Puerto Rico News Digest For July 13, 2015

PR IN TENSE TALKS WITH BONDHOLDERS 

From Bloomberg:

If you thought Greece’s negotiations with its creditors were ugly, just wait for
the reception Puerto Rico officials will receive after saying they want to re-
structure their $72 billion debt load.More than 300 participants ranging from
institutional investors to hedge funds to bond insurers are scheduled to attend
Monday’s presentation in New York explaining why the Caribbean island can-
not repay all of its obligations on time. Complicating matters is a push by co-
mmonwealth officials to seek federal assistance and even changes in bankrup-
tcy laws. “It will be a very protracted battle given Puerto Rico lacks a mecha-
nism for restructuring like Chapter 9,” Peter Hayes, head of municipal debt at
BlackRock Inc., which manages $114 billion of the securities, including Puerto
Rico debt, said in an e-mail. “There is likely to be a multitude of lawsuits given
the unlikely event creditors are acceptable to terms to be proposed by Puerto
Rico.”

PR TO APPEAL RECOVERY ACT RULING

From The San Juan Daily Star:

The Puerto Rico government will appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court sometime
over the next 90 days the First Circuit Court of Appeals ruling that declared a
local bankruptcy law for public corporations unconstitutional because it was
pre-empted by the U.S. Bankruptcy Code. Justice Secretary César Miranda
announced Thursday that after a thorough evaluation, the agency decided to
file a request for certiorari to have Law 71 validated. “Puerto Rico has the
power to legislate on the matter of bankruptcy because Congress excluded the
island from the protection of the Bankruptcy Law,” the agency said in a state-
ment.

PIERLUISI CRTICIZES LACK OF PRIMARY FUNDS

From Caribbean Business:

On Sunday, Puerto Rico Resident Commissioner Pedro Pierluisi called it "an
attack on democracy," the decision by the Alejandro García Padilla adminis-
tration not to allocate funds to political parties for primary elections. The New
Progressive Party (NPP) president and governorship candidate also said the
NPP will go to court if the government does not resolve the situation in the
coming weeks. "Clearly, the Popular Democratic Party [PDP] administration
wants to restrict participatory democracy, specifically against the party which
I preside. It is completely illegal to try to prevent primary elections, which by
law are scheduled for June 2016. If the PPD does not believe in democracy,
the NPP will enforce it," Pierluisi said, while adding that it is another act of
political persecution against minorities and opposition.

LATEST WATER RESERVOIR LEVELS

Carraizo's level is slightly up, at 35.44 cm, while La Plata is down to 38.15

cm as of the morning of July 13. Click the graphic to enlarge.