Puerto Rico's territorial status
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1margd
Puerto Ricans voted to become a state, but decision is up to Congress. Meanwhile...
Puerto Rico’s dual crises show its territorial status is the worst of both worlds
Dan Beeton | October 20, 2017 2:03 PM
...(if) an independent country, (Puerto Rico) would be free to receive (hurricane) aid unhampered by U.S. restrictions.
...Puerto Rico’s debt woes — its other crisis (in addition to hurricanes) — are not “largely of their own making,” as Trump tweeted. Rather, it was the U.S. Congress that passed the Jones Act (increases costs), as well as NAFTA, WTO and other trade legislation that hampered the Puerto Rican manufacturing sector.
Congress repealed Section 936 of the U.S. tax code that had provided tax breaks to U.S. companies producing goods in Puerto Rico, and more recently imposed the unelected Financial Oversight and Management Board on Puerto Rico, which now makes the most important economic policy decisions for the island. The board has pushed an economic austerity plan that has hampered recovery; after a lost decade of no economic growth, Puerto Rico was set to experience another before the hurricanes.
Since it is not an independent country, Puerto Rico is unable to consider monetary and fiscal policy options that might allow economic recovery. These might include driving a hard bargain with its creditors, who have barely paused in demanding full repayment of the debt, even though it is clear that Puerto Rico will not be able to repay it.
Republicans are heaping on more debt with financial aid in the form of loans, over the objections of the Congressional Progressive Caucus and others.
One reason Puerto Rico racked up substantial debt was because it had to borrow to fund its Medicaid program, and here again we see how Puerto Rico is punished by its territorial status. Rather than reimburse the island’s Medicaid program at the 55 percent rate as it does for other territories, or the 83 percent rate that Puerto Rico would receive were it a state, the U.S. government capped reimbursement at $300 million per year — less than a 15 percent rate. The Affordable Care Act offered a one-time grant of $6.4 billion to Puerto Rico in 2013, but the money is now running out, and there is currently no funding for next year.
Even worse, Puerto Rico’s Medicaid needs are greater because its poverty rate is 46 percent, compared to 15 percent for the United States. Yet it will cost the U.S. government more to not fund Puerto Rico’s Medicaid shortfall than if it does fund it. Why? Health care costs in Puerto Ricoare less expensive than on the U.S. mainland.
If Congress approves Medicaid funding for Puerto Rico, it will be far less costly than were those same Medicaid patients to move to the mainland and get treated here. Yet more Puerto Ricans will keep out-migrating as the island continues to suffer neglect and its economy continues to limp along. A Medicaid crisis would be another factor pushing people to leave for States...
https://www.newsday.com/opinion/commentary/puerto-rico-s-dual-crises-show-its-te...
Puerto Rico’s dual crises show its territorial status is the worst of both worlds
Dan Beeton | October 20, 2017 2:03 PM
...(if) an independent country, (Puerto Rico) would be free to receive (hurricane) aid unhampered by U.S. restrictions.
...Puerto Rico’s debt woes — its other crisis (in addition to hurricanes) — are not “largely of their own making,” as Trump tweeted. Rather, it was the U.S. Congress that passed the Jones Act (increases costs), as well as NAFTA, WTO and other trade legislation that hampered the Puerto Rican manufacturing sector.
Congress repealed Section 936 of the U.S. tax code that had provided tax breaks to U.S. companies producing goods in Puerto Rico, and more recently imposed the unelected Financial Oversight and Management Board on Puerto Rico, which now makes the most important economic policy decisions for the island. The board has pushed an economic austerity plan that has hampered recovery; after a lost decade of no economic growth, Puerto Rico was set to experience another before the hurricanes.
Since it is not an independent country, Puerto Rico is unable to consider monetary and fiscal policy options that might allow economic recovery. These might include driving a hard bargain with its creditors, who have barely paused in demanding full repayment of the debt, even though it is clear that Puerto Rico will not be able to repay it.
Republicans are heaping on more debt with financial aid in the form of loans, over the objections of the Congressional Progressive Caucus and others.
One reason Puerto Rico racked up substantial debt was because it had to borrow to fund its Medicaid program, and here again we see how Puerto Rico is punished by its territorial status. Rather than reimburse the island’s Medicaid program at the 55 percent rate as it does for other territories, or the 83 percent rate that Puerto Rico would receive were it a state, the U.S. government capped reimbursement at $300 million per year — less than a 15 percent rate. The Affordable Care Act offered a one-time grant of $6.4 billion to Puerto Rico in 2013, but the money is now running out, and there is currently no funding for next year.
Even worse, Puerto Rico’s Medicaid needs are greater because its poverty rate is 46 percent, compared to 15 percent for the United States. Yet it will cost the U.S. government more to not fund Puerto Rico’s Medicaid shortfall than if it does fund it. Why? Health care costs in Puerto Ricoare less expensive than on the U.S. mainland.
If Congress approves Medicaid funding for Puerto Rico, it will be far less costly than were those same Medicaid patients to move to the mainland and get treated here. Yet more Puerto Ricans will keep out-migrating as the island continues to suffer neglect and its economy continues to limp along. A Medicaid crisis would be another factor pushing people to leave for States...
https://www.newsday.com/opinion/commentary/puerto-rico-s-dual-crises-show-its-te...
2lriley
I think it would be best if Puerto Rico were a state. The way things are now they've kind of become second class citizens.
The residents of Washington DC are another group that gets treated like crap. They should at the least have a voting congressperson.
The residents of Washington DC are another group that gets treated like crap. They should at the least have a voting congressperson.
3margd
PR Power issues huge contract with teeny, new co. from Interior Secretary Zinke's home town. Money to come from feds? OMB investigates. Think I'll cross-post this at Scandal Watch...
Small Montana firm lands Puerto Rico’s biggest contract to get the power back on
Steven Mufson, Jack Gillum, Aaron C. Davis and Arelis R. Hernández | October 23, 2017
For the sprawling effort to restore Puerto Rico’s crippled electrical grid, the territory’s state-owned utility has turned to a two-year-old company from Montana that had just two full-time employees on the day Hurricane Maria made landfall.
...Whitefish Energy...signed a $300 million contract with the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority (PREPA) to repair and reconstruct large portions of the island’s electrical infrastructure.
...PREPA, opted to hire Whitefish rather than activate the “mutual aid” arrangements it has with other utilities. For many years, such agreements have helped U.S. utilities — including those in Florida and Texas recently — to recover quickly after natural disasters.
The unusual decision to instead hire a tiny for-profit company is drawing scrutiny from Congress and comes amid concerns about bankrupt Puerto Rico’s spending as it seeks to provide relief to its 3.4 million residents, the great majority of whom remain without power a month after the storm.
...Whitefish Energy is based in Whitefish, Mont., the home town of Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke.
...With the entire Puerto Rican commonwealth in bankruptcy, and the utility itself in default on $9 billion in debt, spending for the recovery is drawing scrutiny from the Trump administration and Congress. Gov. Ricardo Rosselló and José Carrión, chairman of the federal oversight board created to resolve the island’s long-running financial crisis, were summoned to Washington last week for a meeting with the Office of Management and Budget...
... (PR Gov) Rosselló said Wednesday that the island would spend $490 million on the initial phase of repairing the commonwealth’s grid, adding that “a large portion of that would probably go to Whitefish” and another contractor. The utility gave Whitefish a $3.7 million initial payment for “mobilization of personnel and equipment,” the contract says. Whitefish could be paid as much as $300 million for up to two years of work.
Under the contract, the hourly rate was set at $330 for a site supervisor, and at $227.88 for a “journeyman lineman.” The cost for subcontractors, which make up the bulk of Whitefish’s workforce, is $462 per hour for a supervisor and $319.04 for a lineman. Whitefish also charges nightly accommodation fees of $332 per worker and almost $80 per day for food.
...Whitefish’s contract surpasses the $240 million contract the Army Corps awarded to engineering giant Fluor to “augment ongoing efforts” to repair the power grid.
...The Puerto Rican utility has not replied to offers of assistance from mutual-aid partners, according to the American Public Power Association, which coordinates such operations.
...(Chief executive, Andy) Techmanski...asked Zinke for help in getting personnel and equipment to the territory. Chiames, the Whitefish spokesman, confirmed that “Once the company got the go-ahead from PREPA on September 26 to begin work, company executives did reach out to contacts in case they could help expedite getting qualified linesmen to the island.”
..(PR Gov) Rosselló said recently that 95 percent of the power would be restored by Christmas.
Techmanski...“I don’t know where he got that and what information he was using,”
https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/small-montana-firm-lands-puerto-ricos-bi...
Small Montana firm lands Puerto Rico’s biggest contract to get the power back on
Steven Mufson, Jack Gillum, Aaron C. Davis and Arelis R. Hernández | October 23, 2017
For the sprawling effort to restore Puerto Rico’s crippled electrical grid, the territory’s state-owned utility has turned to a two-year-old company from Montana that had just two full-time employees on the day Hurricane Maria made landfall.
...Whitefish Energy...signed a $300 million contract with the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority (PREPA) to repair and reconstruct large portions of the island’s electrical infrastructure.
...PREPA, opted to hire Whitefish rather than activate the “mutual aid” arrangements it has with other utilities. For many years, such agreements have helped U.S. utilities — including those in Florida and Texas recently — to recover quickly after natural disasters.
The unusual decision to instead hire a tiny for-profit company is drawing scrutiny from Congress and comes amid concerns about bankrupt Puerto Rico’s spending as it seeks to provide relief to its 3.4 million residents, the great majority of whom remain without power a month after the storm.
...Whitefish Energy is based in Whitefish, Mont., the home town of Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke.
...With the entire Puerto Rican commonwealth in bankruptcy, and the utility itself in default on $9 billion in debt, spending for the recovery is drawing scrutiny from the Trump administration and Congress. Gov. Ricardo Rosselló and José Carrión, chairman of the federal oversight board created to resolve the island’s long-running financial crisis, were summoned to Washington last week for a meeting with the Office of Management and Budget...
... (PR Gov) Rosselló said Wednesday that the island would spend $490 million on the initial phase of repairing the commonwealth’s grid, adding that “a large portion of that would probably go to Whitefish” and another contractor. The utility gave Whitefish a $3.7 million initial payment for “mobilization of personnel and equipment,” the contract says. Whitefish could be paid as much as $300 million for up to two years of work.
Under the contract, the hourly rate was set at $330 for a site supervisor, and at $227.88 for a “journeyman lineman.” The cost for subcontractors, which make up the bulk of Whitefish’s workforce, is $462 per hour for a supervisor and $319.04 for a lineman. Whitefish also charges nightly accommodation fees of $332 per worker and almost $80 per day for food.
...Whitefish’s contract surpasses the $240 million contract the Army Corps awarded to engineering giant Fluor to “augment ongoing efforts” to repair the power grid.
...The Puerto Rican utility has not replied to offers of assistance from mutual-aid partners, according to the American Public Power Association, which coordinates such operations.
...(Chief executive, Andy) Techmanski...asked Zinke for help in getting personnel and equipment to the territory. Chiames, the Whitefish spokesman, confirmed that “Once the company got the go-ahead from PREPA on September 26 to begin work, company executives did reach out to contacts in case they could help expedite getting qualified linesmen to the island.”
..(PR Gov) Rosselló said recently that 95 percent of the power would be restored by Christmas.
Techmanski...“I don’t know where he got that and what information he was using,”
https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/small-montana-firm-lands-puerto-ricos-bi...
4margd
Would Repealing the Jones Act Help Puerto Rico? Maybe?
Would Repealing the Jones Act Help Puerto Rico?
NIRAJ CHOKSHI | OCT. 24, 2017
...the effect of repeal may be complicated for Puerto Rico. While it may have increased costs for some goods there, it also created a “discrete” and predictable market between the mainland United States and the island, according to a 2013 report by the nonpartisan Government Accountability Office.
Under the Jones Act, a handful of American shippers provide regular service to Puerto Rico, bringing perishable goods like dairy, meat and agricultural products as well as other supplies, the report found. Foreign carriers typically operate on longer, global routes, with less-reliable service.
Repealing the law would probably lead to the outsourcing of shipbuilding and associated jobs, the report said. Loosening its requirements would make it easier for foreign carriers to compete, most likely pushing down shipping costs, according to the report.
...In a 2012 report on the economic challenges facing Puerto Rico, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York acknowledged the complications associated with repeal, but suggested that a temporary reprieve from the Jones Act — for, say, five years — could help clarify its effects...to determine if this exemption should be made permanent.”
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/24/us/jones-act-puerto-rico.html
Would Repealing the Jones Act Help Puerto Rico?
NIRAJ CHOKSHI | OCT. 24, 2017
...the effect of repeal may be complicated for Puerto Rico. While it may have increased costs for some goods there, it also created a “discrete” and predictable market between the mainland United States and the island, according to a 2013 report by the nonpartisan Government Accountability Office.
Under the Jones Act, a handful of American shippers provide regular service to Puerto Rico, bringing perishable goods like dairy, meat and agricultural products as well as other supplies, the report found. Foreign carriers typically operate on longer, global routes, with less-reliable service.
Repealing the law would probably lead to the outsourcing of shipbuilding and associated jobs, the report said. Loosening its requirements would make it easier for foreign carriers to compete, most likely pushing down shipping costs, according to the report.
...In a 2012 report on the economic challenges facing Puerto Rico, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York acknowledged the complications associated with repeal, but suggested that a temporary reprieve from the Jones Act — for, say, five years — could help clarify its effects...to determine if this exemption should be made permanent.”
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/24/us/jones-act-puerto-rico.html
5margd
Let them eat Skittles, choc pudding, Little Debbie, Vienna sausages, Cheez-Its?
Why FEMA sent ‘junk food’ to Puerto Rican hurricane survivors
Caitlin Dewey | October 24, 2017
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2017/10/24/why-fema-sent-junk-food-t...
Why FEMA sent ‘junk food’ to Puerto Rican hurricane survivors
Caitlin Dewey | October 24, 2017
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2017/10/24/why-fema-sent-junk-food-t...
6margd
Puerto Rico Lays Out Energy Future With Tesla, Privatization
Jonathan Levin | October 22, 2017
...the island is serious about transforming its energy infrastructure after it was leveled by Category 4 Hurricane Maria, despite questions about how such an overhaul would be funded.
Speaking in a telephone interview Sunday, Department of Economic Development and Commerce Secretary Manuel Laboy said Puerto Rico’s government understands its skeptics: The island’s finances are shot and its electricity system is in tatters. But he said the U.S. territory has a historic opportunity to use federal funds to modernize an aging and weak power grid.
At the core of the argument is the government’s belief that funding related to the Federal Emergency Management Agency, or FEMA, can be used to build a new system, not just repair the old one, so that it won’t be susceptible to collapse when the next storm hits. Laboy said Governor Ricardo Rossello’s government is prepared to make its case.
...Laboy said the government is considering a series of micro-grids and regional grids that use solar and battery technology, along with other renewable sources.
...In one scenario, a private company or companies could run power generation while the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority manages transmission, he said....
The island is also working with renewable-energy companies on near-term projects to ensure power to hospitals and schools, he said.
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-10-23/puerto-rico-lays-out-energy-f...
________________________________________________________________
Tesla Turns Power Back On At Children's Hospital In Puerto Rico
Bill Chappell | October 25, 2017
http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2017/10/25/560045944/tesla-turns-power-ba...
7margd
San Juan mayor calls for canceling 'alarming' contract for Puerto Rican power repairs
Hunter Walker | October 25, 2017
San Juan Mayor Carmen Yulin Cruz, who said the process of awarding the no-bid contract raised ethical and legal questions...described the contract as “alarming”...appears to be a lack of “due diligence” behind the contract...“The contract should be voided right away, and a proper process which is clear, transparent, legal, moral and ethical should take place”...“It seems like what the Puerto Rican people are going to be paying for, or the American people are going to be paying for, is an intermediary that doesn’t know what is at stake here and that really has to subcontract everything” ...“What we need is somebody that can get the job done and that has the expertise to get the job done.”...Puerto Ricans, who are U.S. citizens, are facing a “life-and-death situation” more than a month after the hurricane made landfall.
“Most of the people in Puerto Rico still don’t have any electricity or any energy. And we’re not talking about wanting energy to have air conditioners. We’re talking about having energy to use it as a motor for our economic development, to have appropriate surgical facilities, to be able to have our children go back to school,”
In addition to seeing Whitefish’s deal “voided,” Cruz said she wants to see a “bidding process” and greater transparency for other rebuilding contracts on the island.
“Every contract that comes out needs to be a public document. … This is one of the things that we are asking for, and the due diligence that goes towards that contract also needs to be public documents,” said Cruz. She added, “Not just for the Puerto Rican people to see. This is U.S. taxpayers’ money. I don’t care if the dollar comes from a Puerto Rican or from a Hawaiian. It’s a dollar.”
...more than 25 percent of Puerto Ricans do not have reliable access to drinking water.
“I’ve seen people drinking from creeks, mothers just holding their babies saying, ‘Please help me,’” Cruz said. “The federal response has been inadequate. Frankly, it’s an embarrassment.”
Puerto Rico was facing a fiscal crisis before the storm damage. Cruz said she wants to see the island’s cities, which had to cut their budgets, receive money from disaster-relief appropriations by Congress. Cruz is also seeking repeal of the Jones Act, which requires using American-owned and -operated vessels for goods shipped between U.S. ports. After criticism, the Trump administration granted Puerto Rico a 10-day waiver from the law. Critics have argued that the island should get a longer extension to expedite aid.
“Let’s get some of the bureaucracy out of the way,” said Cruz.
In the last week, Cruz said that the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s delivery of food and water was improving and that the Department of Homeland Security helped her navigate that process. But she said the federal response still has a long way to go to meet the needs of the Puerto Rican people.
“Is it where it’s supposed to be? No. If I hadn’t had the private donations and the NGOs’ donations, I couldn’t feed people,” she said.
Cruz said many Americans have come from the mainland to volunteer with the relief effort on Puerto Rico.
“I want to make sure that people understand that we know the difference between President Trump and the good-hearted people and the good-natured people of the United States. We know they’re not one and the same,” said Cruz.
...she believes the island’s residents are being treated differently from other U.S. citizens because they are predominantly Latino...
“It’s because we’re a colony of the United States to begin with. … And people have danced around that word and they don’t want to say it. … We are a colony of the United States,” Cruz said, adding, “Yes, there is racism. There is discrimination. Mr. Trump may have the most powerful job in the world, but that does not make him a respectful person.”
Cruz described the president as “the face of inefficiency, bureaucracy and ineffectiveness.”...
...Update (2:38 pm): Whitefish Energy responded to Yulin on Wednesday afternoon with a tweet calling her comments “disappointing.”
“We share the mayor’s frustration with the situation on Puerto Rico, but her comments are misplaced. Whifefish has more than 300 workers on the island and that number is growing daily. We are making progress and doing work when others are not even here,” the tweet said. “We find her comments to be very disappointing and demoralizing to the hundreds of people on our team that have left their homes and families and have come here to help the people of Puerto Rico.”
Yulin responded with a series of her own tweets where she highlighted the fact others, including members of Congress, have raised concerns about the company. She also pointed out that the Whitefish workers are paid and not volunteering their time.
“If @WhitefishEnergy feels that asking for transparency is ‘misplaced,’ what are they afraid we will find?” she wrote.
https://www.yahoo.com/news/san-juan-mayor-calls-cancelling-alarming-contract-pue...
Hunter Walker | October 25, 2017
San Juan Mayor Carmen Yulin Cruz, who said the process of awarding the no-bid contract raised ethical and legal questions...described the contract as “alarming”...appears to be a lack of “due diligence” behind the contract...“The contract should be voided right away, and a proper process which is clear, transparent, legal, moral and ethical should take place”...“It seems like what the Puerto Rican people are going to be paying for, or the American people are going to be paying for, is an intermediary that doesn’t know what is at stake here and that really has to subcontract everything” ...“What we need is somebody that can get the job done and that has the expertise to get the job done.”...Puerto Ricans, who are U.S. citizens, are facing a “life-and-death situation” more than a month after the hurricane made landfall.
“Most of the people in Puerto Rico still don’t have any electricity or any energy. And we’re not talking about wanting energy to have air conditioners. We’re talking about having energy to use it as a motor for our economic development, to have appropriate surgical facilities, to be able to have our children go back to school,”
In addition to seeing Whitefish’s deal “voided,” Cruz said she wants to see a “bidding process” and greater transparency for other rebuilding contracts on the island.
“Every contract that comes out needs to be a public document. … This is one of the things that we are asking for, and the due diligence that goes towards that contract also needs to be public documents,” said Cruz. She added, “Not just for the Puerto Rican people to see. This is U.S. taxpayers’ money. I don’t care if the dollar comes from a Puerto Rican or from a Hawaiian. It’s a dollar.”
...more than 25 percent of Puerto Ricans do not have reliable access to drinking water.
“I’ve seen people drinking from creeks, mothers just holding their babies saying, ‘Please help me,’” Cruz said. “The federal response has been inadequate. Frankly, it’s an embarrassment.”
Puerto Rico was facing a fiscal crisis before the storm damage. Cruz said she wants to see the island’s cities, which had to cut their budgets, receive money from disaster-relief appropriations by Congress. Cruz is also seeking repeal of the Jones Act, which requires using American-owned and -operated vessels for goods shipped between U.S. ports. After criticism, the Trump administration granted Puerto Rico a 10-day waiver from the law. Critics have argued that the island should get a longer extension to expedite aid.
“Let’s get some of the bureaucracy out of the way,” said Cruz.
In the last week, Cruz said that the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s delivery of food and water was improving and that the Department of Homeland Security helped her navigate that process. But she said the federal response still has a long way to go to meet the needs of the Puerto Rican people.
“Is it where it’s supposed to be? No. If I hadn’t had the private donations and the NGOs’ donations, I couldn’t feed people,” she said.
Cruz said many Americans have come from the mainland to volunteer with the relief effort on Puerto Rico.
“I want to make sure that people understand that we know the difference between President Trump and the good-hearted people and the good-natured people of the United States. We know they’re not one and the same,” said Cruz.
...she believes the island’s residents are being treated differently from other U.S. citizens because they are predominantly Latino...
“It’s because we’re a colony of the United States to begin with. … And people have danced around that word and they don’t want to say it. … We are a colony of the United States,” Cruz said, adding, “Yes, there is racism. There is discrimination. Mr. Trump may have the most powerful job in the world, but that does not make him a respectful person.”
Cruz described the president as “the face of inefficiency, bureaucracy and ineffectiveness.”...
...Update (2:38 pm): Whitefish Energy responded to Yulin on Wednesday afternoon with a tweet calling her comments “disappointing.”
“We share the mayor’s frustration with the situation on Puerto Rico, but her comments are misplaced. Whifefish has more than 300 workers on the island and that number is growing daily. We are making progress and doing work when others are not even here,” the tweet said. “We find her comments to be very disappointing and demoralizing to the hundreds of people on our team that have left their homes and families and have come here to help the people of Puerto Rico.”
Yulin responded with a series of her own tweets where she highlighted the fact others, including members of Congress, have raised concerns about the company. She also pointed out that the Whitefish workers are paid and not volunteering their time.
“If @WhitefishEnergy feels that asking for transparency is ‘misplaced,’ what are they afraid we will find?” she wrote.
https://www.yahoo.com/news/san-juan-mayor-calls-cancelling-alarming-contract-pue...
8margd
Why Washington should finally make Puerto Rico a state
As the hurricanes have made clear, all of America has a stake in the island's success.
CESAR CONDA and ALBERTO MARTINEZ | 10/18/2017
...second-class citizenship treatment and competitive disadvantages inherent in territorial status created hurdles for individuals and businesses alike not found in states.
For instance, Puerto Rico was given the unique ability to offer triple-tax exempt bonds, which weren’t subject to federal, state or municipal taxes, making the island an attractive spot for investment. But Congress phased out the law over 10 years, starting in 1996. Closing these tax loopholes, combined with the military base closures, precipitated Puerto Rico’s recent economic troubles. Without voting representation in Congress or electoral votes for the presidency, Puerto Rico had no voice in those changes.
Washington discriminates against the island in myriad other ways too. Working residents of Puerto Rico must have three or more children to qualify for the refundable portion of the Child Tax Credit, while workers on the mainland must only have one or two children. Incredibly, residents of Puerto Rico pay more than $3 billion in federal payroll taxes for Social Security and Medicare, as well as import-export and commodities taxes—but benefits under those and other federal programs are lower than in the states. Puerto Rico also does not have access to the same bankruptcy protections as states, an oversight that became a big problem as the island has struggled under its huge debt levels.
...the most recent territories to become states—Hawaii and Alaska—averaged double-digit economic growth for more than a decade after admission.
...Puerto Rico’s substandard energy, transportation, communications, healthcare and other basic infrastructure systems make state-like recovery we see in Texas and Florida (post-hurricanes) unattainable in the territory. In addition, the exodus of people from the island—900,000 people to the states over the last decade alone—could double, putting additional strain on the budgets and healthcare systems of Florida and other states.
...Hurricane Maria presents Congress with a duty to choose, as it has 32 times before, whether an undemocratic dependency populated by U.S. citizens or a state with common rights and responsibilities will better strengthen our nation in the 21st century. The choice is clear.
https://www.politico.com/agenda/story/2017/10/18/puerto-rico-hurricane-maria-sta...
As the hurricanes have made clear, all of America has a stake in the island's success.
CESAR CONDA and ALBERTO MARTINEZ | 10/18/2017
...second-class citizenship treatment and competitive disadvantages inherent in territorial status created hurdles for individuals and businesses alike not found in states.
For instance, Puerto Rico was given the unique ability to offer triple-tax exempt bonds, which weren’t subject to federal, state or municipal taxes, making the island an attractive spot for investment. But Congress phased out the law over 10 years, starting in 1996. Closing these tax loopholes, combined with the military base closures, precipitated Puerto Rico’s recent economic troubles. Without voting representation in Congress or electoral votes for the presidency, Puerto Rico had no voice in those changes.
Washington discriminates against the island in myriad other ways too. Working residents of Puerto Rico must have three or more children to qualify for the refundable portion of the Child Tax Credit, while workers on the mainland must only have one or two children. Incredibly, residents of Puerto Rico pay more than $3 billion in federal payroll taxes for Social Security and Medicare, as well as import-export and commodities taxes—but benefits under those and other federal programs are lower than in the states. Puerto Rico also does not have access to the same bankruptcy protections as states, an oversight that became a big problem as the island has struggled under its huge debt levels.
...the most recent territories to become states—Hawaii and Alaska—averaged double-digit economic growth for more than a decade after admission.
...Puerto Rico’s substandard energy, transportation, communications, healthcare and other basic infrastructure systems make state-like recovery we see in Texas and Florida (post-hurricanes) unattainable in the territory. In addition, the exodus of people from the island—900,000 people to the states over the last decade alone—could double, putting additional strain on the budgets and healthcare systems of Florida and other states.
...Hurricane Maria presents Congress with a duty to choose, as it has 32 times before, whether an undemocratic dependency populated by U.S. citizens or a state with common rights and responsibilities will better strengthen our nation in the 21st century. The choice is clear.
https://www.politico.com/agenda/story/2017/10/18/puerto-rico-hurricane-maria-sta...
9margd
Puerto Rico's Government Just Admitted 911 People Died After The Hurricane — Of "Natural Causes"
The 911 bodies were never physically examined by a medical examiner to determine if they should be included in the official death toll.
Nidhi Prakash | October 27, 2017
https://www.buzzfeed.com/nidhiprakash/puerto-rico-natural-causes?
The 911 bodies were never physically examined by a medical examiner to determine if they should be included in the official death toll.
Nidhi Prakash | October 27, 2017
https://www.buzzfeed.com/nidhiprakash/puerto-rico-natural-causes?
11margd
HUD Explores Temporarily Housing Puerto Ricans on U.S. Mainland
Joe Light | October 29, 2017
Agency has started developing medium-term plan for displaced
Five weeks after Maria, many communities without power, water
...After Hurricane Katrina leveled much of New Orleans and the U.S. Gulf Coast in 2005, more than 145,000 housing units -- trailers and mobile homes -- were provided to displaced residents. Planned as a temporary measure, the Katrina housing mission lasted almost seven years.
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-10-29/hud-explores-temporarily-hous...
Joe Light | October 29, 2017
Agency has started developing medium-term plan for displaced
Five weeks after Maria, many communities without power, water
...After Hurricane Katrina leveled much of New Orleans and the U.S. Gulf Coast in 2005, more than 145,000 housing units -- trailers and mobile homes -- were provided to displaced residents. Planned as a temporary measure, the Katrina housing mission lasted almost seven years.
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-10-29/hud-explores-temporarily-hous...
12margd
Puerto Rico Power Authority Moves to Cancel Whitefish Contract After Plea From Governor
Gabe Gutierrez and Daniella Silva | Oct 29, 2017
...The governor also called for the installation of a "special outside coordinator" in terms of contracts and purchases, "so that we can have more clarity in this process." ...
https://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/puerto-rico-crisis/puerto-rico-governor-calls-...
Gabe Gutierrez and Daniella Silva | Oct 29, 2017
...The governor also called for the installation of a "special outside coordinator" in terms of contracts and purchases, "so that we can have more clarity in this process." ...
https://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/puerto-rico-crisis/puerto-rico-governor-calls-...
13margd
By the numbers, Whitefish contract with PR power company:
The Lineman Got $63 an Hour. The Utility Was Billed $319 an Hour.
FRANCES ROBLES | NOV. 12, 2017
...the six electrical workers from Kissimmee are earning $42 an hour, plus overtime. The senior power linemen from Lakeland are earning $63 an hour working in Puerto Rico, the Florida utility said. Their 40 co-workers from Jacksonville, also linemen, are making up to $100 earning double time, public records show.
But the Montana company that hired the workers, Whitefish Energy Holdings, had a contract that allowed it to bill the Puerto Rican public power company, known as Prepa, $319 an hour for linemen, a rate that industry experts said was far above the norm even for emergency work — and almost 17 times the average salary of their counterparts in Puerto Rico.
...Questions are already being raised about a second contract that Prepa signed, this one with an Oklahoma company, Cobra, which was the highest bidder, required a $15 million down payment and — like the doomed Whitefish agreement — included a clause that said the deal could not be audited.
...After Hurricane Maria struck Puerto Rico on Sept. 20, power was knocked out at every home and business. On Sunday, 54 days later, the grid was working at 47.8 percent of capacity.
...The Army Corps of Engineers, which is overseeing power restoration in Puerto Rico, did not hire Whitefish because its prices were more than double what the agency considered reasonable, according to the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.
...Prepa agreed to pay Whitefish three times the going rate for aviation fuel, and about double what a helicopter specially equipped for transmission line construction should cost, according to industry insiders and people with knowledge of the Whitefish contract. The company is also billing about $4,000 an hour to rent a helicopter; companies that specialize in transmission line construction said that price is more than double what they charge.
...We know what we are invoicing is our straight costs,” said Chris M. Gent, vice president for communications at the Kissimmee Utility Authority.
Normally, when utilities help each other recover from disaster under mutual aid agreements, “nobody is marking anything up,” Mr. Gent said.
...Jacksonville Electric Authority said it had billed Whitefish for additional overhead to cover things like administrative costs and insurance, bringing the bill to about half what Whitefish was charging Prepa. A spokeswoman for Jacksonville Electric said she was not concerned about the markup because Whitefish was also handling food and lodging. (However, Whitefish is also charging Prepa another $412 a day per worker for food and lodging.)
Lakeland said it was charging Whitefish only for labor and was unaware of how much the Puerto Rican government was paying. Most of Whitefish’s subcontractors are from private companies, and officials with knowledge of the contract said that those workers were receiving more than the Florida linemen, but that there was still a significant gap between what the companies were billing Whitefish and what Whitefish was billing Prepa.
...Prepa is now entering into its own mutual aid agreements with New York and Florida utilities...
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/11/12/us/whitefish-energy-holdings-prepa-hurricane-...
The Lineman Got $63 an Hour. The Utility Was Billed $319 an Hour.
FRANCES ROBLES | NOV. 12, 2017
...the six electrical workers from Kissimmee are earning $42 an hour, plus overtime. The senior power linemen from Lakeland are earning $63 an hour working in Puerto Rico, the Florida utility said. Their 40 co-workers from Jacksonville, also linemen, are making up to $100 earning double time, public records show.
But the Montana company that hired the workers, Whitefish Energy Holdings, had a contract that allowed it to bill the Puerto Rican public power company, known as Prepa, $319 an hour for linemen, a rate that industry experts said was far above the norm even for emergency work — and almost 17 times the average salary of their counterparts in Puerto Rico.
...Questions are already being raised about a second contract that Prepa signed, this one with an Oklahoma company, Cobra, which was the highest bidder, required a $15 million down payment and — like the doomed Whitefish agreement — included a clause that said the deal could not be audited.
...After Hurricane Maria struck Puerto Rico on Sept. 20, power was knocked out at every home and business. On Sunday, 54 days later, the grid was working at 47.8 percent of capacity.
...The Army Corps of Engineers, which is overseeing power restoration in Puerto Rico, did not hire Whitefish because its prices were more than double what the agency considered reasonable, according to the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.
...Prepa agreed to pay Whitefish three times the going rate for aviation fuel, and about double what a helicopter specially equipped for transmission line construction should cost, according to industry insiders and people with knowledge of the Whitefish contract. The company is also billing about $4,000 an hour to rent a helicopter; companies that specialize in transmission line construction said that price is more than double what they charge.
...We know what we are invoicing is our straight costs,” said Chris M. Gent, vice president for communications at the Kissimmee Utility Authority.
Normally, when utilities help each other recover from disaster under mutual aid agreements, “nobody is marking anything up,” Mr. Gent said.
...Jacksonville Electric Authority said it had billed Whitefish for additional overhead to cover things like administrative costs and insurance, bringing the bill to about half what Whitefish was charging Prepa. A spokeswoman for Jacksonville Electric said she was not concerned about the markup because Whitefish was also handling food and lodging. (However, Whitefish is also charging Prepa another $412 a day per worker for food and lodging.)
Lakeland said it was charging Whitefish only for labor and was unaware of how much the Puerto Rican government was paying. Most of Whitefish’s subcontractors are from private companies, and officials with knowledge of the contract said that those workers were receiving more than the Florida linemen, but that there was still a significant gap between what the companies were billing Whitefish and what Whitefish was billing Prepa.
...Prepa is now entering into its own mutual aid agreements with New York and Florida utilities...
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/11/12/us/whitefish-energy-holdings-prepa-hurricane-...
14margd
A Great Migration From Puerto Rico Is Set to Transform Orlando
LIZETTE ALVAREZ | NOV. 17, 2017
...More than 168,000 people have flown or sailed out of Puerto Rico to Florida since the hurricane, landing at airports in Orlando, Miami and Tampa, and the port in Fort Lauderdale. Nearly half are arriving in Orlando, where they are tapping their networks of family and friends. An additional 100,000 are booked on flights to Orlando through Dec. 31, county officials said. Large numbers are also settling in the Tampa, Fort Lauderdale and West Palm Beach areas.
...The Puerto Rican population of Florida has exploded from 479,000 in 2000 to well over one million today, according to the Pew Research Center, with the better part settling in Orlando.
...The Federal Emergency Management Agency will not bring in mobile trailers, said Daniel Llargues, a spokesman, something it did on a small scale in Florida after Hurricane Irma. The agency also provides rental assistance. Beyond that, long-term housing is a local issue. The situation is so dire that at a recent round table there was talk of buying an abandoned motel to house people...
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/11/17/us/puerto-ricans-orlando.html
LIZETTE ALVAREZ | NOV. 17, 2017
...More than 168,000 people have flown or sailed out of Puerto Rico to Florida since the hurricane, landing at airports in Orlando, Miami and Tampa, and the port in Fort Lauderdale. Nearly half are arriving in Orlando, where they are tapping their networks of family and friends. An additional 100,000 are booked on flights to Orlando through Dec. 31, county officials said. Large numbers are also settling in the Tampa, Fort Lauderdale and West Palm Beach areas.
...The Puerto Rican population of Florida has exploded from 479,000 in 2000 to well over one million today, according to the Pew Research Center, with the better part settling in Orlando.
...The Federal Emergency Management Agency will not bring in mobile trailers, said Daniel Llargues, a spokesman, something it did on a small scale in Florida after Hurricane Irma. The agency also provides rental assistance. Beyond that, long-term housing is a local issue. The situation is so dire that at a recent round table there was talk of buying an abandoned motel to house people...
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/11/17/us/puerto-ricans-orlando.html
15margd
PR braces for economically harmful new tax in Republican bill
The Rachel Maddow Show | 11/28/17
Duration: 9:06
Mayor Carmen Yulin Cruz of San Juan, Puerto Rico, talks with Rachel Maddow about Puerto Ricans putting their lives back together despite the botched storm response, and the damage the new Republican tax will do to the Puerto Rican economy.
San Juan mayor on GOP tax bill: "This (tax bill includes a 20% excise tax on "exports" to mainland??) would be a much more devastating blow to our economy than Irma and Maria put together."
http://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow/watch/pr-braces-for-economically-harmful-new-...
__________________________________________
(I'll also post this one in USVI thread.)
Bernie Sanders Unveils Massive Puerto Rico Reconstruction Bill
The Vermont senator has been an outspoken critic of U.S. policies toward the island.
Daniel Marans and Alexander C. Kaufman | Nov 28, 2017
...The legislation nonetheless faces a bleak future in the Republican-controlled Congress.
...Sanders’ bill is an attempt to map out a progressive vision for developing the islands and relieving Puerto Rico, in particular, of a debt burden that has crippled its economy for years.
Among the changes the bill proposes are the elimination of the cap on federal Medicaid spending in Puerto Rico, which deprives the island of the funding it would otherwise merit based on its per capita income, and increases in Medicare reimbursement rates for medical providers on the island that would bring them closer to rates on the mainland.
Experts are especially impressed, though, with the legislation’s efforts to shore up the energy and power delivery systems in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. The bill allots $13 billion in additional Federal Emergency Management Agency funding for the rebuilding of the territories’ electric grids with “more modern, resilient technologies,” according to a summary of the bill provided by Sanders’ office.
The White House argues that the Stafford Act of 1988 allows the federal government to rebuild only what existed in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands before the hurricanes. That means exposed, fossil fuel-dependent grids that are vulnerable to the sea level rise and violent storms that are expected to become more common as climate change worsens will not change...
https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/bernie-sanders-puerto-rico-reconstruction-b...
The Rachel Maddow Show | 11/28/17
Duration: 9:06
Mayor Carmen Yulin Cruz of San Juan, Puerto Rico, talks with Rachel Maddow about Puerto Ricans putting their lives back together despite the botched storm response, and the damage the new Republican tax will do to the Puerto Rican economy.
San Juan mayor on GOP tax bill: "This (tax bill includes a 20% excise tax on "exports" to mainland??) would be a much more devastating blow to our economy than Irma and Maria put together."
http://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow/watch/pr-braces-for-economically-harmful-new-...
__________________________________________
(I'll also post this one in USVI thread.)
Bernie Sanders Unveils Massive Puerto Rico Reconstruction Bill
The Vermont senator has been an outspoken critic of U.S. policies toward the island.
Daniel Marans and Alexander C. Kaufman | Nov 28, 2017
...The legislation nonetheless faces a bleak future in the Republican-controlled Congress.
...Sanders’ bill is an attempt to map out a progressive vision for developing the islands and relieving Puerto Rico, in particular, of a debt burden that has crippled its economy for years.
Among the changes the bill proposes are the elimination of the cap on federal Medicaid spending in Puerto Rico, which deprives the island of the funding it would otherwise merit based on its per capita income, and increases in Medicare reimbursement rates for medical providers on the island that would bring them closer to rates on the mainland.
Experts are especially impressed, though, with the legislation’s efforts to shore up the energy and power delivery systems in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. The bill allots $13 billion in additional Federal Emergency Management Agency funding for the rebuilding of the territories’ electric grids with “more modern, resilient technologies,” according to a summary of the bill provided by Sanders’ office.
The White House argues that the Stafford Act of 1988 allows the federal government to rebuild only what existed in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands before the hurricanes. That means exposed, fossil fuel-dependent grids that are vulnerable to the sea level rise and violent storms that are expected to become more common as climate change worsens will not change...
https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/bernie-sanders-puerto-rico-reconstruction-b...
16lriley
#15--A much better idea than sinking more money into the military/industrial complex. We continue to fight a number of useless wars to no end instead. There is no end game to them.
Modernizing Puerto Rico OTOH would at least bring a benefit to people who very badly need it. Things such as these actually improve a society and like it or not they are part of our society. They should have statehood and full citizenship and voting rights--have their own elected congress people who can legislate and vote on bills.
Modernizing Puerto Rico OTOH would at least bring a benefit to people who very badly need it. Things such as these actually improve a society and like it or not they are part of our society. They should have statehood and full citizenship and voting rights--have their own elected congress people who can legislate and vote on bills.
17margd
With all the Puerto Ricans (= new voters) moving to FL, how could it be in interest of senators (esp. Rubio) to support a 20% excise tax in Puerto Rico?
ETA: in addition to FL, a number of states have >1 margd:% of population from Puerto Rico... https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Puerto_Ricans_in_the_United_States#Population_by_s...
How tax reform affects Puerto Rico, explained
Benjamin Bartu | Dec 13, 2017
...The great change that threatens to cause harm to Puerto Rico’s economy is Section 4403, which states that “under the provision, payments (other than interest) made by a US. corporation to a related foreign corporation that are deductible, includible in costs of goods sold, or includible in the basis of a depreciable or amortizable asset would be subject to a 20 percent excise tax, unless the related foreign corporation elected to treat the payments as income effectively connected with the conduct of a U.S. trade or business.” Puerto Rico, for all American taxation purposes, would be treated as a foreign country.
...One of the likely outcomes of Section 4303 having been passed within the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act is that companies will relocate their Puerto Rican branches to nearby, more financially viable locations. Those businesses which can either not afford to do this or are unwilling will be subject to increased taxations, making it more difficult for companies in Puerto Rico to exchange goods and services with those in the US. Though amendments are needed to the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act to mitigate these likely future damages, the prospect of changes being presented in the near future seems slim...
https://pasquines.us/2017/12/13/tax-reform-affects-puerto-rico-explained/
ETA: in addition to FL, a number of states have >1 margd:% of population from Puerto Rico... https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Puerto_Ricans_in_the_United_States#Population_by_s...
How tax reform affects Puerto Rico, explained
Benjamin Bartu | Dec 13, 2017
...The great change that threatens to cause harm to Puerto Rico’s economy is Section 4403, which states that “under the provision, payments (other than interest) made by a US. corporation to a related foreign corporation that are deductible, includible in costs of goods sold, or includible in the basis of a depreciable or amortizable asset would be subject to a 20 percent excise tax, unless the related foreign corporation elected to treat the payments as income effectively connected with the conduct of a U.S. trade or business.” Puerto Rico, for all American taxation purposes, would be treated as a foreign country.
...One of the likely outcomes of Section 4303 having been passed within the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act is that companies will relocate their Puerto Rican branches to nearby, more financially viable locations. Those businesses which can either not afford to do this or are unwilling will be subject to increased taxations, making it more difficult for companies in Puerto Rico to exchange goods and services with those in the US. Though amendments are needed to the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act to mitigate these likely future damages, the prospect of changes being presented in the near future seems slim...
https://pasquines.us/2017/12/13/tax-reform-affects-puerto-rico-explained/
18margd
Um, maybe we could have addressed infrastructure before throwing open the treasury to m/billionaires?
(Puerto Rico might be most needy at the moment, but unfortunately there are other leaky, aging, challenged systems...)
New Data: 2 Million Puerto Ricans Risk Water Contamination
Mekela Panditharatne | December 11, 2017
Over two-thirds of the population of Puerto Rico was at potential risk of exposure to bacterial contamination in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria, according to government test results obtained by NRDC. More than 2.3 million Puerto Rican residents were served by water systems which drew at least one sample testing positive for total coliforms or E. coli after Maria devastated the island in September.
...Even before Maria hit, Puerto Rico had the worst water in the nation, with 99.5 percent of Puerto Ricans—virtually the entire island—served by water systems in violation of the Safe Drinking Water Act.
...Puerto Rican residents are under a 'boil water advisory,' but many are struggling without power, or with frequent power loss.
...Whenever a water system loses pressure after an extreme weather event, like a hurricane, there’s an increased risk that bacterial contamination may be drawn into the distribution system. In leaky and aging water systems like Puerto Rico’s, that risk is exacerbated.
The latest testing data confirms the critical need for substantial investment in drinking water infrastructure in Puerto Rico, to fix the island’s broken water systems...
https://www.nrdc.org/experts/mekela-panditharatne/over-2-million-puerto-ricans-r...
(Puerto Rico might be most needy at the moment, but unfortunately there are other leaky, aging, challenged systems...)
New Data: 2 Million Puerto Ricans Risk Water Contamination
Mekela Panditharatne | December 11, 2017
Over two-thirds of the population of Puerto Rico was at potential risk of exposure to bacterial contamination in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria, according to government test results obtained by NRDC. More than 2.3 million Puerto Rican residents were served by water systems which drew at least one sample testing positive for total coliforms or E. coli after Maria devastated the island in September.
...Even before Maria hit, Puerto Rico had the worst water in the nation, with 99.5 percent of Puerto Ricans—virtually the entire island—served by water systems in violation of the Safe Drinking Water Act.
...Puerto Rican residents are under a 'boil water advisory,' but many are struggling without power, or with frequent power loss.
...Whenever a water system loses pressure after an extreme weather event, like a hurricane, there’s an increased risk that bacterial contamination may be drawn into the distribution system. In leaky and aging water systems like Puerto Rico’s, that risk is exacerbated.
The latest testing data confirms the critical need for substantial investment in drinking water infrastructure in Puerto Rico, to fix the island’s broken water systems...
https://www.nrdc.org/experts/mekela-panditharatne/over-2-million-puerto-ricans-r...
19margd
Armed Federal Agents Enter Warehouse in Puerto Rico to Seize Hoarded Electric Equipment
Kate Aronoff | January 10 2018
...USACE (US Army Corps of Engineers) spokesperson Luciano Vera said they were indeed accompanied by security detail and quickly began distributing the material after seizing it. Vera declined to say whether there was a confrontation at the entrance, saying only that PREPA officials ultimately toured the warehouse along with the feds:
Leadership responsible for restoring the Puerto Rico power grid and their security detail toured the warehouse in cooperation with PREPA. USACE conducted a full inventory and immediately sent out critical materials to contractors at work sites. USACE will continue to distribute critical materials from the site to contractors. The hope is to strengthen the partnership between PREPA and its restoration partners, while increasing visibility of the inventory of all materials on the island. PREPA has invited FEMA and the Corps to visit its warehouses anytime and to distribute material as needed.
The federal government “began distributing supplies to contractors,” Vera said, including hard-to-find full-tension steel sleeves, critical to rebuilding. “We obtained several hundred of these sleeves on Saturday,” Vera added.
...PREPA is finally pursuing mutual aid agreements with mainland power companies, (but) supply problems — the kind the unified command’s warehouse raid might help alleviate — have kept linemen on the island from being able to do their jobs.
...Mismanagement is not a new phenomenon for PREPA, which for decades has been Puerto Rico’s sole power provider. For most of that time, it had been self-regulated, with a board comprised largely of political appointees with little to no background in the electricity sector. The lack of oversight created conditions for corruption and disinvestment, with its generation and transmission capacity falling into severe disrepair over many years.
...In 2014, Puerto Rico’s legislature undertook a reform effort.
When Rosselló moved into the governor’s mansion early last year, his administration quickly reverted back to the previous board selection process and replaced much of the utility’s leadership...
...Sen. Eduardo Bhatia, minority leader of the Senate of Puerto Rico...The news that has come out today about the discovery made by armed federal agents of thousands of electrical spare parts hidden in an PREPA warehouse borders on a criminal act by its managers. t is time for people to stand up and demand answers. Hundreds of thousands of families have been in the dark for more than 125 days, people keep dying, and businesses continue to close due to the lack of energy while the necessary spare parts were in the possession of PREPA. Lying about not having the parts to cover the inefficiency of PREPA is outrageous and those responsible must be taken before state and federal authorities to be criminally processed immediately.
https://theintercept.com/2018/01/10/puerto-rico-electricity-prepa-hurricane-mari...
Kate Aronoff | January 10 2018
...USACE (US Army Corps of Engineers) spokesperson Luciano Vera said they were indeed accompanied by security detail and quickly began distributing the material after seizing it. Vera declined to say whether there was a confrontation at the entrance, saying only that PREPA officials ultimately toured the warehouse along with the feds:
Leadership responsible for restoring the Puerto Rico power grid and their security detail toured the warehouse in cooperation with PREPA. USACE conducted a full inventory and immediately sent out critical materials to contractors at work sites. USACE will continue to distribute critical materials from the site to contractors. The hope is to strengthen the partnership between PREPA and its restoration partners, while increasing visibility of the inventory of all materials on the island. PREPA has invited FEMA and the Corps to visit its warehouses anytime and to distribute material as needed.
The federal government “began distributing supplies to contractors,” Vera said, including hard-to-find full-tension steel sleeves, critical to rebuilding. “We obtained several hundred of these sleeves on Saturday,” Vera added.
...PREPA is finally pursuing mutual aid agreements with mainland power companies, (but) supply problems — the kind the unified command’s warehouse raid might help alleviate — have kept linemen on the island from being able to do their jobs.
...Mismanagement is not a new phenomenon for PREPA, which for decades has been Puerto Rico’s sole power provider. For most of that time, it had been self-regulated, with a board comprised largely of political appointees with little to no background in the electricity sector. The lack of oversight created conditions for corruption and disinvestment, with its generation and transmission capacity falling into severe disrepair over many years.
...In 2014, Puerto Rico’s legislature undertook a reform effort.
When Rosselló moved into the governor’s mansion early last year, his administration quickly reverted back to the previous board selection process and replaced much of the utility’s leadership...
...Sen. Eduardo Bhatia, minority leader of the Senate of Puerto Rico...The news that has come out today about the discovery made by armed federal agents of thousands of electrical spare parts hidden in an PREPA warehouse borders on a criminal act by its managers. t is time for people to stand up and demand answers. Hundreds of thousands of families have been in the dark for more than 125 days, people keep dying, and businesses continue to close due to the lack of energy while the necessary spare parts were in the possession of PREPA. Lying about not having the parts to cover the inefficiency of PREPA is outrageous and those responsible must be taken before state and federal authorities to be criminally processed immediately.
https://theintercept.com/2018/01/10/puerto-rico-electricity-prepa-hurricane-mari...
20margd
FEMA to ‘officially shut off’ food and water aid to Puerto Rico
John Bowden | 01/30/18
...Statistics from Puerto Rico's government claim that power has been restored to about 80 percent of the island, while fresh water has been restored to 96 percent of the territory's residents.
...In a statement to The Hill, FEMA's public affairs director William Booher clarified that the agency would continue to assist volunteer agencies and nonprofits with relief efforts in rural areas of Puerto Rico, as well as the territory's government.
"FEMA will continue to support any documented needs and will provide supplies to volunteer agencies and other private nonprofit organizations who are working with households in rural, outlying areas to address ongoing disaster-related needs as power and water is gradually restored," Booher said.
"The commercial supply chain for food and water is re-established and private suppliers are sufficiently available that FEMA provided commodities are no longer needed for emergency operations."
http://thehill.com/homenews/administration/371347-fema-to-officially-shut-off-fo...
John Bowden | 01/30/18
...Statistics from Puerto Rico's government claim that power has been restored to about 80 percent of the island, while fresh water has been restored to 96 percent of the territory's residents.
...In a statement to The Hill, FEMA's public affairs director William Booher clarified that the agency would continue to assist volunteer agencies and nonprofits with relief efforts in rural areas of Puerto Rico, as well as the territory's government.
"FEMA will continue to support any documented needs and will provide supplies to volunteer agencies and other private nonprofit organizations who are working with households in rural, outlying areas to address ongoing disaster-related needs as power and water is gradually restored," Booher said.
"The commercial supply chain for food and water is re-established and private suppliers are sufficiently available that FEMA provided commodities are no longer needed for emergency operations."
http://thehill.com/homenews/administration/371347-fema-to-officially-shut-off-fo...
21margd
'Tiny' firm won $156 million FEMA contract for sending 30 million meals to Puerto Rico — but delivered only 50,000
Tribute Contracting of Atlanta won a $156 million contract to provide 30 million meals to Puerto Rico hurricane victims but delivered just 50,000.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency canceled the contract just 20 days after firm owner Tiffany Brown won it with a low bid.
The firm ended up being paid $255,000 for 50,000 meals, according to information FEMA provided to CNBC.
Dan Mangan | Feb 6, 2018
A "tiny," one-woman firm "inexplicably" won a $156 million federal contract to deliver 30 million meals to Puerto Rico hurricane victims — but managed to deliver just 50,0000 meals before the contract was terminated for cause three weeks later, outraged lawmakers said Tuesday.
Atlanta-based Tribute Contracting had "a history of struggling with much smaller contracts" before winning the Federal Emergency Management Agency contract, noted Reps. Elijah Cummings, D-Md., and Stacey Plaskett, D-Virgin Islands.
"It is difficult to fathom how FEMA could have believed that this tiny company had the capacity to perform this $156 million contract," Cummings and Plaskett wrote in a letter to House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Chairman Rep. Trey Gowdy, R-S.C....
https://www.cnbc.com/2018/02/06/democrats-demands-fema-answers-on-puerto-rico-co...
Tribute Contracting of Atlanta won a $156 million contract to provide 30 million meals to Puerto Rico hurricane victims but delivered just 50,000.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency canceled the contract just 20 days after firm owner Tiffany Brown won it with a low bid.
The firm ended up being paid $255,000 for 50,000 meals, according to information FEMA provided to CNBC.
Dan Mangan | Feb 6, 2018
A "tiny," one-woman firm "inexplicably" won a $156 million federal contract to deliver 30 million meals to Puerto Rico hurricane victims — but managed to deliver just 50,0000 meals before the contract was terminated for cause three weeks later, outraged lawmakers said Tuesday.
Atlanta-based Tribute Contracting had "a history of struggling with much smaller contracts" before winning the Federal Emergency Management Agency contract, noted Reps. Elijah Cummings, D-Md., and Stacey Plaskett, D-Virgin Islands.
"It is difficult to fathom how FEMA could have believed that this tiny company had the capacity to perform this $156 million contract," Cummings and Plaskett wrote in a letter to House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Chairman Rep. Trey Gowdy, R-S.C....
https://www.cnbc.com/2018/02/06/democrats-demands-fema-answers-on-puerto-rico-co...
22margd
Puerto Rico, Day 178:
—More than 250,000 people still w/o power (8% of the island)
—Tens of thousands of people still w/o clean water
—For these people, Hurricane Maria is still a humanitarian emergency
Eric Holthaus @EricHolthaus
6:27 AM - 17 Mar 2018
—More than 250,000 people still w/o power (8% of the island)
—Tens of thousands of people still w/o clean water
—For these people, Hurricane Maria is still a humanitarian emergency
Eric Holthaus @EricHolthaus
6:27 AM - 17 Mar 2018
23madpoet
Aren't Americans embarrassed to still have a colony of over 3 million people in the 21st Century? Because that's what Puerto Rico is, currently. Surely it's time for Puerto Rico to decide between statehood and independence. The status quo is a relic of the age of imperialism.
I doubt Puerto Ricans will choose independence though. How can they, when more than half their population lives on the U.S. mainland? (5 million, compared to 3.3 million on P.R. itself) It's the same reason Scots rejected independence from the U.K.-- too many Scots live and work in London.
I doubt Puerto Ricans will choose independence though. How can they, when more than half their population lives on the U.S. mainland? (5 million, compared to 3.3 million on P.R. itself) It's the same reason Scots rejected independence from the U.K.-- too many Scots live and work in London.
24pmackey
The status quo isn't working, so I think independence or statehood. If statehood, I expect China to invest in the country heavily to extend their influence.
25margd
6 months after Hurricane Maria, Puerto Rico has a suicide crisis and a housing shortage
Alexia Fernández Campbell | Mar 20, 2018
...Puerto Rico is dealing with a serious mental health emergency.
The number of people on the island who have reportedly tried to kill themselves since Hurricane Maria hit the island has more than tripled. From November 2017 through January 2018, a crisis hotline run by Puerto Rico’s Department of Health received 3,050 calls from people who said they had attempted suicide. That’s an astounding 246 percent increase compared to the same time last year.
This data was released in a report in January by the health department’s Commission for Suicide Prevention, with additional reporting from El Nuevo Día, Puerto Rico’s largest newspaper.
Even more people called the hotline to report suicidal thoughts (as opposed to those who attempted suicide). About 9,645 people who called the hotline in the past three months said they’d thought about killing themselves — an 83 percent jump from the same time last year.
These numbers offer a snapshot of the mental health crisis unfolding in Puerto Rico.
The rate of Puerto Ricans who chose to end their lives is also on the rise. The suicide rate in 2017 was the highest it has been since 2013, and men and older Puerto Ricans were much more likely to kill themselves.
It’s hard to tell how much of the spike is directly related to the aftermath of Hurricane Maria. But the likely connection is difficult to ignore.
Julio Santana Mariño, a psychology professor at Universidad Carlos Albizu in Puerto Rico, said that Hurricane Maria made a lot of problems in Puerto Rico far, far worse, particularly high unemployment and homelessness. These are common risks factors for suicides, he told El Nuevo Día.
The devastation from the hurricane likely pushed many people over the edge, he added. “It’s normal for there to be family conflicts, but when you add the stress of more than five months without power, without food, living patterns change ... it makes it harder for people to manage daily life,” Santana Mariño told the newspaper...
https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2018/3/20/17138990/puerto-rico-hurricane...
Alexia Fernández Campbell | Mar 20, 2018
...Puerto Rico is dealing with a serious mental health emergency.
The number of people on the island who have reportedly tried to kill themselves since Hurricane Maria hit the island has more than tripled. From November 2017 through January 2018, a crisis hotline run by Puerto Rico’s Department of Health received 3,050 calls from people who said they had attempted suicide. That’s an astounding 246 percent increase compared to the same time last year.
This data was released in a report in January by the health department’s Commission for Suicide Prevention, with additional reporting from El Nuevo Día, Puerto Rico’s largest newspaper.
Even more people called the hotline to report suicidal thoughts (as opposed to those who attempted suicide). About 9,645 people who called the hotline in the past three months said they’d thought about killing themselves — an 83 percent jump from the same time last year.
These numbers offer a snapshot of the mental health crisis unfolding in Puerto Rico.
The rate of Puerto Ricans who chose to end their lives is also on the rise. The suicide rate in 2017 was the highest it has been since 2013, and men and older Puerto Ricans were much more likely to kill themselves.
It’s hard to tell how much of the spike is directly related to the aftermath of Hurricane Maria. But the likely connection is difficult to ignore.
Julio Santana Mariño, a psychology professor at Universidad Carlos Albizu in Puerto Rico, said that Hurricane Maria made a lot of problems in Puerto Rico far, far worse, particularly high unemployment and homelessness. These are common risks factors for suicides, he told El Nuevo Día.
The devastation from the hurricane likely pushed many people over the edge, he added. “It’s normal for there to be family conflicts, but when you add the stress of more than five months without power, without food, living patterns change ... it makes it harder for people to manage daily life,” Santana Mariño told the newspaper...
https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2018/3/20/17138990/puerto-rico-hurricane...
26margd
Paul Krugman: "Utterly shameful."
How Trump favored Texas over Puerto Rico
DANNY VINIK | 03/27/2018
A POLITICO investigation shows a persistent double standard in the president’s handling of relief efforts for Hurricane Harvey and Hurricane Maria.
...Today, disaster recovery experts still express shock that FEMA kept (Director Mike) Byrne in an already-stabilizing Texas and didn’t send him to Puerto Rico for three more weeks. But now, the decision strikes many as emblematic of a double standard within the Trump administration. A POLITICO review of public documents, newly obtained FEMA records and interviews with more than 50 people involved with disaster response indicates that the Trump administration — and the president himself — responded far more aggressively to Texas than to Puerto Rico...
https://www.politico.com/story/2018/03/27/donald-trump-fema-hurricane-maria-resp...
How Trump favored Texas over Puerto Rico
DANNY VINIK | 03/27/2018
A POLITICO investigation shows a persistent double standard in the president’s handling of relief efforts for Hurricane Harvey and Hurricane Maria.
...Today, disaster recovery experts still express shock that FEMA kept (Director Mike) Byrne in an already-stabilizing Texas and didn’t send him to Puerto Rico for three more weeks. But now, the decision strikes many as emblematic of a double standard within the Trump administration. A POLITICO review of public documents, newly obtained FEMA records and interviews with more than 50 people involved with disaster response indicates that the Trump administration — and the president himself — responded far more aggressively to Texas than to Puerto Rico...
https://www.politico.com/story/2018/03/27/donald-trump-fema-hurricane-maria-resp...
27margd
Time's Running Out For Many Frail, Older People In Puerto Rico (3:29)
Sarah Varney | March 30, 20184:59 AM ET
...Six months after Hurricane Maria devastated Puerto Rico and its economy, the daily indignities are piling up, especially for people who are frail or elderly. Many are finding their current economic straits nearly as threatening as the storm.
The emergency government support that helped pay for some health care and medically related transportation needs of Puerto Ricans after Hurricane Maria is running out. Private donations of water and food have slowed. And it's not clear who, if anyone will carry on with that work.
...Ideally, insulin should be kept cool, but broken refrigerators and a lack of power in many homes in Puerto Rico pose grim hazards for the island's expanding population of people with diabetes.
...the free medical transportation service that the government made available to large numbers of people after the storm is expiring soon
...visiting nurse program...operated by VarMed, a healthcare management company whose services had been paid for by the government, is shutting down too...as the local government seeks to overhaul its Medicaid contract with insurance companies
...the volunteers who helped (elderly diabetic with poor feet, broken fridge, downed tree) survive Hurricane Maria (grocery shop, fill prescriptions and get to doctor's appointments) are returning to their own lives...
https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2018/03/30/596505923/times-running-out...
28margd
Harvard study estimates thousands died in Puerto Rico due to Hurricane Maria
By Arelis R. Hernández | 5/29/2018
Official government estimates of the death toll from hurricane sit at 64; new study finds at least 4,600 died as a result of the island territory’s faltering infrastructure, utilities and health care.
...A new Harvard study published Tuesday in the New England Journal of Medicine estimates that at least 4,645 deaths can be linked to the hurricane and its immediate aftermath, making the storm far deadlier than previously thought. Official estimates have placed the number of dead at 64, a count that has drawn sharp criticism from experts and local residents and spurred the government to order an independent review that has yet to be completed.
The Harvard findings indicate that health-care disruption for the elderly and the loss of basic utility services for the chronically ill had significant impacts, and the study criticized Puerto Rico’s methods for counting the dead — and its lack of transparency in sharing information — as detrimental to planning for future natural disasters. The authors called for patients, communities and doctors to develop contingency plans for natural disasters.
...Their surveys indicated that the mortality rate was 14.3 deaths per 1,000 residents from Sept. 20 through Dec. 31, 2017, a 62 percent increase in the mortality rate compared to 2016, or 4,645 “excess deaths.”...
https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/harvard-study-estimates-thousands-died-i...
By Arelis R. Hernández | 5/29/2018
Official government estimates of the death toll from hurricane sit at 64; new study finds at least 4,600 died as a result of the island territory’s faltering infrastructure, utilities and health care.
...A new Harvard study published Tuesday in the New England Journal of Medicine estimates that at least 4,645 deaths can be linked to the hurricane and its immediate aftermath, making the storm far deadlier than previously thought. Official estimates have placed the number of dead at 64, a count that has drawn sharp criticism from experts and local residents and spurred the government to order an independent review that has yet to be completed.
The Harvard findings indicate that health-care disruption for the elderly and the loss of basic utility services for the chronically ill had significant impacts, and the study criticized Puerto Rico’s methods for counting the dead — and its lack of transparency in sharing information — as detrimental to planning for future natural disasters. The authors called for patients, communities and doctors to develop contingency plans for natural disasters.
...Their surveys indicated that the mortality rate was 14.3 deaths per 1,000 residents from Sept. 20 through Dec. 31, 2017, a 62 percent increase in the mortality rate compared to 2016, or 4,645 “excess deaths.”...
https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/harvard-study-estimates-thousands-died-i...
29mamzel
This is a Hispanic influx Trump has no control over.
Puerto Ricans are migrating to the U.S. for seasonal work.
Hurricane Maria Survivors Fill Gap in Resort Staffing
Puerto Ricans are migrating to the U.S. for seasonal work.
Hurricane Maria Survivors Fill Gap in Resort Staffing
30margd
FEMA has either denied or not approved most appeals for housing aid in Puerto Rico
Nicole Acevedo / Jul.17.2018
...After denying at least 335,748 applications from thousands of Puerto Ricans asking the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) for disaster assistance to fix their hurricane-ravaged homes, many decided to appeal the agency's decision to not grant them aid.
As of July 12, “there have been more than 43,000 appealed cases from survivors of Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico. Of those, more than 7,500 have been approved and more than 34,000 have been deemed ineligible,” said Lenisha Smith, a FEMA spokesperson
...One of the biggest issues after the hurricane was proving ownership among families who lacked a title or deeds to their home.
Ramón A. Paez Marte, 44, who lives in the Comunidad Valle Hill in the town of Canóvanas, provided FEMA with a letter from town officials acknowledging that he owns his home and has lived there for roughly 20 years.
“The last letter we got from them FEMA said that we haven’t demonstrated that we are the owners of the home,” he said about his appeal case.
...However, if an applicant does “not hold a formal title to the residence and pays no rent, but is responsible for the payment of taxes or maintenance of the residence,” FEMA can still be able to verify their ownership status, according to agency guidelines...FEMA spoksman...
https://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/puerto-rico-crisis/fema-has-either-denied-or-n...
Nicole Acevedo / Jul.17.2018
...After denying at least 335,748 applications from thousands of Puerto Ricans asking the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) for disaster assistance to fix their hurricane-ravaged homes, many decided to appeal the agency's decision to not grant them aid.
As of July 12, “there have been more than 43,000 appealed cases from survivors of Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico. Of those, more than 7,500 have been approved and more than 34,000 have been deemed ineligible,” said Lenisha Smith, a FEMA spokesperson
...One of the biggest issues after the hurricane was proving ownership among families who lacked a title or deeds to their home.
Ramón A. Paez Marte, 44, who lives in the Comunidad Valle Hill in the town of Canóvanas, provided FEMA with a letter from town officials acknowledging that he owns his home and has lived there for roughly 20 years.
“The last letter we got from them FEMA said that we haven’t demonstrated that we are the owners of the home,” he said about his appeal case.
...However, if an applicant does “not hold a formal title to the residence and pays no rent, but is responsible for the payment of taxes or maintenance of the residence,” FEMA can still be able to verify their ownership status, according to agency guidelines...FEMA spoksman...
https://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/puerto-rico-crisis/fema-has-either-denied-or-n...
31margd
Officials raise Puerto Rico’s death toll from Hurricane Maria to nearly 3,000 people
The tally includes deaths related to the storm through February 2018
Aimee Cunningham | August 28, 2018
https://www.sciencenews.org/article/puerto-rico-hurricane-maria-death-toll
____________________________________________________________
The report:
Milken Institute School of Public Health — George Washington University. Project report: ascertainment of the estimated excess mortality from Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico. 69 p. Published online August 28, 2018. https://publichealth.gwu.edu/sites/default/files/downloads/projects/PRstudy/Acer...
_____________________________________________________________
By way of comparison,
2,996 people died on 911: 265 on the four planes 2,606 in the World Trade Center, and 125 at the Pentagon.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/September_11_attacks
ETA__________________________________________________________
President Trump’s Four-Pinocchio complaint about the Maria death toll figures
Glenn Kessler | September 13, 2018
..The Pinocchio Test
The official figure embraced by Puerto Rico is an estimate of “excess deaths,” based on a six-month period after the storm. One might quibble with extending the period under investigation for that long, but few areas of the United States have suffered so long without electricity or drinking water in the aftermath of a natural disaster.
Moreover, in any part of the United States, 3,000 excess deaths in six months would be considered a crisis, worthy of an intensive investigation to find out what went wrong — rather than a tweetstorm that minimizes the problem.
Even the most conservative estimate, looking just at the excess deaths through October, is above 1,000. Trump’s tweets are missing a few digits, and thus earn Four Pinocchios.
Four Pinocchios (= whopper)
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2018/09/13/president-trumps-four-pinocch...
The tally includes deaths related to the storm through February 2018
Aimee Cunningham | August 28, 2018
https://www.sciencenews.org/article/puerto-rico-hurricane-maria-death-toll
____________________________________________________________
The report:
Milken Institute School of Public Health — George Washington University. Project report: ascertainment of the estimated excess mortality from Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico. 69 p. Published online August 28, 2018. https://publichealth.gwu.edu/sites/default/files/downloads/projects/PRstudy/Acer...
_____________________________________________________________
By way of comparison,
2,996 people died on 911: 265 on the four planes 2,606 in the World Trade Center, and 125 at the Pentagon.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/September_11_attacks
ETA__________________________________________________________
President Trump’s Four-Pinocchio complaint about the Maria death toll figures
Glenn Kessler | September 13, 2018
..The Pinocchio Test
The official figure embraced by Puerto Rico is an estimate of “excess deaths,” based on a six-month period after the storm. One might quibble with extending the period under investigation for that long, but few areas of the United States have suffered so long without electricity or drinking water in the aftermath of a natural disaster.
Moreover, in any part of the United States, 3,000 excess deaths in six months would be considered a crisis, worthy of an intensive investigation to find out what went wrong — rather than a tweetstorm that minimizes the problem.
Even the most conservative estimate, looking just at the excess deaths through October, is above 1,000. Trump’s tweets are missing a few digits, and thus earn Four Pinocchios.
Four Pinocchios (= whopper)
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2018/09/13/president-trumps-four-pinocch...
322wonderY
Lawmakers to introduce bill granting Puerto Rico statehood
A bipartisan group of lawmakers will introduce legislation Thursday that would admit Puerto Rico into the union as the 51st state without a referendum on the island's territorial status, four sources familiar with the situation told CBS News.
…
"It is absurd that, in the 21st century, the world's greatest democracy still possess territories in which citizens are not allowed the fundamental right to vote for their president. It is shameful and it must end," a Puerto Rican government official told CBS News. "We applaud Rep. Soto for stepping up to right this wrong."
…
Although it could secure passage in the Democrat-controlled House, the legislation will almost certainly be opposed by the Trump administration and the Republican-controlled Senate. President Trump said last year he is an "absolute no" on Puerto Rican statehood, as long as critics such as San Juan's mayor remain in office.
A bipartisan group of lawmakers will introduce legislation Thursday that would admit Puerto Rico into the union as the 51st state without a referendum on the island's territorial status, four sources familiar with the situation told CBS News.
…
"It is absurd that, in the 21st century, the world's greatest democracy still possess territories in which citizens are not allowed the fundamental right to vote for their president. It is shameful and it must end," a Puerto Rican government official told CBS News. "We applaud Rep. Soto for stepping up to right this wrong."
…
Although it could secure passage in the Democrat-controlled House, the legislation will almost certainly be opposed by the Trump administration and the Republican-controlled Senate. President Trump said last year he is an "absolute no" on Puerto Rican statehood, as long as critics such as San Juan's mayor remain in office.
34Taphophile13
>32 2wonderY: The 2016 Republican platform supported the right of Puerto Rico "to be admitted to the Union as a fully sovereign state" (p. 30):
https://prod-cdn-static.gop.com/media/documents/DRAFT_12_FINAL%5B1%5D-ben_146887...
https://prod-cdn-static.gop.com/media/documents/DRAFT_12_FINAL%5B1%5D-ben_146887...
35dypaloh
>34 Taphophile13: Thanks for posting that!
36prosfilaes
>32 2wonderY: Is it an act that will go through once Trump is out of office, or is it a symbolic act that will bog down after a sane president takes office? Still a good move, even if we have a president who will block it for petty reasons.
37margd
Impasse Over Aid for Puerto Rico Stalls Billions in Federal Disaster Relief
Emily Cochrane | April 1, 2019
WASHINGTON — The Senate on Monday blocked billions of dollars in disaster aid for states across the country as Republicans and Democrats clashed over President Trump’s opposition to sending more food and infrastructure help to Puerto Rico.
Opposition came from both parties for different reasons. Most Republicans refused to endorse a recovery bill passed this year by the House. They cited Mr. Trump’s opposition to the bill’s Puerto Rico funding, as well as their own concerns that the bill lacked money for Midwestern states, like Iowa and Nebraska, that have since been devastated by flooding and tornadoes.
For their part, Democrats balked at a separate measure drafted by Senate Republicans that included the money for the Midwest, arguing that a proposed $600 million in nutritional assistance for Puerto Rico was not enough. The Republican legislation had no chance in the House.
The votes on both measures were procedural and needed support from 60 senators to advance to a full floor vote. Neither won the support required. It was unclear late Monday how lawmakers would overcome that impasse and end the delay in disbursing the disaster aid.
The effort begins anew on Tuesday, when Senate Democrats will propose a measure that would allocate billions of dollars that would help Iowa and Nebraska, as well as Puerto Rico, according to a Senate Democratic aide.
Mr. Trump has been pressuring Democrats to support a disaster relief measure that does not include the money they want for Puerto Rico, and he went on the attack late Monday on Twitter.*
...Some lawmakers were optimistic that a resolution could be found quickly. Democrats in both chambers have pushed for a select group of lawmakers to draft legislation that borrows from both measures...
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/04/01/us/politics/senate-disaster-relief-puerto-ric...
_____________________________________________________________________
*Donald J. Trump @realDonaldTrump | 7:50 PM - 1 Apr 2019
The Democrats today killed a Bill that would have provided great relief to Farmers and yet more money to Puerto Rico despite the fact that Puerto Rico has already been scheduled to receive more hurricane relief funding than any “place” in history. The people of Puerto Rico.....
....are GREAT, but the politicians are incompetent or corrupt. Puerto Rico got far more money than Texas & Florida combined, yet their government can’t do anything right, the place is a mess - nothing works. FEMA & the Military worked emergency miracles, but politicians like.....
....the crazed and incompetent Mayor of San Juan have done such a poor job of bringing the Island back to health. 91 Billion Dollars to Puerto Rico, and now the Dems want to give them more, taking dollars away from our Farmers and so many others. Disgraceful!
ETA___________________________________________________________________
Trump hits out at 'crazed and incompetent’ Puerto Rican leaders after disaster bill fails
Tim Elfrink | April 2, 2019
...Trump, who has reportedly said in private that he doesn’t want “another single dollar” going to Puerto Rico in the wake of Hurricane Maria, again complained about funding for the island and called San Juan Mayor Carmen Yulín Cruz, a frequent critic, “crazed and incompetent.”
...In his tweets, Trump raised a familiar, contested figure (San Juan Mayor Carmen Yulín Cruz) for disaster relief in Puerto Rico. Although the president has repeatedly claimed that $91 billion has been spent there, that figure actually reflects a high-end, long-term estimate for recovery costs; a fraction of that has so far been budgeted, and even less has been spent.
Cruz quickly hit back, arguing that Trump was using inaccurate data. “Pres Trump continues to embarrass himself & the Office he holds. He is unhinged & thus lies about the $ received by PR. HE KNOWS HIS RESPONSE was innefficient at best,” she tweeted. “He can huff & puff all he wants but he cannot escape the death of 3,000 on his watch. SHAME ON YOU!”
...Puerto Rico Gov. Ricardo Rosselló, who has lately taken a more aggressive tone toward Trump,...“Mr. President, this ‘place’ you refer to, #PuertoRico, is home to over three million proud Americans that are still recovering from the storm and in need of federal assistance,” he tweeted. “We are not your adversaries, we are your citizens.”...
https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2019/04/02/crazed-incompetent-trump-hits-o...
Emily Cochrane | April 1, 2019
WASHINGTON — The Senate on Monday blocked billions of dollars in disaster aid for states across the country as Republicans and Democrats clashed over President Trump’s opposition to sending more food and infrastructure help to Puerto Rico.
Opposition came from both parties for different reasons. Most Republicans refused to endorse a recovery bill passed this year by the House. They cited Mr. Trump’s opposition to the bill’s Puerto Rico funding, as well as their own concerns that the bill lacked money for Midwestern states, like Iowa and Nebraska, that have since been devastated by flooding and tornadoes.
For their part, Democrats balked at a separate measure drafted by Senate Republicans that included the money for the Midwest, arguing that a proposed $600 million in nutritional assistance for Puerto Rico was not enough. The Republican legislation had no chance in the House.
The votes on both measures were procedural and needed support from 60 senators to advance to a full floor vote. Neither won the support required. It was unclear late Monday how lawmakers would overcome that impasse and end the delay in disbursing the disaster aid.
The effort begins anew on Tuesday, when Senate Democrats will propose a measure that would allocate billions of dollars that would help Iowa and Nebraska, as well as Puerto Rico, according to a Senate Democratic aide.
Mr. Trump has been pressuring Democrats to support a disaster relief measure that does not include the money they want for Puerto Rico, and he went on the attack late Monday on Twitter.*
...Some lawmakers were optimistic that a resolution could be found quickly. Democrats in both chambers have pushed for a select group of lawmakers to draft legislation that borrows from both measures...
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/04/01/us/politics/senate-disaster-relief-puerto-ric...
_____________________________________________________________________
*Donald J. Trump @realDonaldTrump | 7:50 PM - 1 Apr 2019
The Democrats today killed a Bill that would have provided great relief to Farmers and yet more money to Puerto Rico despite the fact that Puerto Rico has already been scheduled to receive more hurricane relief funding than any “place” in history. The people of Puerto Rico.....
....are GREAT, but the politicians are incompetent or corrupt. Puerto Rico got far more money than Texas & Florida combined, yet their government can’t do anything right, the place is a mess - nothing works. FEMA & the Military worked emergency miracles, but politicians like.....
....the crazed and incompetent Mayor of San Juan have done such a poor job of bringing the Island back to health. 91 Billion Dollars to Puerto Rico, and now the Dems want to give them more, taking dollars away from our Farmers and so many others. Disgraceful!
ETA___________________________________________________________________
Trump hits out at 'crazed and incompetent’ Puerto Rican leaders after disaster bill fails
Tim Elfrink | April 2, 2019
...Trump, who has reportedly said in private that he doesn’t want “another single dollar” going to Puerto Rico in the wake of Hurricane Maria, again complained about funding for the island and called San Juan Mayor Carmen Yulín Cruz, a frequent critic, “crazed and incompetent.”
...In his tweets, Trump raised a familiar, contested figure (San Juan Mayor Carmen Yulín Cruz) for disaster relief in Puerto Rico. Although the president has repeatedly claimed that $91 billion has been spent there, that figure actually reflects a high-end, long-term estimate for recovery costs; a fraction of that has so far been budgeted, and even less has been spent.
Cruz quickly hit back, arguing that Trump was using inaccurate data. “Pres Trump continues to embarrass himself & the Office he holds. He is unhinged & thus lies about the $ received by PR. HE KNOWS HIS RESPONSE was innefficient at best,” she tweeted. “He can huff & puff all he wants but he cannot escape the death of 3,000 on his watch. SHAME ON YOU!”
...Puerto Rico Gov. Ricardo Rosselló, who has lately taken a more aggressive tone toward Trump,...“Mr. President, this ‘place’ you refer to, #PuertoRico, is home to over three million proud Americans that are still recovering from the storm and in need of federal assistance,” he tweeted. “We are not your adversaries, we are your citizens.”...
https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2019/04/02/crazed-incompetent-trump-hits-o...
38margd
Worth a listen...
(I was reminded of Max Boot's The Savage Wars Of Peace: Small Wars And The Rise Of American Power.)
Empire State of Mind (50:09)
NPR: On the Media | April 5, 2019
Recently, a member of the Trump administration called Puerto Rico "that country," obscuring once more the relationship between the island colony and the American mainland. In a special hour this week, On the Media examines the history of US imperialism — and why the familiar US map hides the true story of our country. Brooke spends the hour with Northwestern University historian Daniel Immerwahr, author of How to Hide an Empire: A History of the Greater United States. This is Part 2 of our series, "On American Expansion."...
https://www.npr.org/podcasts/452538775/on-the-media
(I was reminded of Max Boot's The Savage Wars Of Peace: Small Wars And The Rise Of American Power.)
Empire State of Mind (50:09)
NPR: On the Media | April 5, 2019
Recently, a member of the Trump administration called Puerto Rico "that country," obscuring once more the relationship between the island colony and the American mainland. In a special hour this week, On the Media examines the history of US imperialism — and why the familiar US map hides the true story of our country. Brooke spends the hour with Northwestern University historian Daniel Immerwahr, author of How to Hide an Empire: A History of the Greater United States. This is Part 2 of our series, "On American Expansion."...
https://www.npr.org/podcasts/452538775/on-the-media
39margd
Streets Of San Juan A 'War Zone' As Protesters Call For Governor To Resign
Heard on Morning Edition (3:30)
Merrit Kennedy & Adrian Florido | 7/18. 2019
...In the private chat messages published on Saturday by Puerto Rico's Center for Investigative Journalism, the governor and his inner circle use misogynistic language to talk about women. They use homophobic language to talk about journalists and Ricky Martin. They engage in fat-shaming. They talk about manipulating the media, manipulating public opinion polls. And they make jokes about shooting the mayor of San Juan.
The governor's chief financial officers made a joke about the dead bodies that piled up in a government facility before and after Hurricane Maria in 2017. That comment has been particularly galling for many Puerto Ricans still recovering from the deadly storm nearly two years later.
The island is suffering from far more problems than the hurricane. It's been mired in an economic recession for more than a decade, including a debt crisis that has resulted in slashing public services and the imposition of a federal oversight board that has taken control of Puerto Rico's finances. Hundreds of thousands of people have been forced leave the island, a trend that accelerated after the hurricane. For many residents, the chats have become a representation in black and white of the indifference they feel their leaders have for their daily struggles...
https://www.npr.org/2019/07/18/742957579/puerto-rican-police-fire-tear-gas-at-hu...
Heard on Morning Edition (3:30)
Merrit Kennedy & Adrian Florido | 7/18. 2019
...In the private chat messages published on Saturday by Puerto Rico's Center for Investigative Journalism, the governor and his inner circle use misogynistic language to talk about women. They use homophobic language to talk about journalists and Ricky Martin. They engage in fat-shaming. They talk about manipulating the media, manipulating public opinion polls. And they make jokes about shooting the mayor of San Juan.
The governor's chief financial officers made a joke about the dead bodies that piled up in a government facility before and after Hurricane Maria in 2017. That comment has been particularly galling for many Puerto Ricans still recovering from the deadly storm nearly two years later.
The island is suffering from far more problems than the hurricane. It's been mired in an economic recession for more than a decade, including a debt crisis that has resulted in slashing public services and the imposition of a federal oversight board that has taken control of Puerto Rico's finances. Hundreds of thousands of people have been forced leave the island, a trend that accelerated after the hurricane. For many residents, the chats have become a representation in black and white of the indifference they feel their leaders have for their daily struggles...
https://www.npr.org/2019/07/18/742957579/puerto-rican-police-fire-tear-gas-at-hu...
40LolaWalser
Good old boys.
41margd
Ex-DHS Official: Trump wanted to trade Puerto Rico for Greenland (5:20 of 7:41)
Hallie Jackson | Aug. 19, 2020
A former Chief of Staff with the Department of Homeland Security, Miles Taylor, joins Hallie Jackson to discuss his tenure working in the Trump administration. Taylor, who has recently begun speaking out about what he witnessed in that role, warns that a second term would only yield more "distraction" and "bad policies" from the President.
https://www.msnbc.com/hallie-jackson/watch/ex-dhs-official-trump-wanted-to-trade...
Hallie Jackson | Aug. 19, 2020
A former Chief of Staff with the Department of Homeland Security, Miles Taylor, joins Hallie Jackson to discuss his tenure working in the Trump administration. Taylor, who has recently begun speaking out about what he witnessed in that role, warns that a second term would only yield more "distraction" and "bad policies" from the President.
https://www.msnbc.com/hallie-jackson/watch/ex-dhs-official-trump-wanted-to-trade...
42margd
Make Puerto Rico a State Now
Christina D. Ponsa-Kraus (prof Columbia Law School) | Nov. 4, 2020
...Puerto Rican...voters...were asked whether they wanted Puerto Rico to become the 51st state of the union: “yes” or “no.” They chose “yes.” With this historic vote, Puerto Ricans have staked their claim to admission as the 51st state in the Union.
A bill that was introduced in Congress in 2019 but didn’t come to a vote before the statehood referendum would have expressed Congress’s commitment to admitting Puerto Rico as a state if the “yes” vote won. Now that it has, statehood opponents will start throwing up roadblocks. Some will say that the ballot language was flawed; others that the margin of victory was not large enough. Skeptics will wonder whether the time is right, politically or economically. But these objections should not stand in the way. Congress should make Puerto Rico a state now.
The painful legacy of U.S. racial bias against Puerto Rico makes the island’s immediate admission into statehood a political and moral imperative. By stalling now, Congress would add fresh insult to old injury by confirming the suspicion that racism against Puerto Ricans is alive and well in America...
...Time’s up on pondering the political and economic consequences of Puerto Rican statehood, let alone being opposed to it. It has been 122 years. You don’t annex a place, make it your colony for nearly a century and a quarter, and then reject its people’s vote for statehood. The time for Puerto Rican statehood is now.
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/11/04/opinion/puerto-rico-state.html
Christina D. Ponsa-Kraus (prof Columbia Law School) | Nov. 4, 2020
...Puerto Rican...voters...were asked whether they wanted Puerto Rico to become the 51st state of the union: “yes” or “no.” They chose “yes.” With this historic vote, Puerto Ricans have staked their claim to admission as the 51st state in the Union.
A bill that was introduced in Congress in 2019 but didn’t come to a vote before the statehood referendum would have expressed Congress’s commitment to admitting Puerto Rico as a state if the “yes” vote won. Now that it has, statehood opponents will start throwing up roadblocks. Some will say that the ballot language was flawed; others that the margin of victory was not large enough. Skeptics will wonder whether the time is right, politically or economically. But these objections should not stand in the way. Congress should make Puerto Rico a state now.
The painful legacy of U.S. racial bias against Puerto Rico makes the island’s immediate admission into statehood a political and moral imperative. By stalling now, Congress would add fresh insult to old injury by confirming the suspicion that racism against Puerto Ricans is alive and well in America...
...Time’s up on pondering the political and economic consequences of Puerto Rican statehood, let alone being opposed to it. It has been 122 years. You don’t annex a place, make it your colony for nearly a century and a quarter, and then reject its people’s vote for statehood. The time for Puerto Rican statehood is now.
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/11/04/opinion/puerto-rico-state.html
43lriley
#42--it's good and I'm glad but we're probably going to have to wait until 2022 at the earliest before this can be acted on. As long as McConnell is Senate leader I don't see any possibility of this happening. The potential of two more Senators that might swing the majority to the democratic side?---Mitch is a lot of things but he's not suicidal. He'll sit on that.
44margd
Roughly one third of Puerto Rican women were sterilized by mid-20th c? Birth control experiments? (at 31:30)
'La Brega' in Puerto Rico (51:29)
On the Media, hosted by Alana Casanova-Burgess | heard Feb 26, 2022
https://www.npr.org/podcasts/452538775/on-the-media
This week, OTM presents stories from Puerto Rico as told in a podcast series called "La Brega," hosted by Alana Casanova-Burgess. Hear what that term means, how it's used, and what it represents. Also, how one of the most famous homebuilding teams in American history tried to export American suburbanism to Puerto Rico... as a bulwark against Cuban communism.
1. Alana @AlanaLlama explores the full meaning(s) of la brega, which has different translations depending on who you ask. According to scholar and professor emeritus at Princeton, Arcadio Diaz Quiñonez, the closest English word is "to grapple." Alana also speaks to Cheo Santiago @adoptaunhoyo, creator of "Adopta Un Hoyo" (Adopt a Pothole), which encourages people to paint around and photograph potholes to alert other drivers. Because the roads are rarely fixed properly, the challenges of potholes and what people do to get around them is a metaphorical and literal brega in Puerto Rico. Listen.
2. Next, Alana turns to the boom and bust of Levittown, a suburb that was founded on the idea of bringing the American middle-class lifestyle to Puerto Rico during a time of great change on the island. Alana (herself the granddaughter of an early Levittown resident) explores what the presence of a Levittown in Puerto Rico tells us about the promises of the American Dream in Puerto Rico. Listen. Created by a team of Puerto Rican journalists, producers, musicians, and artists from the island and diaspora, "La Brega" uses narrative storytelling and investigative journalism to reflect and reveal how la brega has defined so many aspects of life in Puerto Rico.
All episodes are out now, and available in English and Spanish. Listen to the full series: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | Google Podcasts Music in this series comes from Balún and ÌFÉ
___________________________________________________
Puerto Rico leads US states with 81% fully vaccinated against COVID.
https://ycharts.com/indicators/puerto_rico_coronavirus_full_vaccination_rate
'La Brega' in Puerto Rico (51:29)
On the Media, hosted by Alana Casanova-Burgess | heard Feb 26, 2022
https://www.npr.org/podcasts/452538775/on-the-media
This week, OTM presents stories from Puerto Rico as told in a podcast series called "La Brega," hosted by Alana Casanova-Burgess. Hear what that term means, how it's used, and what it represents. Also, how one of the most famous homebuilding teams in American history tried to export American suburbanism to Puerto Rico... as a bulwark against Cuban communism.
1. Alana @AlanaLlama explores the full meaning(s) of la brega, which has different translations depending on who you ask. According to scholar and professor emeritus at Princeton, Arcadio Diaz Quiñonez, the closest English word is "to grapple." Alana also speaks to Cheo Santiago @adoptaunhoyo, creator of "Adopta Un Hoyo" (Adopt a Pothole), which encourages people to paint around and photograph potholes to alert other drivers. Because the roads are rarely fixed properly, the challenges of potholes and what people do to get around them is a metaphorical and literal brega in Puerto Rico. Listen.
2. Next, Alana turns to the boom and bust of Levittown, a suburb that was founded on the idea of bringing the American middle-class lifestyle to Puerto Rico during a time of great change on the island. Alana (herself the granddaughter of an early Levittown resident) explores what the presence of a Levittown in Puerto Rico tells us about the promises of the American Dream in Puerto Rico. Listen. Created by a team of Puerto Rican journalists, producers, musicians, and artists from the island and diaspora, "La Brega" uses narrative storytelling and investigative journalism to reflect and reveal how la brega has defined so many aspects of life in Puerto Rico.
All episodes are out now, and available in English and Spanish. Listen to the full series: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | Google Podcasts Music in this series comes from Balún and ÌFÉ
___________________________________________________
Puerto Rico leads US states with 81% fully vaccinated against COVID.
https://ycharts.com/indicators/puerto_rico_coronavirus_full_vaccination_rate
45margd
High court rules Congress can exclude Puerto Ricans from aid program
Robert Barnes | April 21, 2022
The Supreme Court ruled Thursday that Congress may continue excluding residents of Puerto Rico from a federal program that aids low-income elderly, disabled and blind people.
The decision was 8 to 1, the lone dissenter being Justice Sonia Sotomayor, whose parents were born on the island.
President Biden’s administration, like the Trump administration before it, defended Congress’s right to exclude residents of Puerto Rico from the Supplemental Security Income (SSI) program without violating the Constitution’s promise of equal protection. But Biden also has called for the law to be changed.
The exclusion means about 300,000 people on the island who would qualify for the benefit if they lived elsewhere cannot receive it.
“The limited question before this Court is whether, under the Constitution, Congress must extend Supplemental Security Income to residents of Puerto Rico to the same extent as to residents of the States.” Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh wrote for the majority. “The answer is no.”
...“Puerto Rico’s tax status — in particular, the fact that residents of Puerto Rico are typically exempt from most federal income, gift, estate, and excise taxes — supplies a rational basis for likewise distinguishing residents of Puerto Rico from residents of the States for purposes of the Supplemental Security Income benefits program,” he wrote.
He added that Congress is free to extend the SSI benefits to Puerto Ricans if it chooses, noting that the White House supports such legislation...
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2022/04/21/supreme-court-puerto-rico-ssi...
Robert Barnes | April 21, 2022
The Supreme Court ruled Thursday that Congress may continue excluding residents of Puerto Rico from a federal program that aids low-income elderly, disabled and blind people.
The decision was 8 to 1, the lone dissenter being Justice Sonia Sotomayor, whose parents were born on the island.
President Biden’s administration, like the Trump administration before it, defended Congress’s right to exclude residents of Puerto Rico from the Supplemental Security Income (SSI) program without violating the Constitution’s promise of equal protection. But Biden also has called for the law to be changed.
The exclusion means about 300,000 people on the island who would qualify for the benefit if they lived elsewhere cannot receive it.
“The limited question before this Court is whether, under the Constitution, Congress must extend Supplemental Security Income to residents of Puerto Rico to the same extent as to residents of the States.” Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh wrote for the majority. “The answer is no.”
...“Puerto Rico’s tax status — in particular, the fact that residents of Puerto Rico are typically exempt from most federal income, gift, estate, and excise taxes — supplies a rational basis for likewise distinguishing residents of Puerto Rico from residents of the States for purposes of the Supplemental Security Income benefits program,” he wrote.
He added that Congress is free to extend the SSI benefits to Puerto Ricans if it chooses, noting that the White House supports such legislation...
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2022/04/21/supreme-court-puerto-rico-ssi...
