Puerto Rico News Digest For October 16, 2015

GOVERNOR IN DC FOR FISCAL MEETINGS 

From The San Juan Daily Star:

"Gov. Alejandro García Padilla left for Washington, D.C. on Wednes-
day to discuss alternatives for helping Puerto Rico deal with its debt,
which as of July was $69.7 billion, including allowing the island to be
covered by the federal bankruptcy law. The Government Development
Bank (GDB) is facing a $354 million debt payment on Dec. 1 and the
commonwealth government is expected to make a huge payment on
its general obligations (GOs) in January. The White House has made
it clear it won’t bail out the  commonwealth and Congress appears not
to be willing to help either. On Oct. 22, the Senate Natural Resources
Committee is slated to evaluate the government’s fi scal state in a hea-
ring that is expected to include options for Congress moving forward..."

CARJACKING RAPIST FOUND GUILTY BY JURY

From US Attorney's Office:

"Carlos Cruz-Rivera, aka “Cano Llorens,” was found guilty on all
counts of carrying a firearm during and in relation to a crime of vio-
lence (carjacking) and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon,
announced United States Attorney Rosa Emilia Rodríguez-Vélez.
United States District Judge José A. Fusté presided over the trial.
The convict had pled guilty to three counts of carjacking  in the sa-
me accusation on October 6, 2015. On September 9, 2015, a fede-
ral grand jury returned a seven-count superseding indictment char-
ging a Cruz-Rivera with three counts of carjacking, three counts
of using and carrying a firearm during and in relation to a crime
of violence, and one count possession of a firearm by a convicted
felon. During the three day trial, the government presented pictu-
res and witness’ testimonies that narrated the criminal incidents
of rape, kidnapping, carjacking, and robbery that that the defen-
dant perpetrated against the innocent victims..."

SENATE PASSES EDUCATION REFORM

From Caribbean Business:

"The Puerto Rico Senate approved Bill 1456, authored by the body's
president, Eduardo A. Bhatia, which intends to bring about educa-
tional partnerships to operate public Lider (Spanish acronym for
charter) schools, grant schools greater autonomy and to have more
of the budget’s allocation for education reach the classroom..."

GOVERNOR SUBMITS FISCAL BOARD BILL

From News Is My Business:

"Gov. Alejandro García-Padilla submitted late Thursday to the legis-
lature the bill that will give way to the creation of a five-member fis-
cal oversight board that among other things, will be responsible for
enforcing compliance with approved budgets. The proposed “Fiscal
Responsibility and Economic Revitalization of Puerto Rico Law” es-
tablishes the independent, non-partisan entity will also be responsible
for approving the proposed Economic and Fiscal Growth plan and en-
sure that future Commonwealth and agency budgets comply with the
provisions of that plan..."

Puerto Rico News Digest For May 15, 2015

TRIPLE MURDER IN AGUAS BUENAS

As reported today by  El Nuevo Dia, two men and a woman, ranging
in age from 25 to 30, were murdered late last night on Road PR-792
in the Las Villas sector of Aguas Buenas. The crime occurred at
around 12:40 AM and was reported to the Police through an anony-
mous phone call. It is believed the deceased were taken to a dark and
solitary area specifically to be shot to death. The bodies were found
lying on the pavement. A loaded .40 caliber pistol was found at the
scene. The victims were not carrying identification and have not been
named.

GOVERNOR AND LEGISLATORS AGREE ON TAX

From Bloomberg:

Puerto Rico Governor Alejandro Garcia Padilla and lawmakers reached
an agreement on a proposal to raise the island’s sales tax, a move that
may help it sell debt and ease a cash crunch. The plan would boost the
levy to 11.5 percent from 7 percent for nine months, in a transition to
implementing a value-added tax, the governor and members of his Po-
pular Democratic Party told reporters late Thursday in San Juan. The
increase is expected to bring in $1.2 billion of revenue. Lawmakers
also agreed to recommend $500 million in spending cuts as part of a
$9.8 billion budget for fiscal 2016.

STUDENTS PROTEST UPR CUTS IN SAN JUAN

From UPI:

A massive demonstration protesting budget cuts to Puerto  Rico's
state university filled a Capitol plaza in San Juan. Thousands of peo-
ple enrolled or employed at Puerto Rico University (UPR) met at the
Capitol building and marched to the home of the U.S. commonwealth's
chief executive Wednesday. The government has threatened a 20 per-
cent budget cut to the university. Julio Muriente, leader of the pro-inde-
pendence Hostosian National Independence Movement, attended the
demonstration, saying, "We want people to know the importance of the
university for the country, the value of the UPR, and this event is proof
of what the institution is."

SLOTS OPERATORS OPPOSE VIDEO LOTTERY

From The San Juan Daily Star:

Puerto Rican Commercial Recreation Businesses Inc. (EMPRECOM by
its Spanish acronym) members have categorically rejected Gov. Alejandro
García Padilla’s plan to pass new regulations for the operation of  enter-
tainment machines without holding public hearings, which they say opens
the door for the “video lottery” business. “We have been charging that La
Fortaleza was working on a new Operational Regulation for the Additio-
nal Lottery, which is nothing more than ‘bringing the video lottery in
through the kitchen,’” EMPRECOM President Pablo Rivera said in a
written statement. “The governor has given instructions so that this action,
which allows for the elimination of all  entertainment machines that are
currently in operation on the island, and thus makes way for the ‘video
lottery,’ is not talked about.”

$59M IN PROPERTIES AT AUCTION 

From News Is My Business:

Los Angeles-based Premiere Estates Auction Company announced
Thursday a multi-property auction that includes sprawling beachfront
sites in Aguadilla and Cabo Rojo, with a combined listing price of $59
million. The portfolio includes a 507-acre master planned destination
resort property overlooking Boqueron Bay in Cabo Rojo with a listing
price of $50 million, that has been pre-approved for a 600-room resort
hotel, 18-hole golf course, a 200-slip marina, retail village, 1,150 residen-
tial villas and 222 home sites.

Lugaro Counts On Social Networks For Support

Feature
Fox News Latino/EFE
Alfonso Rodriguez

The first independent candidate for governor of Puerto Rico, Alexandra
Lugaro, is counting on social networks to promote her image and create
a niche for herself in a system controlled for decades by two parties.

Lugaro, a 33-year-old attorney, told Efe in an interview Monday that
despite her campaign's lack of means to challenge the island's two hege-
monic parties, she firmly believes she can become the next governor of
Puerto Rico by making full use of social networks.

"Yes, I see myself as governor," Lugaro says about the balloting in
November 2016, a prospect she faces short of the financial wherewithal
traditionally needed to battle the ruling PPD, which promotes Puerto
Rico's status as a U.S. commonwealth, and the PNP, which wants the
island to...[CONTINUE READING]

Coverage of the Governor's Address To The Legislature

We are live tweeting the Governor's speech here:

https://twitter.com/ThePRMonitor

#MensajeDeEstado

Puerto Rico News Digest For March 18, 2015

PR GETS 1ST INDEPENDENT GOVERNOR CANDIDATE

Lawyer and businesswoman Alexandra Lúgaro, age 33, has declared
her intention to run for Governor of Puerto Rico in 2016 as an inde-
pendent candidate. This makes her the island's first ever gubernatorial
contender who does not belong to or publicly identify with any political
party. Lúgaro is in favor of gay marriage, abortion rights and marijuana
legalization, and has also expressed a desire to tackle issues such as
income inequality. Lúgaro is currently finishing a doctorate in Madrid
and is the founder of a student tutoring company in Puerto Rico.

LAURENS HIGLER'S FRIENDS' TOUCHING LETTER

The travelling companions of deceased Dutch globetrotter Laurens 

Higler, who was killed last week in a hit and run accident,  wrote a 

moving letter to the people of Puerto Rico regarding the recent 

tragic events:

LEGAL ISSUES SEEN WITH IVA RECEIPTS

From The San Juan Daily Star:

The Justice Department said Monday that Puerto Rico could
be held liable if merchants are banned from separating the
value added tax from the final price of items on receipts.
“The restriction against merchants separating the IVA [the
Spanish acronym for the value-added tax] from the final
price could be challenged in the courts because it interferes
with free speech rights,” Assistant Justice Secretary Rafael
Ortiz said. The proposed tax reform measure leaves it to the
Treasury secretary to decide whether the IVA should be dis-
played separately.

14 ARRESTED, 1.1 TONS OF COCAINE SEIZED

From Fox News Latino:

Agents of the United Rapid Action Forces, or FURA, of the
Puerto Rican police, seized 1.1 tons of cocaine and arrested
14 Dominicans, most of whom were waiting for the drug to
arrive from a boat off the northern coast of the Caribbean island,
officials said. Puerto Rican Police Chief Jose Caldero said
the boat had sailed to the estuary of Rio Grande de Loiza river
and that the drug had a street value of some $32 million.

PUERTO RICO UNEMPLOYMENT DOWN TO 12.4%

From Caribbean Business:

Puerto Rico Labor Secretary Vance Thomas announced that the
unemployment rate for January stood at 12.4%, representing the
lowest figure since 2008. "Data from the recent employment survey
show that the unemployment rate adjusted for January fell to 12.4%,
making it the lowest reported since August 2008, when it was 12.2%,"
Thomas said Tuesday. He added that the rate is 1.3% lower when
compared with December 2014 (13.7%) and 2.5% down from
January 2014 (14.9%).

UPR AGUADILLA PROVIDES TAX SERVICE

From News Is My Business:

The University of Puerto Rico in Aguadilla announced Tuesday
it will be offering free help to low and middle-class residents
to fill their federal income tax return, Saturdays from 9 a.m.
to 1 p.m. at the campus library through April 11. The UPR-Agua-
dilla Virtual Center for Assistance to Taxpayers (known in
Spanish as the VITA Center) is part of an alliance  with the
UPR-Mayagüez western region VITA Center.



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Puerto Rico News Digest For March 3, 2015

GOVERNOR GIVES OUT FIRST PARDONS

As reported by El Nuevo Dia today, Puerto Rico Governor Alejandro
Garcia Padilla granted the first pardons of his administration on
January 20th. Thirteen pardons were granted, with six total pardons
and seven conditional ones. The most serious offender who was pardoned
by Padilla was a conditional one granted to a man who had been in prison
since 1993 for first degree murder, theft, conspiracy and weapons violations.
According to the Governor's office, the pardon was granted after careful
consideration and proof of rehabilitation. The other individuals who were
pardoned all had sentences of six years or less.

INITIAL PRICE SPIKES EXPECTED UNDER IVA

From The San Juan Daily Star:

Certified Public Accountants Association President Kermit Lucena
said that when the local tax rate goes up to 16 percent in April,
people should expect an initial jump of nine points in prices for
goods, before they likely stabilize. “If you pay $1.07 now, you
will pay $1.16,” he said. “For those entities that can not absorb
the cost of the value-added tax, you will see a hike in prices.”
Lucena said he does not know whether that will lead to long-term
inflation, but has his doubts that it will. “Inflation is month by
month,” he said. “I don’t expect to see a 10 percent to 12 percent
hike month by month like in Latin America, but we will see an
initial jump.”

DORAL MADE LARGE LOAN IN FINAL WEEK

From Caribbean Business:

A week before Doral Bank was closed by federal regulators, it made
a $20 million loan to a company managed by Israeli investor Moishe
Mana for 17 different properties around Miami's Wynwood neighborhood,
according to Miami-Dade records. The 17 assorted properties owned by
Melanie Holdings LLC add up to approximately 4.9 acres of real estate.

Doral Bank was closed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. (FDIC)
on Feb. 27. The bank had operations in Puerto Rico, Florida, and New
York. The FDIC entered into an agreement with Banco Popular de Puerto
Rico to sell some of the bank's assets, and is currently in two other
agreements to sell the majority of the remaining assets.

PR SENATE NIXES "ANTI-UBER" BILL

From News Is My Business:

A bill that seeks to establish public policy and regulate the operation
of mobile application-based transportation network companies, such as
San Francisco’s Uber, was struck down Monday on the Senate floor in a
13-11 vote. Bill 1209, authored and introduced last year by Sen. Antonio
Fas-Alzamora, sought to curb the arrival of these types of businesses,
known as TNCs for short, which allow consumers to submit a trip request,
which is routed to crowd-sourced taxi drivers.

WINNING POWERBALL TICKETS SOLD IN PR, USVI

From Virgin Islands Daily News:

The Caribbean was a lucky place to buy Powerball tickets this weekend
because one person in the Virgin Islands and one person in Puerto Rico
each turned a $3 investment into $2 million, according to the Powerball
website. Someone in St. Thomas, St. Croix or St. John matched five of
the six numbers in Saturday's drawing.

The numbers drawn were 11, 17, 25, 28, 46 and the Powerball number was
12, according to the website. Powerball tickets cost $2 each, and the
Powerplay option costs an extra $1. Because the Powerplay multiplier
came up as "2X," the person in Puerto Rico and the person in the Virgin
Islands doubled the $1 million they each won by matching five numbers.