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Virgin Islands Gov. Albert Bryan Jr. slammed nan Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) aft nan agency suspended procurements involving nan territory's lodging finance authority complete concerns astir fraud and maltreatment tied to astir $2 cardinal successful disaster-recovery aid.
Bryan, a Democrat, said HUD’s suspension came arsenic a "shock" and called HUD's missive "unprofessional." He claimed nan U.S. Virgin Islands' disaster-recovery issues person been "sensationalized" and that nan suspension is an "overreach."
"When I spell to Washington, I don't spell and sojourn [HUD aliases FEMA] anymore because we don't person immoderate problems," Bryan claimed erstwhile pressed by section media astatine a nationalist briefing successful Charlotte Amalie.
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Virgin Islands Gov. Albert Bryan testifies connected Capitol Hill. (Ken Cedeno/Getty Images)
At 1 point, Bryan suggested HUD’s announcement could beryllium a "political stunt" timed pinch Tuesday's commencement of early voting successful nan territory’s contested gubernatorial election. Bryan is term-limited.
"[W]hy does nan property person it and why does Fox News successful peculiar person it and why are we only proceeding astir this now?" Bryan fumed – arsenic Fox News Digital exclusively collapsed nan news Tuesday.
"We'll beryllium appealing [HUD’s suspension] and past get into nan bottommost of what precisely is generating this benignant of harsh motives successful nan Virgin Islands."
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This image shows Trunk Beach connected nan land of St. John successful nan U.S. Virgin Islands. (Jeffrey Greenberg/Getty Images)
Fox News Digital reached retired to HUD for comment.
When Bryan said an audit cited successful HUD's suspension notice had ended immoderate clip ago, a newsman noted a abstracted HUD study recovered nan Virgin Islands Housing Finance Authority's consequence guidance practices remained "below nan lowest desired level" arsenic precocious arsenic March 2025.
The newsman asked Bryan whether it was adjacent to opportunity nan territorial authorities had been "blindsided" by HUD's missive and consequent news reports.
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Blue tarp stamped pinch nan FEMA logo covers nan tile of a location much than a week aft Hurricane Irma made landfall, connected September 18, 2017 successful nan hills supra Charlotte Amalie, St Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
"Absolutely," Bryan replied. "[E]ven if it was up to 2025 it covers a play wherever they person already addressed it successful truth nan $6.2 cardinal in-question costs was addressed years ago."
Bryan said he "perused" nan missive from Andrew Hughes, a lawman to HUD Secretary Scott Turner, and based on nan territory has made important advancement connected respective betterment projects, including 1 astatine Magen's Bay, a world-famous calm-water beach connected St. Thomas.
He suggested immoderate of nan issues pinch betterment projects successful nan U.S. Virgin Islands person to do pinch costs, saying 1 nationalist lodging portion tin expend $1 cardinal – "which is crazy."
"We’ve had to nonstop retired bids aggregate times because nan costs are not aligning pinch what nan nationalist standards are," he said.
In a abstracted statement, Bryan said galore of nan matters described successful HUD’s missive "reflect issues that person been known for immoderate time."
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"According to nan Virgin Islands Housing Finance Authority, important corrective actions person already been undertaken successful nan years since galore of those findings were first identified."
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"It is important that this process beryllium handled successful a mode that protects nan group of nan Virgin Islands and does not unnecessarily disrupt captious lodging and disaster-recovery programs," he said.
Bryan said astatine his property convention that his management antecedently addressed "weaknesses" astatine VIHFA earlier successful his administration.
"We person done a batch of activity successful bid to make judge that nan HFA had nan capacity – if you tin retrieve nan first 3 years of nan administration, we talked astir capacity planning... which has slowed nan betterment considerably from their view."
HUD's suspension comes arsenic Turner plays a starring domiciled connected nan White House Task Force to Eliminate Fraud, arsenic nan Trump management continues its wide-scale effort crossed agencies to curb maltreatment of payer funds.
Fox News Digital reached retired to Bryan’s agency for further comment.
Born and raised successful Allentown, Pennsylvania, worked successful some nan New York and Washington bureaus for Fox News since 2013.
