GOVERNOR TO MEET WITH LAWMAKERS AND TRUMP ADMINISTRATION OFFICIALS IN WASHINGTON, D.C.

Puerto Rico Governor Wanda Vázquez will spend most of this week in Washington D.C. “This week I will meet with members of Congress and different federal officials, with the purpose of reestablishing the credibility and transparency of our work in the U.S. capital. Furthermore, the purpose of this trip is to ensure the disbursement of funds to rebuild Puerto Rico and for education, healthcare, and other services,” announced the governor in a press release.  

On Monday, Governor Vázquez met with officials from the Department of Education and the Department of Health and Human Services, to discuss funds whose disbursement was hindered by the July corruption scandals. Today, Vázquez was set to meet with the White House’s Director of Intergovernmental Affairs, Doug Hoelscher, as well as with Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, HUD Secretary Ben Carson, and Assistant Secretary of Energy (Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability) Bruce Walker. On Wednesday, she plans to meet with Reps. José Serrano (D-NY), Nydia Velázquez (D-NY), Darren Soto (D-FL), and Rob Bishop (R-UT). On Thursday, she will meet with acting FEMA administrator Peter Gaynor and deputy administrator Jeff Byard. She will also meet with Senators Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), Rick Scott (R-FL), and Reps. Greg Walden (R-OR) and Stephanie Murphy (D-FL). Governor Vázquez is expected to return to Puerto Rico on September 13.  

HUD Misses Relief Fund Allocation Deadline; Democrats Vow to Investigate

Last week, the Department of Housing and Urban Development missed a key deadline for the publication of allocations and administrative requirements for the pending $8.9 billion in Community Development Block Grants – Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) for Puerto Rico. By law, these funds were to have been allocated by September 4. In contrast, on August 30, HUD published the allocations and administrative requirements for California, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Missouri, North Carolina, South Carolina, Texas and West Virginia. On Sept. 4, HUD published a subsequent notice for the U.S. Virgin Islands.

“Despite supplemental appropriations approved by Congress and enacted into law to help states and territories recover, the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has yet to make this funding available for necessary recovery and mitigation efforts,” House Appropriations Committee Chairwoman Nita Lowey (D-NY) and Housing subcommittee chairman Rep. David Price (D-NC) wrote in a joint letter. A hearing on the matter is being planned.  

In Puerto Rico, several mayors have expressed anxiety regarding the delay of these funds, considered an essential part of Puerto Rico’s efforts to recover after Hurricane Maria devastated the Island two years ago. “We still haven’t seen a single cent,” said Arecibo mayor Carlos Molina, head of the Federation of Mayors, an organization composed of New Progressive Party municipal executives. According to government figures, 30,000 homes in Puerto Rico still use plastic tarps as roofing following the hurricane.  

New Puerto Rico Land Use Zoning Map Raises Protests

A zoning map recently unveiled by the Puerto Rico Planning Board has raised protests in Puerto Rico, with more than 10,000 residents signing a letter opposing its adoption. The Mapa de Distrito de Calificación de Suelos, or Soil Classification District Map, introduced on July 15—amidst the scandals that brought down former governor Ricardo Rosselló Nevares—reclassifies much of Puerto Rico’s land, and would, according to former Planning Board president Luis García Pelatti, “signify the loss of protections and the inadequate development of areas of historical, architectural, archeological, natural, agricultural, and aesthetic value.” 

The new map, which would overturn existing plans that grant municipalities wide latitude in deciding the use of their terrains, would consolidate many previously existing land use categories and open up areas previously zoned as natural resource areas, agricultural areas, or residential areas, for various different types of uses.

In response to the public outcry—which has included protests in front of the governor’s mansion—Maria del Carmen Gordillo, current president of the Planning Board, announced that she would extend the original two-week period for public comment through Sept. 9.