Tax Reform (Again)

The consensus in Puerto Rico is that a broad-based tax reform is long overdue. It is important to understand, however, that tax policy involves difficult trade-offs among various objectives. We at the Center for a New Economy believe the following principles should guide any tax reform effort in Puerto Rico.

Selected Highlights of the Fiscal Plan for Fiscal Year 2022

On January 27, 2022, the Fiscal Oversight and Management Board (“FOMB”) for Puerto Rico certified a new Fiscal Plan for Fiscal Year 2022. In this report, we highlight for our readers some of the most important components of the Fiscal Plan.

A Short History of the Demise of Puerto Rico’s Electric System

The recent outages of Puerto Rico’s electric system have generated plenty of uninformed debate. That situation prompted us to go through the archives and look up the Official Statements for PREPA’s last two bond offerings, dated April 12, 2012 and August 15, 2013, respectively. These documents contain a wealth of data and information about Puerto Rico’s electricity system.

The Short Memory of the Masters of Disaster

Recently, we have been hearing some unreasonably rosy statements about how well the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority used to work. That is why I looked up the Official Statements for PREPA’s last two bond offerings, dated April 12, 2012, and August 15, 2013. These documents contain a wealth of data and information about Puerto Rico’s electricity system.

The Threefold Challenge to the Puerto Rican Economy

The Puerto Rican economy is simultaneously recovering from three systemic shocks: the COVID-19 pandemic, the considerable damage inflicted by Hurricanes Irma and Maria, and the upcoming creditor’s vote on the Plan of Adjustment negotiated by the FOMB.