Economy

Virgin Islands Unemployment Fund Back in the Black After 15 Years as Final Federal Loan Payoff Nears

The U.S. Virgin Islands’ unemployment insurance trust fund has returned to positive territory for the first time in more than 15 years, a milestone the Bryan administration said marks a major shift for the territory’s labor and fiscal outlook after years of debt tied to economic crises and emergency borrowing. Labor Commissioner Gary Molloy announced Monday that as of March 20, 2026, the trust fund held a net positive balance of more than $4 million, with a total balance of $16,995,132.93 and a remaining federal loan balance of $12,956,917.81. “For the first time in more than 15 years, the Virgin Islands unemployment insurance trust fund is back in the black,” Molloy said during the Government House press briefing. Molloy said the turnaround is significant not just because of the fund’s current positive position, but because of how deep the territory’s unemployment debt problem had become. As recently as 2022, he said, the Virgin Islands was carrying nearly $100 million in federal d...