Gumbs says Road Fund legal work is aimed for completion in 2028

At a Council of Ministers press briefing on Wednesday 21 October, VROMI Minister Patrice Gumbs said further legal work was needed on the Road Fund and that full implementation was aimed for 2028. Government of Sint Maarten said VROMI will receive Cg 5 million in the 2027 budget if Parliament passes it without revising that line item.

According to the government statement, the Council of Ministers decided to allocate road-tax revenue to roads. It said the Ministry of Finance later communicated that the decision had not been included, that changes would delay the 2027 budget and that remaining road-tax funds had been allocated elsewhere in the budget.

Gumbs said a compromise increased the amount for roads in 2027 without other ministries cutting their budgets. He said the arrangement included an assurance that the entirety of road-tax revenue would go to roads from 2028.

The government said the Council of Advice responded in August 2026 to a proposed implementation plan submitted by VROMI earlier this year. Gumbs said road-tax allocations had decreased since 2010, and that the Audit Chamber found the lack of direct allocation conflicted with existing law. Parliament is scheduled to debate the 2027 budget in the first week of November, according to the government.