U.S. VIRGIN ISLANDS—The Senate unanimously approved V.I. Territorial Emergency Management Agency Director Nominee Daryl Jaschen and Department of Licensing and Consumer Affairs Commissioner Nominee Richard Tomas Evangelista, Esq. during their session Tuesday at the Legislature on St. Thomas.
The vote was 12-0 in favor of their appointments, with Senators Alicia Barnes, Marvin Blyden, and Dwayne DeGraff absent.
The two designees for the Bryan/Roach Administration’s Cabinet will be sworn-in at a future date still to be determined.
During brief remarks after the vote, both men thanked their staffs and Governor Albert Bryan Jr. and other members of the Bryan/Roach Cabinet for their support.
“Senate President Francis and distinguished members of the Legislature, it’s an honor to be before you,” Mr. Jaschen said after his approval. “It’s a tough process. It’s a fair process.”
“And, of course, all the agencies performing emergency support functions are very critical,” he said. “It’s a team approach, and I’ll lead the team and do anything I can to make the team successful in the future in response to all-hazards events.”
During his remarks, Attorney Evangelista also thanked the Legislature for their unanimous vote.
“I would like to thank the members of the 33rd Legislature and the Rules Committee for putting me through a very arduous task,” he said. “I would not have been able to do this without the assistance and preparation of the DLCA staff. Currently, we are actually in a hurricane preparedness meeting to ensure that Licensing is ready and prepared in the event a disaster strikes.”
Mr. Evangelista also addressed the larger purpose of his agency.
“In this current capacity we’re going to ensure that both the consumers as well as the business committee stick to what is right and we do what is fair for all of us because whether or not you own a business, every business owner is actually a consumer,” he said. “So, ladies and gentlemen, I pledge to you that we shall ensure that we have fair prices and equity when we come in dealing with anyone in the consumer world.”
####