Puerto Rico News Digest For May 27, 2016

PROMESA ADVANCES TO HOUSE FLOOR

From News Is My Business:

"The PROMESA Act (H.R. 5278), the bill aimed to address Puerto Rico’s
debt crisis, passed in the U.S. House Natural Resources Committee Wednes-
day with bipartisan support from lawmakers. The final vote tally was 29 in fa-
vor and 10 opposed. Of the 24 Republicans on the Committee that voted, 14 --
or nearly 60 percent — voted “yes.” Of the 16 Democrats on the Committee that
voted, 15 voted “yes” and one voted “present.”..The measure was approved with
amendments that Pierluisi said will “strengthen the bill or are technical  in nature...”

PREPA RATE INCREASE SPARKS OUTRAGE

From The San Juan Daily Star:

"Puerto Rico’s heavily indebted electric company announced Tuesday that it is
seeking a more than 20 percent increase in the island’s already high power bills,
sparking outrage among many who note the agency faces numerous corruption
allegations. The Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority (PREPA) said the increa-
se would allow it to keep operating and help boost its dwindling liquidity. Offic-
ials said the additional revenue also would let the company restructure its $9 bill-
ion debt load, reduce its dependence on petroleum and renovate obsolete infras-
tructure..."

SENATE OVERRIDES GOVERNOR'S TAX VETOES

From Caribbean Business:

"The Senate on Thursday agreed to override Gov. Alejandro Garcia Padilla’s
veto on the bill that would repeal the hike to the business-to-business (B2B)
tax and the value-added tax (VAT) or IVA in Spanish. The B2B was slated to
go into effect next week. The lawmakers’ decision was made in part because
of a request made by Popular Democratic Party gubernatorial candidate David
Bernier..."

US SWIMMING DUMPS PR OVER ZIKA

From Tribu Magazine:

"Frank Busch, the U.S. national team director, sent out a letter Thursday to all
national team athletes and coaches telling them of the change. The camp will
now be held in Atlanta instead of Puerto Rico in late July. "As part of our prepa-
rations for the Olympic Games this summer, we have been closely monitoring the
current situation with the Zika virus", Busch wrote in his letter, which was obtai-
ned by The Associated Press...The U.S. team is still scheduled to hold a training
camp in San Antonio from July 11-21..."

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The Puerto Rico Monitor will be on break for the Memorial Day holiday until 
Wednesday, June 1st. See you then and have a great weekend.

Puerto Rico News Digest For March 27, 2015

LUGARO'S OFFICE RAIDED BY AUTHORITIES

El Nuevo Dia

The Truillo Alto offices of América Aponte & Associates, the educational
company led by independent gubernatorial candidate and  lawyer Alexandra
Lúgaro, has been raided this morning by agents  from the FBI, ICE and the
Department of Education. The action is part of 17 such raids being conduc-
ted today on businesses across the island, and may have to do with a fraud
investigation involving companies that provide services to the Department
of Education. An FBI spokesman would not specify what the exact reason
for the raids was.

Lúgaro, who had  announced her candidacy on March 17, stated that she
was willing to cooperate with law enforcement: "I've always acted within
the law. They can take everything. I don't have anything. I've done things
correctly."

Follow our Twitter feed, @ThePRMonitor for the latest developments.

TRAFFIC HEADACHES ON PR-52 THIS MORNING

Photo: @portotay (Twitter)

The reversible lane on Luis A. Ferré Expressway (PR-52) from Caguas
to San Juan is closed this morning, causing massive traffic jams on that
stretch of road. Drivers are advised to take Road PR-1 as an alternate
route. The reason given by the Roads & Transportation Authority for
the closure was that a part in the equipment that moves the barriers to
change the lane's direction is broken. However, the agency's director
also admitted this morning that they owe money to the company that
manages the expressway, although she added that the financial issues
have "nothing to do" with today's situation. No exact time has been
given for the lane's reopening.

NPP REP: LISTEN TO MAYORS ON IVA OPPOSITION

From The San Juan Daily Star:

New Progressive Party (NPP) Rep. Gabriel Rodríguez Aguiló on
Wednesday called on Gov. Alejandro García Padilla to “use his
conscience” after mayors of the Popular Democratic Party (PDP)
who oppose the 16 percent value-added tax met with him Tuesday
at La Fortaleza and were left unconvinced by the governor on
why the tax should be implemented and why it would be good for
the salaried middle class. “I invite the governor and the PDP
majority to set aside the improvisation and work on the economic
issues with seriousness and moderation,” Rodríguez Aguiló said.

COAST GUARD SEIZED 1,100 LBS OF COCAINE

From Latin Post:

The U.S. Coast Guard last week seized a shipment of about 1,100
pounds of cocaine worth some $16 million off the coast of Puerto
Rico, Miami ABC affiliate WPLG reported. The USCGC Tahoma on
March 18 intercepted a suspicious go-fast, which had been detected by
a Joint Interagency Taskforce South maritime patrol aircraft and was
heading towards the U.S. territory, Fort Myers' Fox 4 detailed. Once
the Tahoma seized the contraband,  Coast Guardsmen arrested three
citizens of the Dominican Republic,  who were later transferred into
the custody of Drug Enforcement  Administration special agents in
Puerto Rico and are now facing charges.

PR TO RECEIVE WORLD'S TWO BIGGEST CRUISES

From UT San Diego/AP:

Puerto Rico is preparing to welcome the world's two largest cruise ships
for the first time next year. The executive director of the island's Tourism
Company says Royal  Caribbean's Allure of the Seas and Oasis of the Seas
will bring an estimated 60,000 passengers to San Juan in 2016. Next year's
visits are expected to generate an estimated $6.4 million in revenue.

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.



More headlines on our Twitter feed.

New VAT System Too Complex

Editorial

Caribbean Business

Puerto Rico Treasury Secretary Juan Zaragoza has his hands full these days
as he is trying mightily to explain the reasoning behind Gov. Alejandro
García Padilla's new tax reform, which calls for a transformation to a value-
added tax (VAT, or IVA by its Spanish acronym) system. Zaragoza's job
couldn't be more difficult as the measure is drawing the broadest opposition
that this newspaper has witnessed in a long time.

Important mayors belonging to the incumbent governor's Popular Democra-
tic Party (PDP), such as those of San Juan, Caguas and Mayagüez, as well as
former PDP Govs. Rafael Hernández Colón and Aníbal Acevedo Vilá have
come out against the VAT proposal; their voices of dissent are joined by
leaders from the opposition...[CONTINUE READING]