|
V.I. CONGRESSIONAL DELEGATE | |||
| FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: Monique Clendinen Watson (202) 226-7973 | |||
| |||
| (Washington, DC, November 10, 2005) — Delegate to Congress Donna M. Christensen raised the issue of the waiver for Virgin Islands charter yachts at a Homeland Security Subcommittee hearing on Wednesday. At a joint hearing between the Subcommittees on Emergency Preparedness, Science & Technology and Terrorism, Unconventional Threats & Capabilities, Christensen asked Admiral Tom Collins, Commandant of the U.S. Coast Guard about the possibility of a waiver for Virgin Islands charter yacht operators who feel overburdened with current regulations requiring the submission of a manifest with every trip to the British Virgin Islands and back. “Admiral Collins promised to look into the matter and have further discussions with Department of Homeland Security officials about the waiver,” Christensen said. When speaking to Lt. General H. Steven Blum, Chief of the National Guard Bureau, Christensen also took the opportunity to praise the Virgin Islands National Guard whose members have served in Iraq, Afghanistan, Guantanamo Bay and other hot spots during the last several years. Blum and Collins were part of a panel appearing at the joint hearing to tackle the issue of the military response in the face of threats to the country. Also giving testimony was Michael Jackson, Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security, Paul McHale, Assistant Secretary of Defense for Homeland Defense, and Major General Richard J. Rowe, Jr., Operations Director of the U.S. Northern Command. | |||
 RETURN TO HOME PAGE |
