Puerto Rico News Digest For July 8, 2016

ICE SEIZES COUNTERFEIT GOODS IN OSJ

From ICE:

"Special agents with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE)
Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) seized $6.5 million in counterfeit
merchandise Wednesday in Old San Juan with assistance from U.S. Customs
and Border Protection (CBP) and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service...During
the operation, HSI special agents and partner law enforcement officers target-
ed 14 retailers of counterfeit goods infringing on the trademarks of Gucci, Mi-
chael Kors, Prada, Channel, Ray Ban, Coach, Dolce & Gabbana, Oakley, Nike,
Ray Ban and the National Basketball Association. They also executed five sear-
ch warrants. The total manufacturer's suggested retail value (MSRP) of the sei-
zed goods is approximately $6.5 million. First time offenders of violating intell-
ectual property laws were served with a notification of a violation of law. In the
case of reoffenders, HSI will present their cases for prosecution..."

SCIENTISTS OPPOSE LA PARGUERA BILL

From The San Juan Daily Star:

"Opposition to Senate Bill 1621, which would permit the permanence of summer 

houses illegally constructed on public land on the La Parguera shorefront in Lajas, 

is growing as more than 50 experts in oceanography, ecology, geology, planning 

and other disciplines related to natural and environmental science signed a letter 

directed to Gov. Alejandro García Padilla asking him to veto the bill that was pas-

sed by the Puerto Rico Legislature last week..."

MELBA ACOSTA RESIGNS AS GDB PRESIDENT

From Caribbean Business:

"On Thursday, La Fortaleza announced the resignation of Government Develop-

ment Bank (GDB) President & Chairwoman Melba Acosta, effective July 31. In 

her resignation letter dated July 6, she says it is time to refocus her professional 

career, after 12 years of public service, three of which took place under the Alej-

andro García Padilla administration...With Acosta’s exit, the GDB would have 

four of its seven director posts vacant. Although it didn’t publicly announce it,

La Fortaleza filled on May 17 two vacancies with the appointment of Rafael Vé-

lez Pérez and Carlos Bonilla Agosto..."

PRASA TO START SEEKING EXTERNAL FINANCING

From News Is My Business:

"Puerto Rico Aqueduct and Sewer Authority Executive Director Alberto Lázaro 

confirmed Thursday the agency is waiting for the governor to sign the law that 

will allow it to pursue external financing to begin talking to creditors next month. 

Once the PRASA Revitalization Act is signed, the public corporation will have 

the leverage it needs to approach potential creditors for some $900 million in new 

funding to cover infrastructure improvements, payments due to contractors and 

other expenses, Lázaro said, during the monthly luncheon sponsored by the Ass-

ociated General Contractors..."

Puerto Rico News Digest For November 4, 2015

SUSPECT KILLED IN SHOOTOUT WITH FEDS

From Yahoo! News:

"A man sought by federal authorities in Puerto Rico died on Tuesday
following a shootout that broke as he tried to evade arrest near the U.S.
territory's biggest mall, officials said. The unidentified 22-year-old sus-
pect was hit by a bullet as he tried to flee from agents who were about
to arrest him...The shooting occurred close to the popular Plaza Las Am-
ericas mall in the capital of San Juan in a heavily transited area near po-
lice department headquarters..."

TREASURY HEAD SAYS HOURS MAY BE CUT

From The San Juan Daily Star:

"Commonwealth Treasury Secretary Juan Zaragoza confirmed Monday
that the government is contemplating reducing public workers’ working
hours, which the agency calculates could save about $90 million, a sum
that will allow the government to comply with the upcoming month’s co-
mmitments...The Treasury chief said a government shutdown is not on the
table for discussion right now, but there is a contingency plan for reducti-
ons of public workers’ daily working hours to six hours or half a day (four
hours)..."

PREPA FORBEARANCE EXTENDED FOR 48 HOURS

From Caribbean Business:

"A preliminary restructuring agreement between forbearing creditors
and the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority (Prepa) has been put on
hold for 48 hours as a deadline set to expire Tuesday at 8 p.m. approa-
ched. The extension to the forbearance agreement is intended to provi-
de time for the filing of the Prepa Revitalization Act, which is expected
to take place within the next two days..."

LUFTHANSA OPENS FACILITY IN PR

From Fox News Latino:

"German airline Lufthansa's first center for aircraft maintenance, repair
and reconditioning in the Americas was inaugurated over the weekend
in Aguadilla, a city on Puerto Rico's northwest coast, officials said. The
Lufthansa facility will attract new investment from the aerospace indus-
try to the Caribbean island thanks to the development of business allian-
ces and the arrival of other companies in the sector, the Puerto Rican go-
vernment said in a statement..."

Puerto Rico News Digest For October 23, 2015

FEDS RAID HOUSING PROJECT

As reported this morning by El Nuevo Dia, federal agents have been
carrying out an operation since early this morning at Los Claveles
public housing project in Trujillo Alto. Agents are serving four sea-
rch warrants from the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agen-
cy (ICE). The operation has to do with drug trafficking and money
laundering, but ICE did not provide much in the way of further de-
tails, other than to say that illegal material was found among the
four apartments that were searched.  

PREPA TO PROPOSE 4 CENT RATE HIKE

From The San Juan Daily Star:

"The Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority (PREPA) plans to sub-
mit a new rate structure calling for a hike of around four cents, sour-
ces inside the utility said. The utility is still working on a study that
will help it decide what would be the appropriate rate. However, the
four-cent hike was the same as proposed by one of the utility’s insu-
rance companies. PREPA Chief Restructuring Offi cer Lisa Donahue
said on Tuesday that with the savings and cuts that have been made
at the utility, it expects to be able to submit a reasonable rate struct-
ure..."

SANDERS & WARREN BLAST VULTURE FUNDS

From News Is My Business:

"The two most prominent progressives in the U.S. Senate urged the
federal government Thursday to help Puerto Rico stand up against
the “vultures” they largely blame for the island’s current fiscal night-
mare. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), the chief rival of candidate Hilla-
ry Clinton for the 2016 Democratic presidential nomination, took ti-
me out of his packed campaign schedule to engage five witnesses —
including Puerto Rico Gov. Alejandro García-Padilla — who testifi-
ed at a hearing by the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Re-
sources. Sanders, reeling off a raft of statistics on Puerto Rico’s de-
mographic and fiscal decline, called the island’s 56 percent poverty
rate among children a “human tragedy..."

OBAMA SEEKS BANKRUPTCY FOR PR

From The Chicago Tribune:

"President Barack Obama is pressing for Congress to give Puerto Rico
sweeping powers to reduce its $73 billion debt burden through bank-
ruptcy, escalating administration involvement as the Caribbean island's
access to cash dries up. Puerto Rico would be provided with a form of
bankruptcy protection not now available to American territories. Ad-
ministration officials also called for lawmakers late Wednesday to in-
crease health-care funding for Puerto Rico, extend tax credits to the
poor and put independent oversight in place to monitor the govern-
ment's budget..."

POPULAR POSTS $84.7 MILLION PROFIT

From Caribbean Business:

"Popular Inc. on Friday reported third-quarter net income of $84.7 mi-
llion. The Hato Rey, Puerto Rico-based bank said it had earnings of 82
cents per share. Earnings, adjusted for one-time gains and costs, were
90 cents per share. The a company that runs Banco Popular and other
banks in Puerto Rico and the U.S. posted revenue of $481.8 million in
the period..."