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Velazquez on President’s Comments about “Wiping Out” Puerto Rico’s Debt

October 4, 2017

Velázquez on President’s Comments about “Wiping Out” Puerto Rico’s Debt

Washington, DC –Rep. Nydia M. Velázquez (D-NY) issued the following statement today regarding the President's comments alluding to debt forgiveness for Puerto Rico:

"It seems one of the few positives out of the President's trip to Puerto Rico is an acknowledgement of how the Island's debt will constrain its physical and economic recovery. While I agree with the sentiment that something will need to be done to address the Island's financial challenges, the President failed to lay out any specifics as to how he would ‘wipe out' Puerto Rico's debt.

"I've advocated for additional funding to address Puerto Rico's looming Medicaid cliff, a long term fix for the Island's Medicaid shortage, a line of credit from the Treasury Department to assist with short term liquidity issues, and a robust funding package to pay for disaster recovery. Since the President seems to acknowledge the difficulties Puerto Rico faces, I'm hopeful he can get behind some of these specific policy proposals.

"Last year, after painstaking and difficult negotiations, Congress passed PROMESA to help Puerto Rico restructure its debt. If the President wishes to be further helpful in this regard, I'd encourage him to pick up the phone, call some of Puerto Rico's creditors directly and ask them to afford the Island greater debt relief."

Issues:Puerto Rico