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Financial Oversight and Management Board for Puerto Rico

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Financial Oversight and Management Board for Puerto Rico
Junta de Supervisión Fiscal
Agency overview
FormedJune 30, 2016; 8 years ago (2016-06-30)
TypeFinancial regulatory authorities
JurisdictionFederal government of the United States
Agency executive
Parent agencyUnited States Congress
Websiteoversightboard.pr.gov

Financial Oversight and Management Board for Puerto Rico (FOMBPR), colloquially known as La Junta de Control/Supervisión Fiscal is a government entity whose role to revise and approve the budget and obligations of the government of Puerto Rico was created by federal law PROMESA.

History

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Creation

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On August 31, 2016, Barack Obama appointed the seven members of the board.[1][2]

In March 2017, Natalie Jaresko, former Minister of Finance in Ukraine, was appointed as the board's executive director.[3] Her chairmanship was accompanied by multiple protests against the FOMBPR in Puerto Rico, the largest being a protest of 100,000 people in San Juan in the summer of 2019, before announcing her resignation in February 2022 effective on 1 April 2022.[4][5] In 2019, Christian Sobrino, PROMESA's Representative of the Puerto Rican government, resigned in the wake of the Telegramgate scandal effective immediately on July 13, 2019.[6] Robert Mujica became the Oversight Board's executive director on January 1, 2023.[7]

FOMBPR v. Aurelius Investment, LLC

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Main article: Financial Oversight and Management Board for Puerto Rico v. Aurelius Investment, LLC

Composition of the FOMBPR

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Current members

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  Democratic    Republican
Name Began Servic Party
Andrew G. Biggs August 31, 2016 Republican
Betty A. Rosa December 8, 2020 Democratic
John E. Nixon December 8, 2020 Republican
Arthur Gonzalez August 31, 2016 Democratic
David Skeel August 31, 2016 Democratic
Juan A. Sabater January 18, 2024 Democratic
Luis Ubiñas June 26, 2024 Democratic

Former members

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Name[8] Began service Service ended Party
José Carrión III (Former Chairman) August 31, 2016 October 5, 2020 Republican
Carlos García August 31, 2016 August 31, 2020 Republican
José González August 31, 2016 August 31, 2020[9] Democratic
Ana Matosantos August 31, 2016 August 31, 2020 Democratic
Justin Peterson August 31, 2016 August 31, 2020 Democratic
Antonio L. Medina August 31, 2016 August 31, 2020 Democratic

Officers

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Name Position
David Skeel Chairman
Robert Mujica Executive Director
Jaime El Koury Legal Counsel
José R. Pérez-Riera Revitalization Coordinator
Omar Marrero Representative of the government of Puerto Rico

Authority

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Appointed by the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President of the United States, La Junta has authority over the commonwealth's budget, with a mandate to maneuver the liquidity crisis that the island's government faces amidst a shrinking economy and a debt crisis.[10] The board has the authority over "the prompt enforcement of any applicable laws of the covered territory prohibiting public sector employees from participating in a strike or lockout" (PROMESA, 559).[11] La Junta also has the power to fast-track approval of infrastructure projects and public-private partnerships. The law also gives total immunity to the board members in the face of any potential lawsuits.[10]

Opposition

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Puerto Rican business leaders, scholars, teachers, performing artists, and activists have led protests against La Junta.[12] In July 2019, hundreds of thousands of people rallied in the streets of San Juan to chants for Governor Ricardo Rosselló to "resign and take the "junta" with you."[12] Many argue that The Financial Oversight and Management Board for Puerto Rico amounts to the return of colonial rule over Puerto Rico.[13] Among them, Dr. Ronald Mendoza-de Jesus wrote, "Many, myself included, feel that the time has come to finally dispel the fantasy of Puerto Rico's sovereignty under US rule and to take up again the question of the economic and ontological implications of striving to become a sovereign nation."[10] Puerto Rican filmmaker Francis Negrón-Muntaner argues in "The Emptying Island," that PROMESA "marks a transition to a new iteration of colonial-capitalism".[14] Negrón-Muntaner notes that the Board is "composed of individuals with deep ties to the banking and investment world—including some involved in producing the debt crisis—and granted them broad powers over Puerto Rico's elected government to assure that creditors will be paid."[15] In 2019, thirteen members of the United States Congress included Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Bernie Sanders signed a letter that demanded that the Puerto Rico fiscal oversight board, known as "la junta," disclose its conflicts of interest.[16]

In May 2023, the United States Supreme Court ruled against a Puerto Rican media organization in its quest to obtain documents from the Federal Council to oversee the island's financial restructuring. The judges said that Congress has not been clear enough about lifting the Board of Financial Supervision and Management's sovereign immunity, which would allow Centro de Periodismo Investigativo Inc. to subpoena the board over documents related to the restructuring of the economy of Puerto Rico.[1].

Net Metering Controversy

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In the spring of 2024, FOMB sent two letters to the Governor of Puerto Rico and the legislature threatening to overturn a solar net energy metering law, known as Act 10.[17][18] Act 10 was unanimously passed by the legislature in 2023, and signed into law by Governor Pierluisi in January 2024, and it extended net energy metering for new home solar and storage customers until 2031.[19] In their letters, FOMB threatened to nullify Act 10, which would undermine Puerto Rican law, slow down Puerto Rico's efforts to install clean energy, and threaten end a rapidly growing rooftop solar and storage industry.[20]

Backlash to FOMB's efforts to undermine the will of the people was swift, and 21 Members of Congress, including Resident Commissioner Jennifer González-Colón, wrote a letter to FOMB demanding that they protect net energy metering.[21] Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Bernie Sanders, and Nydia Velázquez all signed the letter.[22] In addition to Members of Congress, fifteen non-governmental organizations including NRDC, GRID Alternatives, Community Foundation of Puerto Rico, Environment America, and the League of Conservation Voters all wrote a letter to President Biden asking that he appoint new commissioners to FOMB's board who would protect rooftop solar and storage for the people of Puerto Rico.[23]

In July 2024, US Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm traveled to Puerto Rico and stated the following to El Nuevo Dia, "We support net metering... It’s a tool that has allowed for remarkable progress that has not yet been fully materialized, but we are hopeful for its continuity."[24]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "White House names seven to Puerto Rico oversight board". Washington Post. Retrieved 2016-09-24.
  2. ^ "Puerto Rico oversight board appointed". Reuters. 2016-08-31. Retrieved 24 September 2016.
  3. ^ "Fiscal board chairman: Extent of Puerto Rico crisis justifies new executive director's salary – Caribbean Business". caribbeanbusiness.com. 2017-03-23. Retrieved 2017-04-03.
  4. ^ Noack, David X. (2 April 2022). "Amtszeit der Generaldirektorin der "Junta" von Puerto Rico beendet". amerika21 (in German). Mondial21 e. V. Retrieved 21 February 2023.
  5. ^ "Puerto Rico Oversight Board's Jaresko resigns". The Bond Buyer. February 3, 2022. Retrieved February 7, 2022.
  6. ^ Rosselló Makes Two Appointments
  7. ^ "Robert F. Mujica Jr".
  8. ^ "About Us". Financial Oversight & Management Board for Puerto Rico. Retrieved 2024-01-16.
  9. ^ "José R. González deja la Junta de Supervisión Fiscal" [José R. González leaves the fiscal control board]. El Nuevo Día (in Spanish). 2020-08-04. Retrieved 2021-06-30.
  10. ^ a b c Mendoza-de Jesus, Ronald (2020). Free-dom: United States of Banana and the Limits of Sovereignty (Poets, philosophers, lovers: on the Writings of Giannina Braschi). Aldama, Frederick Luis, O'Dwyer, Tess. Pittsburgh, Pa.: U Pittsburgh. pp. 136–139. ISBN 978-0-8229-4618-2. OCLC 1143649021.
  11. ^ Cabán, Pedro (2020-03-03). "Puerto Rico's Summer 2019 Uprising and the Crisis of Colonialism". Latin American Perspectives. 47 (3): 103–116. doi:10.1177/0094582x20906509. ISSN 0094-582X. S2CID 216276037.
  12. ^ a b "Puerto Ricans Aren't Done Protesting. "La Junta" Is Why". www.vice.com. 25 July 2019. Retrieved 2020-11-09.
  13. ^ Fonseca, Melody (2019-03-17). "Beyond Colonial Entrapment: The Challenges of Puerto Rican "National Consciousness" in Times of Promesa". Interventions. 21 (5): 747–765. doi:10.1080/1369801x.2019.1585917. ISSN 1369-801X. S2CID 150703945.
  14. ^ Riofrio, John (2020). "Rompiendo esquemas" (Poets, philosophers, lovers: on the writings of Giannina Braschi). Aldama, Frederick Luis, O'Dwyer, Tess. Pittsburgh, Pa.: U Pittsburgh. p. 30. ISBN 978-0-8229-4618-2. OCLC 1143649021. PROMESA marks a transition to a new iteration of colonial-capitalism.
  15. ^ "The Emptying Island: Puerto Rican Expulsion in Post-Maria Time". hemisphericinstitute.org. Retrieved 2020-11-09.
  16. ^ Aronoff, Kate; Brown, Alleen (September 24, 2019). "Sanders and Ocasio-Cortez Call for Reversal of Puerto Rico Austerity Measures". The Intercept. Retrieved 2020-11-09.
  17. ^ "FOMB - Letter - AAFAF - Act 10-2024 204(a) - April 10, 2024.pdf". Google Docs. Retrieved 2024-07-23.
  18. ^ "FOMB - Letter - Governor & Legislature - Act 10-2024 Follow-Up - May 2, 2024.pdf". Google Docs. Retrieved 2024-07-23.
  19. ^ Angueira, Gabriela Aoun (2024-02-06). "As states slash rooftop solar incentives, Puerto Rico extends them". Grist. Retrieved 2024-07-23.
  20. ^ "Puerto Rico's rooftop solar boom is at risk, advocates warn". Canary Media. 2024-05-20. Retrieved 2024-07-23.
  21. ^ "Grijalva, González-Colón Lead Bicameral Letter to Puerto Rico Oversight Board Urging Protection of Solar Net Metering | The House Committee on Natural Resources". democrats-naturalresources.house.gov. Retrieved 2024-07-23.
  22. ^ "Grijalva, González-Colón Lead Bicameral Letter to Puerto Rico Oversight Board Urging Protection of Solar Net Metering | The House Committee on Natural Resources". democrats-naturalresources.house.gov. Retrieved 2024-07-23.
  23. ^ "Secure cloud storage that protects your privacy". Sync. Retrieved 2024-07-23.
  24. ^ ""Nosotros apoyamos la medición neta": Jennifer Granholm advierte sobre los efectos de alterar incentivos a los prosumidores". El Nuevo Día (in Spanish). 2024-07-19. Retrieved 2024-07-23.
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