Today the U.S. Senate Finance Committee will hold a hearing on the “Financial and Economic Challenges in Puerto Rico.”
Absent from the list of witnesses list is Puerto Rican Governor Alejandro García Padilla, who has been advocating for Chapter 9 bankruptcy for the Island and whose policies have worsened the economic environment in Puerto Rico. García Padilla declined an invitation to appear, according to a press release issued last week by Puerto Rican Resident Commissioner Pedro Pierluisi, who serves in the U.S. House of Representatives.
It is disappointing that Governor García Padilla has declined to participate in today’s hearing. This issue is a matter of critical importance to Puerto Rican families struggling to live under the consequences of Garcia Padilla’s poor policy decisions. By not attending today, the governor is sending yet another signal that he is not interested in implementing reforms that would actually place the Island on a path to economic prosperity.
For the sake of hardworking Puerto Rican families, let’s hope that the Senate committee makes progress on analyzing the debt issue and can be a catalyst for true reforms for Puerto Rico.
