Governor Wanda Vazquez Garced has announced the there will be a status referendum on November 3rd, 2020, the general Election Day. Puerto Ricans do not have the opportunity to vote in presidential elections, but the territory holds elections on the same date States use for presidential votes. This will also be the opportunity to vote… Read more »
Rep. Nydia Velazquez (D-NY) asked why Puerto Rico and other U.S. territories were not included in the Federal Reserve’s emergency lending program at a House Financial Services virtual round table discussion. Federal Reserve Vice Chair of Supervision Randal Quarles said that Puerto Rico was not eligible for the loans, and that additional debt would not… Read more »
The Democratic majority in the House of Representatives has proposed a new coronavirus relief bill called “the HEROES Act,” which stands for the ‘‘Health and Economic Recovery Omnibus Emergency Solutions Act.’’ El Nuevo Dia estimates that the total payments to the Island could near $20 billion. An early version of the bill lists many allocations… Read more »
Congress has passed three bills providing economic relief to individuals and businesses affected by COVID-19. The first bill is known as the Families First Act. One provision of the act, the Pandemic Electronic Benefit Transfer (P-EBT), is intended to provide additional food resources for children who usually get free meals at school. Since this is… Read more »
The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act) includes a onetime cash payment of up to $1,200 directly to each eligible adult and $500 per child. Although Puerto Ricans are among those eligible for this payment, their payments were delayed as the U.S. Treasury Department had to take the extra step of approving… Read more »
Puerto Rico Resident Commissioner Jenniffer González-Colón and Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Small Business, have reported that the federal Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) has approved loans for Puerto Rico amounting to nearly $2 billion. The loans are designed for small businesses, using the Small Business Administration’s definition of a small… Read more »
On May 1st, Puerto Rico Governor Wanda Vázquez-Garced issued Executive Order No. 2020-038 detailing the ongoing restrictions on individuals and businesses in Puerto Rico. The general curfew has been extended till May 25th. People may leave their homes between 5:00 a.m.and 7:00 p.m. only for the following reasons: To attend medical appointments To buy food,… Read more »
Puerto Rico will maintain its curfews, among the strictest in the United States, until May 25. However, Governor Wanda Vazquez Garced has announced that businesses may open before this date. May 4 openings The first group of businesses that will reopen will be financial, mortgage, insurance, real estate, notary, professional services, engineering and accounting industries…. Read more »
Puerto Rico’s Financial Oversight and Management Board (FOMB) has sent a letter to Governor Wanda Velazquez Garced to propose strategies for using coronavirus relief funds. Puerto Rico has been allocated $2.2 billion from a $150 billion fund dedicated to state, territorial and tribal governments under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and. Economic Security (CARES) Act. “This funding,… Read more »
A letter from the Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC) to Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi asks that the particular needs of Hispanic Americans be considered in upcoming legislation in response to the coronavirus. The letter began by pointing out that minority communities are being affected disproportionately by the pandemic the whole country is facing. Not… Read more »
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