(St. Croix, VI, September 25, 2006) — Delegate to Congress Donna M. Christensen will testify on Tuesday morning before the Subcommittee on Select Revenues of the House Ways and Means Committee at 10:00 a.m.  Delegate Christensen will testify in support of H.R. 273, legislation that she has introduced to eliminate the cap on rum revenues from the U.S. Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico.  “This legislation is one of my highest priorities. It would eliminate the need for Congress to periodically extend the current cover-over rate as is now the case.”

Delegate Christensen will take the opportunity to apprise the panel of the many constituent complaints about the increasing number of Internal Revenue Service audits being conducted in the territory since the implementation of the American Jobs Creation Act of 2004.  Christensen said that she will express concern that the tax agency is targeting not only individuals who participate in the territory’s Economic Development Commission program, but many taxpayers who are Virgin Islanders who worked outside the territory for a number of years or who moved to the territory years ago but have no connection to the EDC program.