Municipal municipal municipal municipalities Puerto Rico Preti to present energy recovery

Puerto Rican flag is seen behind power and communication lines in San Juan, Puerto Rico. (Photo: Ricardo Arduengo / AFP)

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Puerto Ric’s energy crisis lasted for too long, and Washington finally hinted that the change came.

Earlier this month, President Trump removed Five members of the Financial Supervision and Management of the Island (Gomb), referring to its “ineffective and inefficient“Leadership. After years of poor governance, Puerto Rico Electricity, remains broken, its debt unresolved and billions of federal dollars for recovery.

The service program is owned by the island, prepaid, seated in the center of the riot. Once the only supplier can be powered throughout Puerto Rico, the supremati is drunk in debts and relies on antique power plants that hit some of the largest electricity costs in the United States. In spite of the years of promise, the utility is Failed to to restructure their obligations or transition to a more efficient generation of natural gas. Parnization paused a sustainable job of sustainable debt, leaving maps and American taxpayers to bear the cost of dysfunction.

The Energy Administration Recently, he discovered that PuertoKiqs lose strength on average 27 hours each year. It’s on land average for only two hours. Even more worrisome, interrupts on the island is more common than 2021 every year. Years. Despite more than 20 billion dollars in financing federal recovery, from hurricane by Urama Irma and Maria, lights continue to go out over the island.

As I wrote before, Puerto Rico supported The lawsuit of the Prosecutorial Attachment on California against American petroleum and gas companies, seek more than $ 1 billion of energy producers for alleged public deceptions on fossil fuel risks and their contribution to climate change. Puerto Rico Gov. Jeniffer gonzalez colon discarded A lawsuit against energy producers, bringing Commonwealth in accordance with Ageda TrumpPa Adpertiona Domenańsa DimeInge.

Unfortunately, more than a dozen Puerto Rico Municipality is persevered with a campaign Against American companies by targeting FEMA recovery dollars. Almost a decade after the acquisitions of Cobra have been renovated a large part of the network under an emergency-funded contract, local mayors require more than 70 million dollars of so-called unpaid construction taxes. The lawsuke neglect the fact that the federal working water was derived for the preparations exempt from these taxes.

If these municipalities succeed, the precedent would be catastrophic. Contractors can face the years of retroactive job lawsuits performed in good faith under the federal authority. Recovery costs would be picked up, discouraging qualified companies to collect after future disasters. And in Puerto Rico, each additional dollar redirected to litigation is a dollar that is not available for generation restoration, to strengthen the transmission or lower electricity costs.

In the meantime, billions in federal funds remain ineffection. Prepea has recently submitted a Consolidated project plan For FEMA, seeking about $ 3.6 billion for long-term network modernization. At the same time, the Security Homeland Department gave the Secretary of Christ NOEM New powers to review major contracts and grants. It should be used to ensure that FEMA dollars are running in infrastructure, not in court in the courtroom. Falling or retaining funds until Governor Jeniffer Gonzalez Colon reins in municipal litigation can be the only way to restore responsibility.

President Trump’s National Chamber on Energy Domination It can play a leading role in Puerto Rico recovery, harmonizing federal surveillance with the agenda that uses American energy abundance. The reconstituted football should determine priorities for priority restructuring, fast-track generation of natural gases and LNG imported projects and work with private partners to build modern, elastic networks.

The stakes are high. Puerto Ricovci deserves accessible, reliable government, and American taxpayers deserve to know that recovery funds are used to strengthen the network, not bankrupt frivolous lawsuits.

Puerto Rico has a choice. It can continue the cycle of poor management and litigation or install this moment to modernize the grid of the island and settled with the American energy future. With the new supervision, strong federal leadership and the end of municipal money, Commonwealth will finally submit a stable and prosperous energy system promise.