Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Consumer Protection topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
DLCA says new licensing system is ready to start; subpoenas sent in islandwide fuel pricing review
Summary
Department of Licensing & Consumer Affairs told the Economic Development & Agriculture Committee it has selected a vendor for a unified online licensing and case‑management system (contract pending DOJ and the governor) and has submitted subpoenas to fuel retailers as part of a fuel, food and housing market study covering 05/01/2020 to present; the department reported 103 store inspections in FY2025 with 56 citations issued and referred non‑complying fuel retailers to the Department of Justice.
The Department of Licensing & Consumer Affairs told senators on Nov. 10 that a contractor has been selected to build a single, web‑based licensing and enforcement platform, but work cannot begin until legal review by the Department of Justice and the governor’s signature complete the contract. "We are now in the final stages of the contracting process, pending legal review by the Department of Justice, and the governor's signature for execution," Commissioner Natalie Hodge said in testimony to the Committee on Economic Development and Agriculture.
The modernization effort is designed to integrate professional and business licensing, consumer complaints, weights and measures, alcohol enforcement and legal case management into one system. DLCA said the platform will enable real‑time license verification, secure online payments, automated renewal reminders and a mobile app for field officers to streamline inspections and citations.
Hodge and agency staff also described active consumer‑protection work and a territory‑wide market analysis. DLCA requested detailed operational records from fuel retailers — bills of lading, invoices and contracts — covering May 1, 2020, through the present to support a contractor’s analysis of fuel pricing. The department said the vendor contract for the fuel, food and housing market study was executed on Oct. 17, 2025, and that collected retailer data will be analyzed by the contractor in coordination with the Bureau of Economic Research.
On enforcement, the agency reported that its consumer‑protection unit inspected 103 stores in FY2025 and issued 56 citations for violations such as expired products, unmarked prices and scale/calibration failures. Officials emphasized citations typically follow outreach and education, but certain violations (for example, expired baby food) are enforced without waivers. DLCA also said it has carried out weekly fuel surveys and monthly food‑basket reporting for public transparency; price‑gouging citations, the agency explained, only apply during a declared state of emergency under Title 11 of the Virgin Islands code.
Senators pressed for details on compliance: officials said that all Saint Croix fuel retailers responded to the document requests, two Saint Thomas stations responded but the majority did not, and the Saint John station failed to respond. General counsel Geraldine Baval said names of non‑respondents have been forwarded to the Department of Justice for follow‑up. DLCA acknowledged staffing and vehicle shortfalls for inspectors and urged additional resources to increase territorial coverage.
The committee set several follow‑up requests, including additional breakdowns of the inspection findings, confirmation of which fuel retailers provided documents, and an updated contract schedule for the licensing modernization. The department said it expects work to begin after contract execution; the fuel‑study completion date was given as September 2026. The committee recessed without taking formal votes on any agency requests.
