Everything about The Legislature Of The Virgin Islands totally explained
The
Legislature of the Virgin Islands is the
territorial legislature of the
United States Virgin Islands. The legislative branch of the
unincorporated U.S. territory is
unicameral, with a single house consisting of 15 senators, elected to two-year terms without
term limits. The territorial legislature meets in the capital of
Charlotte Amalie on the island of
St. Thomas.
History
The Danish Period: 1852-1917
The roots of the modern legislature date to the passage of the Colonial Law in
1852 during the
Danish colonial period. The law created a Colonial Assembly for the
Danish West Indies, as well as the appointment of a
Vice-regent serving as the colony’s
governor executive, serving on behalf of the
King of Denmark. Despite the name, the Colonial Assembly acted more as an advisory body than a true legislature. The Vice-regent continued to reserve the right to reject or amend any
law they didn't see fit.
A further Colonial Law coming in
1863 broke the Assembly into two parts, creating a Colonial Council for the newly-created
St. Thomas and
St. John Municipality, and a separate Colonial Council for the
St. Croix Municipality. The 1863 law provided the councils to combine into a single legislature when called upon by the Vice-regent or by legislators themselves, and gave legislators greater say in the colony's finances. However, the
Danish monarch still reserved the right to pick several members of the councils, giving
Copenhagen a continued say in the colony's legislative affairs. The monarch-appointed Vice-regent and the King also continued to reserve the right to pass or deny any colonial bills brought upon their desks. The
voting franchise of this period remained low, hovering just under six percent.
The American Period: 1917-present
Upon the
U.S. purchase of the islands from
Denmark in
1917 by fears of
German expansion into the
Caribbean, the renamed
U.S. Virgin Islands government underwent a gradual overhaul. From
1917 to
1931, the
U.S. Navy administered the islands, with a Navy officer serving gubernatorial duties, while the Colonial Councils for the territory‘s two municipalities created by the
Danes fifty years earlier remained with little change. Islanders were granted
American citizenship in
1927, and after popular discontent with incompetent Naval rule, the islands came under the supervision of the federal
Department of the Interior in 1931.
The
U.S. Congress’ passage of the
1936 Organic Act brought the greatest amount of self-government the islands had ever known. For the first time, all islanders above the age of 21 enjoyed
universal suffrage. The Colonial Councils--now Municipal Councils--could combine when desired to form a Legislative Assembly. The Legislative Assembly now could override gubernatorial vetoes with a 2/3 majority, a parliamentary procedure endowed to the
U.S. Congress and various
state legislatures. The federal
Congress and
President, however, continued to reserve the right to
veto territorial legislation.
The Modern Legislature
The
Revised Organic Act of 1954 dissolved the two Municipal Councils, creating a permanent unified and
unicameral Legislature of the Virgin Islands. A revision in the territory’s constitution in
1966 increased the number of legislators from its original amount of 11 to 15.
Today, the Legislature of the Virgin Islands is a territorial legislative body with the same rights and powers comparable to that of many
state legislatures within the
United States.
The Legislature
The Legislature is a
unicameral body, one of the four such legislative bodies in the United States, along with
Nebraska,
Guam and the
District of Columbia. The Legislature meets inside the Senate Building in
Charlotte Amalie, a restored
Danish and
American military
barracks building as well as a former high school.
It is composed of 15 senators, each serving two-year terms. The territory is divided into two multimember constituencies, with seven senators representing each, while a single senator from
St. John is elected at large.
Qualifications to be a senator include being over or at least 21 years of age, a
U.S. citizen, a resident of the
Virgin Islands for three years, and a qualified resident of their representing district.
The current legislture is the 27th Legislature of the Virgin Islands. The President of the Legislature is
Independent Citizens Movement Senator
Usie R. Richards of the
St. Croix District. Following the results of the 2006 general elections, the Independent Citizens Movement, the
Democrats and
Independents formed a legislative
grand coalition dubbed "the People's Majority." The Majority Leader of the 27th Legislature is
Senator Celestino A. White Sr. He is the senior senator in the body, first elected in 1989, and serving his ninth two year term.
Make-up of the Legislature
The Legislature of the Virgin Islands is one of the few partisan legislatures of its kind in the
U.S. where the
Republican Party has no legislative representation.
Further Information
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