FEMA awards $646 million in Hurricane Fiona relief 

FEMA announced last week that it has awarded over $646 million in Individual Assistance (IA) grants to people impacted by Hurricane Fiona since it made landfall in Puerto Rico nearly a year ago. More than 740,000 households have received this funding to repair and rebuild their homes. Included in this funding was an outreach program called “Enhanced Applicant Services” to assist people who otherwise may have been found ineligible because they lacked necessary documentation, such as ownership documents or income information.

Puerto Rico economy expected to grow 1.8% over next decade 

The Puerto Rican economy is expected to grow by 1.8% over the next ten years according to 2023-2033 projections released by the Puerto Rico Planning Board. The projections use information from Puerto Rico’s revised fiscal plan released this past April and considers federal funds like FEMA grants, Community Development Block Grants (CDBGs), work credits, and revenue collections by the Treasury Department. The projection anticipates shrinking inflation and unemployment rates.

LUMA announces vegetation clearing program

LUMA, Puerto Rico’s power company, announced a vegetation clearing initiative last week that leverages federal funding to address overgrowth over 16,000 miles of transmission and distribution power lines and critical substations and telecom sites. The initiative will begin in Q4 2023 and is expected to last three years. The program is expected to improve power system reliability and resiliency, while making it easier to rebuild the grid in the future. It is estimated that vegetation is the leading cause of power outages on the Island, responsible for over half of all incidents.

Polytechnic University of Puerto Rico announces new lab in Central Florida 

An Orlando satellite campus of the Polytechnic University of Puerto Rico has broken ground on a new aerospace lab for engineering students. The lab will provide specialized tracks for advanced technology, including unmanned aerial systems design and propulsion system design. Central Florida is home to a competitive and growing aerospace industry, which includes NASA, SpaceX, and Blue Origin, among other major organizations. The lab is expected to open for students in the Fall of 2024.