Virgin Islands judiciary asks Legislature for $53.1 million in FY2026 budget to fund staffing, capital projects and new conflict office

ST. THOMAS, V.I. — The judicial branch of the U.S. Virgin Islands asked the Legislature on July 17 to approve a $53,096,326 operating budget for fiscal year 2026 and separate funding for two related entities, saying the money is needed to maintain case-processing gains, fill critical vacancies and complete delayed capital work.

"I am Reese S. Hodge, chief justice of the Virgin Islands," Chief Justice Reese S. Hodge said as he opened the judiciary's presentation to the Committee on Budget, Appropriation and Finance. Hodge said the request also includes $145,342 for the Judicial Council and $1,105,131 to fully fund the Office of Conflict Counsel for FY2026.

The request focuses on personnel, capital projects and the newly established Office of Conflict Counsel (OCC). The judiciary asked for $36,145,053 for personnel services (including projected fringe), which incorporates a 4% market compensation adjustment the branch says was recommended by an independent review but not funded in prior years. The budget paper provided to senators lists 55 positions identified as critical vacancies; the judiciary estimated a prorated cost of $2,769,882 to fill those positions in FY2026 and warned the full-year impact in FY2027 would be about $5.5 million.

Hodge highlighted operational improvements documented in the judiciary's FY2024 annual report: the superior court reported a 92% overall case clearance rate…