee. Muia said board members are compensated in preparation for meetings, during official meetings, and for other meetings deemed necessary for the benefit of the Authority.
Noticeably missing as testifiers from Friday’s meeting are WAPA’s executive team, especially considering the Authority’s challenging fiscal position. When asked by WTJX why WAPA’s certifying officers were not invited due to the possible fiscal implications of Bill No. 36-0197, Lewis stated that he asked Potter, suggesting they should invite someone in opposition, and it was Potter’s decision not to invite anyone else. Potter could not be reached for comment as of publication time.
WAPA is running a multimillion-dollar annual deficit, struggles to collect on government bills, and does not have sufficient revenue to operate or properly maintain essential public infrastructure without special intervention.
Last Monday, lawmakers appropriated to the Authority $4 million from the Insurance Guaranty Fund for the repair, replacement, and operation of streetlights throughout the territory. The fund is responsible for the payment obligations of insolvent insurance. The bill has not hit the governor’s desk as yet.
During a Committee on Budget, Appropriations and Finance meeting on December 15, 2025, Karl Knight, WAPA executive director and CEO, said WAPA is running a deficit of about $1 million a month on the electrical side.
During a PSC meeting on November 4, 2025, WAPA officials acknowledged ongoing budget constraints, affecting WAPA’s ability to hire additional customer service and meter reading staff. WAPA’s limited staff is unable to efficiently manage the high volume of customer complaints, billing issues, and service requests the Authority receives.
On April 22, 2024, Governor Albert Bryan Jr. declared a state of emergency due to frequent territory-wide electrical outages and energy reliability issues.
The declaration allowed the governor to bypass the Senate appropriation process and immediately access the Budget Stabilization Fund, or rainy-day fund, to pay a $2.3 million debt WAPA owed Aggreko for leased generators that was due the next day. The state of emergency was renewed on May 22, 2024 to continue addressing the energy crisis. The Legislature subsequently extended the state of emergency through November 19, 2024.
The VI government implemented a fuel subsidization program from March 2022 to June 2023, during which it utilized $100 million in federal funds received through the American Rescue Plan Act to prevent WAPA rate increases. The subsidies allowed WAPA to bring online four fuel-efficient Wärtsilä generators on St. Thomas that can function on diesel or propane.
It is not clear at this time whether Muia and the board members intend to increase their stipend but the last time the Legislature allowed another entity to determine compensation it did not end well.
The Legislature created the Virgin Islands Public Officials Compensation Commission in 2016 to review the salaries, expense allowances, and other emoluments of senators of the VI Legislature, the governor, lieutenant governor, members of the governor’s Cabinet including the attorney general, all commissioners and directors of government agencies, judicial officers, and the inspector general.
The Commission recommended salary increases of 28.06% for the governor and 34.59% for the lieutenant governor in addition to increases for the attorney general, inspector general, supervisor of elections, four commissioners, and three executive directors of boards and/or commissions, according to the Public Officials Compensation Study.
The raises went into effect after the Legislature failed to act on the Commission’s recommendations. The Senate ultimately rescinded the raises on June 27, 2025.
WTJX sent a request to WAPA under the Freedom of Information Act today to ascertain the nature of each board member’s invoice submission to ascertain details of the work for which they charge the Authority. We will track the response.
