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Lynton Scotland: Nominee to the Governing Board of the Virgin Islands Water and Power Authority. VI Legislature Confirmation hearing. Opening Statement Chairwoman Joseph, Vice Chair Gittens, distinguished members of the Committee on Rules and Judiciary, good morning. Thank you for the opportunity to appear before you today as a nominee to serve on the Governing Board of the Virgin Islands Water and Power Authority. I wish to express my sincere appreciation to Governor Bryan for his confidence in nominating me for this important responsibility. I also thank the many colleagues and friends who have supported me throughout this process. My connection to the Virgin Islands is deeply personal. My dad first moved to St. Croix in the 1960s, and my mom, siblings, and I joined him when I was a teenager. I attended St. Croix Central High School and I am a proud graduate of the class of 1979. It is because of those roots that this nomination means more to me than a professional appointment — it is an opportunity to give back to the community that helped shape who I am. The values of hard work, and service that I learned from my parents (Charmain and Crecy Scotland, now deceased), my teachers, and the community, have remained with me throughout my career. I began my career as a chemical engineer with Martin Marietta Alumina right here in St. Croix, and had the privilege of working under the mentorship of Warren Pederson. This early experience provided a strong technical foundation and taught me the importance of operational discipline and delivering results. Over the course of my career, I have held senior leadership positions spanning engineering, sales and marketing, procurement, supply chain management with Fortune 500 companies. Most recently I served as Chief Supply Chain and Procurement Officer at Con Edison in New York – one of the nation’s most reliable utility companies. In that role, my group was responsible for procuring over $3.5 billion and managing critical materials and equipment like transformers, underground and overhead cables, switchgear and substation equipment, essential to maintaining and modernizing utility electric systems My earlier experience at NRG Energy – one of the largest independent power producers and a Fortune 150 company, added the generation perspective – the other half of the reliability equation. These experiences also reinforced the importance of financial discipline and responsible stewardship of resources—particularly in organizations that provide essential public services and must balance reliability, affordability, and long-term investment needs. I do not come to this role with any illusions about the challenges ahead. Residents and businesses across the territory have expressed real and understandable concerns about reliability, affordability and customer service. I also recognize that WAPA operates within a complex environment — one that involves significant capital investment, rate structure considerations, and important relationships with oversight bodies. At the same time, WAPA has a critical mission and an equally important opportunity. Reliable electricity and dependable water distribution are fundamental to public health, public safety, economic development, tourism, healthcare, education, and the overall quality of life in the territory. That mission is too important to the future of the Virgin Islands not to get right. I understand that the role of a board member is not to manage the day-to-day operations of the Authority. Rather, it is to provide strategic oversight, promote accountability, ensure sound governance, and support management in achieving measurable results. While I bring decades of business and leadership experience, I also recognize that effective oversight begins with listening and learning. I look forward to engaging with WAPA's employees, customers, regulators, community leaders, and my fellow board members to better understand their perspectives and the challenges facing the Authority. I believe my background in engineering, procurement, supply chain management, and organizational leadership can provide a valuable perspective as WAPA continues its efforts to strengthen reliability, improve operational performance, enhance financial sustainability, and restore customer confidence. My commitment is straightforward: to serve with integrity, exercise independent judgment, ask thoughtful and sometimes difficult questions, support transparency and accountability, and always act in the best interests of the people of the Virgin Islands. Throughout my career, I have learned that trust is earned through performance. Utilities earn public trust when service is reliable, rates are affordable, and customers are treated with respect. Reliability, affordability, and customer confidence are not achieved through good intentions alone. They are the result of disciplined planning, sound governance, operational excellence, and accountability. Those are the principles I will bring to this role if confirmed. Chairwoman and members of the Committee, thank you again for the opportunity to appear before you today. I appreciate your consideration of my nomination and I look forward to answering your questions.