86th year, No. 23811 TUESDAY, DECEMBER 13, 2016 $1 86 A Pulitzer Prize-Winning Newspaper ST. CROIX ST. JOHN ST. THOMAS TORTOLA CELEBRATING THE PEOPLE, CULTURES AND HISTORY OF THE VIRGIN ISLANDS SINCE 1930 Mini Page Pages 28-29 Tax hikes With government piggy bank empty Mapp turns to taxpayers for cash Unpaid vendor says trash haulers might stop collections Page 3 V.I. teams rack up golds in P.R. Back Page Centennial Countdown Sin taxes on alcohol, tobacco and soda and taxes on property and time-share owners would fund court-ordered back pay Page 5 Businesses to face spike in unemployment insurance rate to help V.I. government pay $69 million federal bill Page 2 Complex looks for win in Puerto Rico Back Page Digging up V.I.’s past Pages 10-11 Boat parade spreads Christmas cheer Page 24 www.virginislandsdailynews.com Twitter: @VIDailyNews www.facebook.com/virginislandsdailynews ISSN 2159-3019 2 The Virgin Islands Daily News VIRGIN ISLANDS Tuesday, December 13, 2016 V.I. businesses face higher unemployment taxes as territory struggles to pay down $69 million debt By BRIAN O’CONNOR Daily News Staff Territory business owners will pay four times the normal federal unemployment tax rate this year because of an unpaid government debt, documents show. The federal unemployment insurance tax rate is traditionally 6 percent on the first $7,000 an employee makes. However, the federal government usually offers a credit of 5.4 percent, meaning most employers actually pay about 0.6 percent, according to the IRS. States — and territories — with unemployment insurance programs meeting federal standards are required to meet their unemployment obligations. When a state can’t meet its unemployment obligations, it’s entitled to take loans from the Federal Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund. Federal documents show only one state and one jurisdiction — California and the U.S. Virgin Islands — are currently in that position. The territory owes $69,138,266.61 in loans, according to the U.S.