Puerto Rico News Digest For June 30, 2016

PROMESA PASSES SENATE, GOES TO OBAMA

From Caribbean Business:

"Congress delivered relief to debt-stricken Puerto Rico on Wednesday,
sending President Barack Obama a last-minute financial rescue package
to help the U.S. territory of 3.5 million Americans. The Senate passed the
bill on a bipartisan 68-30 vote..."

35 PEOPLE CHARGED WITH DRUG TRAFFICKING

From US Attorney's Office:

"On June 23, 2016, a federal grand jury in the District of Puerto Rico retur-
ned an indictment against 35 defendants charged with conspiracy to distrib-
ute controlled substances, announced Rosa Emilia Rodríguez-Vélez, United
States Attorney for the District of Puerto Rico. The Drug Enforcement Ad-
ministration and the Puerto Rico Police Department (PRPD), Ponce Strike
Force Unit, are in charge of the investigation. The indictment alleges that be-
ginning in 2012, the organization distributed heroin, crack, cocaine, and ma-
rihuana, at the Rafael López Nussa, Ernesto Ramos Antonini and the Dr. Ma-
nuel De La Pila Iglesias Public Housing Projects in Ponce; and the El Pino
Ward in Villalba, Puerto Rico, all for significant financial gain and profit. The
thirty-five defendants acted in different roles in order to further the goals of
their organization, to wit: leaders, drug point owners, enforcers, runners, se-
llers, and facilitators. Ten defendants are facing one charge of possession of
firearms in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime..."

PREPA TO ENACT PROVISIONAL RATE HIKE

From The San Juan Daily Star:

"The Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority government power company will
impose a provisional rate increase of 1.299 cents per kilowatt-hour on clients
in the coming weeks after winning approval from the Puerto Rico Energy Co-
mmission. The rate hike is among several requirements the utility must fulfill
as part of a proposed deal with creditors to restructure nearly $9 billion debt..."

AC HOTEL BREAKS GROUND IN CONDADO

From News Is My Business:

"The groundbreaking ceremony for the first AC Hotel by Marriott in San Juan
took place Wednesday for what will be a $45 million investment by Ashford
1369 Hospitality, LLC, an affiliate of Interlink, which acquired the former Am-
bassador Plaza & Casino property in Condado. The investment includes a com-
prehensive renovation of the property to convert it into the Marriott brand..."