Puerto Rico's Unemployment Rate Plummeting: Proof that Conservative Fiscal Policy Can Quickly Turn an Economy Around?

By Justin Vélez-Hagan
Published August 14, 2011
| Fox News Latino

Whether discussing debt, downgrades, spending, taxes, regulation, or any number of other topics related to the country’s fiscal standing, Americans’ concerns can be summed up in one demonstrative measure: job growth.

Jobs are what give people the income they need to take care of themselves and their families, the ability to buy goods and services that others produce, and the morale booster that comes with knowing that their lives have meaning and purpose. With an unemployment rate that has dropped nearly two percentage points - from 16.9% to 14.9% - since March of this year, Puerto Rico, a tiny island with a population greater than 22 U.S. states, may just have the formula for substantial job growth.

Pundits, editorialists, and policy makers alike have all made their opinions known about the fiercely controversial and radical conservative fiscal policies that the current Governor of Puerto Rico, Luis Fortuño, and his administration have proposed. Governor Fortuño started by laying off tens of thousands of government employees in order to make the government’s first payroll, formulating policies that ensured the government’s first credit rating upgrade by Moody’s and S&P in three decades, cutting taxes across the board for both small and large businesses, reducing the bureaucratic “red tape” necessary to start a small business, and establishing programs to boost housing sales as well as to decrease energy costs.

Despite the naysayers, protestors, and congressional opponents who doubt the predicted effects, few can argue the current successes of these policies. Since 2008, Puerto Rico’s deficit has dropped by nearly 70%, credit rating upgrades have allowed for increased bond sales and a reduction in interest payments, and new and existing businesses are taking advantage of lower tax rates and a decreased bureaucracy. Notwithstanding these immense improvements that have come as a result of Governor Fortuño’s admittedly conservative philosophies, in order to convince the public that the economy has improved, jobs need to be created.

Puerto Rico may have just provided the political evidence that effectively sways the minds of the public, finalizing the debate surrounding conservative fiscal policy. Since March of this year, Puerto Rico has exhibited the greatest decline in unemployment numbers anywhere in the country, allowing for the creation of more jobs at a faster pace than most of the states. Although Puerto Rico still has the country’s highest employment rate at 14.9% (latest, unrevised June figures), if the trend continues it will be one of the biggest turnarounds in recent economic history.

After only a few months of positive numbers, the magical formula for fiscal recovery has yet to be confirmed. Nonetheless, if the trend continues, even in a more trivial fashion, the employment outlook in Puerto Rico will be far healthier than that of the rest of the country.

Given that unemployment in the U.S. has been stagnant, at best, over the last two years, perhaps policymakers should take another look at a fiscal policy that we know works, and consider the island of Puerto Rico’s model. After all, if our national unemployment was predicted to be as encouraging as on the island, there would be fewer doubts cast upon policymakers’ re-election prospects.

Justin Vélez-Hagan is the National Executive Director of The National Puerto Rican Chamber of Commerce, Publisher of MinorityEconomicReport.com, an international developer of senior living facilities, a member of the U.S. Air Force Reserve, and a member of several national non-profit advisory councils. He can be reached at JustinV@NPRChamber.org.

Read more: http://latino.foxnews.com/latino/politics/2011/08/14/puerto-rico-unemployment-rate-plummeting-proof-that-conservative-fiscal-policy/#ixzz1V6Zv3xju

Luis Fortuño

Por Lincoln Díaz-Balart

Diario Las Americas

Publicado el 07-29-2011

El Gobernador de Puerto Rico, Luis Fortuño, está dando múltiples ejemplos de brillantez, carácter, y extraordinaria imaginación en su trayectoria como el más importante líder político de la isla del encanto, y uno de los más impresionantes líderes hispanos de Estados Unidos.

Las circunstancias que confrontaron a Fortuño cuando asumió la posición de Gobernador no pudieron haber sido más difíciles. Ninguna jurisdicción de Estados Unidos tenía un déficit presupuestario mayor como porcentaje de sus ingresos. En dos años, Fortuño logró reducir el déficit por un 81 por ciento y está en un claro camino a equilibrar el presupuesto del gobierno de Puerto Rico. Por primera vez en unos 30 años, las agencias de clasificación crediticia han incrementado la calidad de la deuda de Puerto Rico (Standard and Poors, por ejemplo, ha subido la clasificación de Puerto Rico de BBB- a BBB).

Fortuño ha reducido los impuestos para todos los puertorriqueños. Iniciativas de Fortuño para la venta y la construcción de viviendas también han sido verdaderamente extraordinarias. Fortuño redujo los impuestos para los compradores, los vendedores y los inversionistas en el sector inmobiliario, y eliminó los impuestos por 10 años sobre los ingresos relacionados a propiedades inmobiliarias. Durante los primeros 10 meses del programa, las ventas de viviendas nuevas subieron en un 90 por ciento y de viviendas existentes en un 20 por ciento.

El Gobernador Fortuño ha implementado un programa innovador de sociedades entre el gobierno y la libre empresa para la construcción y renovación de la infraestructura de Puerto Rico (Public-Private Partnerships, o PPPs). El mes pasado, por ejemplo, Puerto Rico anunció que casi 1500 millones de dólares han sido invertidos en proyectos privados de infraestructura solo en este año, una de las mayores cantidades de inversión en todas las jurisdicciones de Estados Unidos. Una "PPP" está invirtiendo casi $800 millones para modernizar 95 escuelas y construir 5 nuevas escuelas. Otra "PPP" modernizará el aeropuerto principal de la isla. Se proyecta que estos proyectos crearán casi 30,000 nuevos empleos.

No ha sido fácil la labor de Luis Fortuño. Los gobiernos anteriores habían dejado a Puerto Rico prácticamente en la bancarrota y, además, se habían acostumbrado a incrementar los impuestos continuamente para pagar sus cuentas, convirtiendo a Puerto Rico en una económica casi inviable e imposible de competir internacionalmente. El proceso para abrir una nueva empresa en Puerto Rico era difícil y costoso. El Gobernador Fortuño simplificó ese proceso dramáticamente. En vez de tener que obtener casi 30 permisos, en múltiples sitios, Fortuño ha reducido el proceso a una oficina, un sitio, para la obtención de todos los permisos necesarios para abrir una nueva empresa en Puerto Rico. Esa importante reforma, en mi opinión, será fundamental para la creación de cientos de miles de nuevos puestos de trabajo en el futuro para el pueblo puertorriqueño.

A mí no me ha sorprendido la brillantez y la capacidad de decisión de Luis Fortuño como Gobernador de Puerto Rico. Lo conozco desde hace muchos años. Fuimos colegas en el Congreso federal de Estados Unidos. Más que un Gobernador, Luis Fortuño es un verdadero Estadista. Lo felicito de todo corazón por sus éxitos, por su coraje, y su visión.

http://www.diariolasamericas.com/noticia/125520/contentinfusion_lis.php

President announces Debt-Limit Deal

THE WHITE HOUSE
Office of the Press Secretary
For Immediate Release
July 31, 2011

REMARKS BY THE PRESIDENT
James S. Brady Press Briefing Room
8:40 P.M. EDT

THE PRESIDENT: Good evening. There are still some very important votes to be taken by members of Congress, but I want to announce that the leaders of both parties, in both chambers, have reached an agreement that will reduce the deficit and avoid default -- a default that would have had a devastating effect on our economy.

The first part of this agreement will cut about $1 trillion in spending over the next 10 years -- cuts that both parties had agreed to early on in this process. The result would be the lowest level of annual domestic spending since Dwight Eisenhower was President -- but at a level that still allows us to make job-creating investments in things like education and research. We also made sure that these cuts wouldn’t happen so abruptly that they’d be a drag on a fragile economy.

Now, I've said from the beginning that the ultimate solution to our deficit problem must be balanced. Despite what some Republicans have argued, I believe that we have to ask the wealthiest Americans and biggest corporations to pay their fair share by giving up tax breaks and special deductions. Despite what some in my own party have argued, I believe that we need to make some modest adjustments to programs like Medicare to ensure that they’re still around for future generations.

That's why the second part of this agreement is so important. It establishes a bipartisan committee of Congress to report back by November with a proposal to further reduce the deficit, which will then be put before the entire Congress for an up or down vote. In this stage, everything will be on the table. To hold us all accountable for making these reforms, tough cuts that both parties would find objectionable would automatically go into effect if we don’t act. And over the next few months, I’ll continue to make a detailed case to these lawmakers about why I believe a balanced approach is necessary to finish the job.

Now, is this the deal I would have preferred? No. I believe that we could have made the tough choices required -- on entitlement reform and tax reform -- right now, rather than through a special congressional committee process. But this compromise does make a serious down payment on the deficit reduction we need, and gives each party a strong incentive to get a balanced plan done before the end of the year.

Most importantly, it will allow us to avoid default and end the crisis that Washington imposed on the rest of America. It ensures also that we will not face this same kind of crisis again in six months, or eight months, or 12 months. And it will begin to lift the cloud of debt and the cloud of uncertainty that hangs over our economy.

Now, this process has been messy; it’s taken far too long. I've been concerned about the impact that it has had on business confidence and consumer confidence and the economy as a whole over the last month. Nevertheless, ultimately, the leaders of both parties have found their way toward compromise. And I want to thank them for that.

Most of all, I want to thank the American people. It’s been your voices -- your letters, your emails, your tweets, your phone calls -- that have compelled Washington to act in the final days. And the American people's voice is a very, very powerful thing.

We’re not done yet. I want to urge members of both parties to do the right thing and support this deal with your votes over the next few days. It will allow us to avoid default. It will allow us to pay our bills. It will allow us to start reducing our deficit in a responsible way. And it will allow us to turn to the very important business of doing everything we can to create jobs, boost wages, and grow this economy faster than it's currently growing.

That’s what the American people sent us here to do, and that’s what we should be devoting all of our time to accomplishing in the months ahead.

Thank you very much, everybody.

END 8:44 P.M. EDT

Pierluisi’s Statement on Legislation to Reauthorize the Marine Turtle Conservation Act

Hon. Pedro R. Pierluisi
Statement on Hearing on H.R. 1761, Marine Turtle Conservation Reauthorization Act
Subcommittee on Fisheries, Wildlife, Oceans and Insular Affairs
July 28, 2011

Thank you, Chairman Fleming. First, I want to express my sincere gratitude to you and Ranking Member Sablan for scheduling this hearing today on the three multinational species conservation bills, including my bipartisan bill, H.R. 1761, the Marine Turtle Conservation Reauthorization Act. I also thank you, Mr. Chairman, for inviting as a witness my constituent, Carlos Diez, a biologist with the Government of Puerto Rico’s Department of Natural and Environmental Resources. And I thank the other witnesses for appearing today, including Teiko Saito, for representing the dedicated employees of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and Ian Somerhalder, who is a great champion for wildlife conservation.

Having survived for nearly 110 million years, marine turtles are among the world’s oldest species. Marine turtles—like other majestic wildlife species that capture our hearts and imaginations—are imperiled. Once plentiful, six of the seven documented species of marine turtles are listed today as endangered, their survival threatened by various factors, including human exploitation and encroachment into their natural habitat.

Fortunately, we have in place a program at the Department of the Interior that supports partnerships and projects around the world to protect these species. This is because in 2004, in the face of declining marine turtle populations worldwide, Congress enacted—and President George W. Bush signed into law—the Marine Turtle Conservation Act. This Act, which expired at the end of 2009, authorized the Fish and Wildlife Service to use a small amount of federal funding to support conservation efforts aimed at saving these magnificent species.

Since 2005, the program has been highly successful. Hundreds of applications have competed for $5.9 million in appropriated funds, which in turn helped secure an additional $8.6 million in non-federal funds—a remarkable return on investment. This program has served to position the United States as the world’s leader in marine turtle conservation.

As Puerto Rico’s representative in Congress, I have a particularly keen interest in—and special appreciation for—marine turtles. At least four of the seven species of marine turtles are found in Puerto Rico’s waters or nest on our beaches. Those turtle species are: the Leatherback, the Hawksbill, the Green Turtle, and the Loggerhead. Indeed, all of the coastal waters surrounding Culebra Island and Mona Island in Puerto Rico are designated as “critical habitats” by the federal government.

Mindful of the difficult fiscal environment, the bill I have introduced would reauthorize this program from 2012 to 2017 at current funding levels. Importantly, the bill would amend existing law to allow the Fish and Wildlife Service to award grants for conservation projects within the United States and its territories, a power the agency does not presently possess. This approach would ensure that federal support is available to conserve the six species of marine turtles listed under the Endangered Species Act, all of which nest on U.S. beaches or are found in U.S. waters. I believe the survival of these species is important for its own sake, and also because they are instrumental in ensuring the health of the ocean ecosystem.

Thank you again, Mr. Chairman, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Las fechas de las primarias

Por Kenneth D. McClintock Hernández

Desde mediados de la década de los '70, comenzó una lucha lidereada por Franklin Delano López, con la colaboración de un grupo de ciudadanos que incluía al politólogo Juan Manuel García Passalacqua, los doctores Fernando Iturrino y Charlie Lafont, mi madre, la profesora Nívea Hernández de McClintock, y otros, en la que los demócratas estadistas logramos abrir las puertas del Partido Demócrata para que, primero, dejara de ser una colectividad en que a los estadistas se les negaba la entrada, y segundo, obligar al partido nacional a dejar de tratar a Puerto Rico en forma diferente a un estado.

Como resultado de esos logros, el Partido Demócrata Nacional, que solo le reconocía unos 8 delegados al territorio de Puerto Rico, aumentó nuestra delegación a 22 en la convención nacional demócrata de 1976, después a cuarentipico y ya para el 2008 a 59.

Para el año 2012, la delegación demócrata de Puerto Rico podría crecer a tanto como 68-69 delegados si aprovechamos varios incentivos que el partido nacional le ofrece a los diversos estados.

A fin de acortar el calendario de selección de delegados, el Partido Demócrata (DNC) y el Partido Republicano (RNC) acordaron una "ventana" de fechas fuera de la cual, con raras y pre-acordadas excepciones, no se permite la celebración de primarias o caucuses para la selección de delegados.(1) Esa ventana es desde el primer martes de marzo hasta el segundo martes de junio. Las excepciones se limitan a los 4 estados a quienes tradicionalmente se les ha permitido adelantarse a esa ventana, incluyendo solamente a:

a-Iowa, que puede celebrar sus caucuses hasta 29 días antes de la ventana

b-New Hampshire, que puede celebrar sus primarias hasta 21 días antes de la ventana

c-Nevada, que puede celebrar sus caucuses hasta 17 días antes de la ventana, y

d-South Carolina, que puede celebrar sus primarias hasta 7 días antes de la ventana

Para asegurar que ningún estado rompa con esta disciplina, acordada bipartitamente entre el DNC y el RNC, el Partido Demócrata ha instituído una serie de penalidades e incentivos para que nadie viole, como intentaron hacerlo los estados de Florida y Michigan en el 2008, este calendario.

Los estados que se salgan de la ventana de fechas permisibles automáticamente pierden el 50% de sus delegados y el 100% de sus miembros del DNC pierden el derecho al voto como delegados.

A fin de incentivar que los estados se unan regionalmente para celebrar sus caucuses y primarias en la misma fecha, se les provee un incremento de 15% en sus delegados si tres o más estados vecinos se ponen de acuerdo en una misma fecha.

A fin de incentivar que no se adelanten las fechas, los estados que tienen primarias o caucuses entre el 1 de mayo y 10 de junio y no las adelanten tendrán 20% más delegados.

En otras palabras, nuestra delegación demócrata de Puerto Rico puede crecer de 58 a 69 delegados si nos unimos a otros dos territorios para celebrar la selección de delegados en la misma fecha y si no adelantamos la fecha.

Los demócratas estadistas hemos visto nuestra representación crecer en la delegación puertorriqueña de 0 en 1972, y 8 de 22 en 1976 a la mitad de la delegación en convenciones recientes. En el 2008 en particular, aunque los demócratas estadistas pudiéramos haber estado fraccionados entre los anteriores favorecedores de Obama y Hillary para la presidencia, y Rosselló y Fortuño para la candidatura progresista a la gobernación, confeccionamos una delegación demócrata estadista con anteriores Rossellistas como Norma Burgos y Charlie Rodríguez, fortuñistas como Pierluisi y yo, anteriores Clintonistas como Ricky Rosselló y Lucy Arce, y Obamistas como Lornna Soto y Andy Guillemard. Esa ausencia de fraccionamiento, meses después de las primarias locales, semanas después de las primarias presidenciales, sirvió de antesala para la unidad que nos ayudó al triunfo progresista en noviembre del 2008. Siempre hemos buscado que los delegados demócratas estadistas refleje la amplia diversidad de posturas nacionales y locales que encontramos entre los electores puertorriqueños que nos identificamos como estadistas y demócratas.

La Comisión de Gobierno del Senado evaluó una medida, quizás radicada con las mejores intenciones, para adelantar a febrero la selección de delegados en Puerto Rico, y, al darse cuenta la comisión de que no solo violaría las reglas del DNC, nos negaría 11 delegados adicionales para llegar a 69, sino que veríamos nuestra delegación reducida a unos 26 delegados, muy correctamente no le dio paso a la aprobación de la medida.

Al hacerlo, senadores demócratas estadistas como Carmelo Ríos, Lucy Arce, Margarita Nolasco, Lornna Soto, Norma Burgos y Luis Daniel Muñiz evitaron que Puerto Rico viera su futura delegación reducida de 69 a 26 delegados, una reducción de 63%.

Muchos demócratas estadistas, algunos ya fallecidos, dieron mucho de sí en décadas pasadas para que nuestra delegación creciera de 8, a 22, a 43, a 58 y potencialmente a 69 para que, quizás con buenas intenciones, se fuera a borrar 40 años de logros en un instante, logros que se reflejan en la transformación de la plataforma de una que abiertamente apoyaba el llamado Estado Libre Asociado a una plataforma que hoy refleja mucho más las aspiraciones de igualdad y justicia de los estadistas.

La patria no se hace destruyendo, la patria se hace añadiendo, añadiendo oportunidades de lograr la igualdad plena que nos garantizará la Estadidad.


* * * * * * * * * * * *

(1) La regla del DNC reza como sigue:

"No meetings, caucuses, conventions or primaries which constitute the first determining stage in the presidential nomination process (the date of the primary in primary states, and the date of the first tier caucus in caucus states) may be held prior to the first Tuesday in March or after the second Tuesday in June in the calendar year of the national convention. Provided, however, that the Iowa precinct caucuses may be held no earlier than 29 days before the first Tuesday in March; that the New Hampshire primary may be held no earlier than 21 days before the first Tuesday in March; that the Nevada first-tier caucuses may be held no earlier than 17 days before the first Tuesday in March; and that the South Carolina primary may be held no earlier than 7 days before the first Tuesday in March. In no instance may a state which scheduled delegate selection procedures on or between the first Tuesday in March and the second Tuesday in June 1984 move out of compliance with the provisions of this rule."

(2) Los incentivos incluyen:

"C. 1.
For purposes of this paragraph C, the period of time in which the first determining stage of the presidential nomination process takes place during 2012 shall be divided into Stages as follows:
Stage I: The earliest date specified in Rule 11 of the Delegate
Selection Rules through March 31, 2012, inclusive.
Stage II: April 1 through April 30, 2012, inclusive.
Stage III: May 1 through June 10, 2012, inclusive.
2. A percentage of the base delegate votes determined pursuant to paragraphs B and shall be added to the number of base pledged delegates otherwise determined pursuant to those paragraphs, for the purpose of increasing the size of the base pledged delegation, as follows:
a. for any state in which the meeting, caucus, convention or primary which constitutes the first determining stage in the presidential nomination process in that state occurs in 2012 on a date in Stage II, the percentage shall be 10 percent; and in which the meeting, caucus, convention or primary
which constitutes the first determining stage in the presidential nomination process in that state occurs in 2012 on a date in Stage III, the percentage shall be 20 percent.
b. for any state in which the meeting, caucus, convention or primary which constitutes the first determining stage in the presidential nomination process in that state is held in a regional cluster, that percentage shall be an additional 15 percent added onto the base delegate vote without accounting for any adjustments made pursuant to Article I.C.2.a. States deemed to qualify as a regional cluster shall have contests that are:

i. held in conjunction with at least two other neighboring states holding similar contests; and

ii. on or after the third Tuesday in March."

Perdidos en el espacio

Por Kenneth McClintock Hernández

En el primer día en que está "casada" la competencia por la gobernación en el 2012, los líderes del Partido Popular están "perdidos en el espacio".

Ante las llamadas insistentes de la prensa para una reacción del candidato pepedé, Alejandro García Padilla, después de mucho insistir de la prensa, y mucho esconderse del PPD, anunciaron que en algún momento de la tarde el Secretario General del PPD emitirá un comunicado de prensa. De AGP, ni un pelo y de su Secretario, solo un comunicado!

AGP debe estar reunido, preguntándole a sus manejadores: "¿Qué digo, qué hago?"

Los pepedés perdidos en el espacio tienen razón para preocuparse. Primero, el PNP llevó al lanzamiento de su candidato Luis Fortuño, no el doble de lo que llevaron los pepedés al lanzamiento de AGP, no el triple ni cuatro veces, sino más como 10 ó 12 veces la asistencia, un contraste apabullante. Cierto es que los progresistas tenemos control del gobierno, pero los pepedés cuentan con 38 maquinarias municipales, incluyendo Carolina, Caguas, Mayagüez y Humacao, suficiente como para movilizar más de los 1,500 míseros asistentes que presenciaron el lanzamiento de la candidatura de AGP.

Después del palo publicitario que anotaron con el medianoche en Kasalta, el liderato pepedé se agenció una entrevista con el conocido periodista hispano nacional Jorge Ramos que saldría al aire el mismo día del lanzamiento de Fortuño, al parecer para opacar en algo el anuncio de candidatura reeleccionaria del Gobernador. Con lo que no contaban era con que su candidato demostraría estar "perdido en el espacio" en la entrevista a nivel nacional. Tan es así que AGP se convirtió en el primer presidente del PPD en admitir por televisión y a todo color que Puerto Rico, bajo su relación política actual que ellos llaman "estado libre asociado", permanecemos bajo la Cláusula Territorial de la Constitución de los Estados Unidos. En otras palabras, "el ELA es territorial, el ELA es colonial", lo que la mayoría que constituyen los estadistas e independentistas hemos estado reclamando por décadas.

Todo parece indicar que el poco tiempo que habló el Presidente de los Estados Unidos con el ex-Secretario del DACO bajo Acevedo Vilá entre mordisco y mordisco en Kasalta incluyo una lección efectiva de derecho constitucional por parte del ex-profesor de Derecho de Chicago explicándole a AGP porqué el Informe de Casa Blanca del pasado 16 de marzo dice que Puerto Rico sigue sujeto a la Cláusula Territorial y por qué, minutos más tarde, le diría a Cyd Marie Fleming que "Puerto Rico is a territory".

La histórica admisión del actual presidente del PPD, desmintiendo a Muñoz Marín, Sánchez Vilella, Hernández Colón, Hernández Agosto, Muñoz Mendoza, Acevedo, Calderón, Acevedo Vilá y Ferrer, de que Puerto Rico ha estado sujeto a la Cláusula Territorial ininterrumpidamente desde 1898 y que, en efecto, somos un territorio en la terminología doméstica y una colonia en la terminología internacional, no ayudará en nada a las estrategias de un Partido Popular que criticó la postura del informe de la Casa Blanca hace apenas 3 meses atrás y que le huye al plebiscito como el diablo a la Cruz. Pero, después de todo, está perdido en el espacio.

Por otra parte, esa admisión elimina un escollo a la celebración de un proceso plebiscitario: ya los pepedés no podrán seguir argumentando que no sufrimos un problema territorial o colonial. Su propio presidente de turno los desmintió.

Ahora los 3 partidos reconocen que somos territorio o colonia y que ese problema se tienen que resolver. Superada la primera pregunta, sugerida por la Casa Blanca, y aceptada por el PNP y el PIP de si queremos quedarnos como estamos o cambiar a una relación no sujeta a la Cláusula Territorial, las opciones tienen que ser no territoriales y no coloniales: la independencia, la estadidad o el status soberano que describió el PPD en su pasado programa de gobierno que sus 38 alcaldes electos, sus 5 senadores electos, sus 15 representantes electos y sus 7 legisladores no electos pero juramentados juraron defender hace apenas 3 años. Si no aceptan esa consulta, entonces demostrarán que todos los líderes pepedés, no solo AGP, están perdidos en el espacio.

Ahead of the curve: Puerto Rico’s successful implementation of its Fiscal and Economic Reconstruction Plan

Remarks by Luis G. Fortuño, Governor of Puerto Rico

To the Strategas 5th Annual Global Macro Conference

New York, NY

March 24, 2011



Good evening. It is great to be with you all, and to have the opportunity to share the story of the fiscal and economic reconstruction process we have underway in Puerto Rico.

Ohio…Wisconsin…New York… New Jersey, and the list goes on.

These states have seized headlines of late as they grapple with the fiscal and economic challenges of our time – those facing our federal government and governments throughout the world.

Puerto Rico has a unique story to tell in this global narrative. Because our tough work on these issues began over two years ago, Puerto Rico is now ahead of the curve and is increasingly seen in policy and economic circles as a model case for the rest of the country to follow.

Through the tough decisions we made early in my Administration, we are addressing an inherited fiscal crisis that was the worst in the nation.

Tonight I want to share with you how we changed our fiscal course in Puerto Rico – from inheriting a government near bankruptcy just over two years ago, to today, when the rating agencies are responding to our reforms with positive actions on our credit.

When I took office two years ago, we had been experiencing the deepest recession since the 1930s, a recession that began two full years before it began in the rest of the country.

Puerto Rico’s economy wasn’t particularly healthy even before the official onset of the recession.

However, this economic slump was never acknowledged by the previous government, which consistently over-estimated economic growth and tax receipts -- with the gap growing over time.

Predicting economic growth despite contrary evidence was one of many ways the government avoided confronting the growing structural deficit.

The details are grim. During this “overheating” period, which were the years prior to the outbreak of the recession in Puerto Rico in 2006, government expenses had been increasing 8 percent annually, while revenues increased only 2 percent.

One group that definitely became leery of lending to the government was the bondholders. Both Moody’s and S&P downgraded Puerto Rico’s bond ratings to one step above junk.

After I was elected in November of 2008 and before I was sworn in, it was actually during the transition that my team and I discovered the true extent of the fiscal abyss we faced.

And it was far worse than anything that had been disclosed to the public by my predecessors.

As Governor-elect, I flew here to New York to meet with the rating agencies to avoid a downgrade of our bonds to junk and to ask for time for us to act.

When I took the oath of office, our deficit stood at $3.3 billion. Proportionally speaking, it was the largest state budget deficit in the country, representing 44 percent of revenues.

My team discovered that we didn’t have the money to meet our first payroll. We had to take out a loan to pay it.

We immediately enacted fiscal emergency legislation, with the support of our Legislature, requiring serious spending cuts. And we established a Fiscal Restructuring and Stabilization Board to help lead the effort.

In just two years, we have cut government expenses by almost 20 percent.

I started with my own salary. I took a 10 percent pay cut and my agency heads took a 5 percent cut.

We froze all salaries for two fiscal years, and reduced political appointments by 30 percent.

We cut government operating expenses 10 percent, including official vehicles, cell phones, and credit cards. I pay for my own cell phone.

We reduced the number of government agencies through consolidation and dramatically increased the number of services that could be provided online.

Because payroll expenses were dominating 70 percent of our budget, we had no choice but to shrink the government employee ranks by 23,000 through a combination of voluntary and mandatory measures.

Our over bloated and costly government payroll was the result of the irresponsible hiring and unchecked benefit increases approved by past administrations while the fiscal situation was deteriorating.

In addition to payroll, like many states, we’re also tackling the challenge of funding our retirement system.

On the positive side, we are among the few jurisdictions that eliminated defined benefit plans, instead moving all future employees to a performance-based defined contribution plan. So we have eliminated the risk of widening actuarial deficits.

We are now working to achieve a permanent solution to the unfunded liability challenge presented by our pension system.

We didn’t shy away from the tough decisions. In just two years, our progress is clear and compelling on both the fiscal and economic side.

We have cut expenses and brought down the budget deficit from 44 percent to 11 percent of revenues. That includes reducing payroll expenses by $935 million or 17 percent of total government payroll. We are now on course to balance our budget before the end of my first term.

We’ve reduced our deficit proportionally more than any other state or territory. In a ranking of all the states by budget deficit, as a percentage of revenues, we started off dead last. Now, we are ranked 20th in the country and closing in.

The rating agencies have noticed.

Last April, Moody’s increased Puerto Rico general obligation bond ratings by three notches to A3 from Baa3, the highest improvement given to any of the 34 states whose ratings it upgraded, and the highest for Puerto Rico in 35 years.

In November, Standard & Poor’s raised from “stable” to “positive” its outlook on Puerto Rico’s credit - the first positive credit review on record since 1983.

Fitch Ratings recently assigned a BBB + rating with a stable outlook to the general obligations of the Government of Puerto Rico.

And earlier this month, Standard & Poor again looked at Puerto Rico and upgraded its rating for Puerto Rico’s general obligation debt improving it from BBB- to BBB, the first upgrade S&P has given Puerto Rico’s credit in 28 years.

These positive actions not only take into account fiscal progress, but also the new direction we’re taking on our overall economic front.

Because while we’ve been putting our fiscal house in order, we’ve also been changing the course of Puerto Rico’s economic future.

Through our Strategic Model for a New Economy, the government has formulated a vision for Puerto Rico and specific actions to achieve it. It is the most comprehensive economic development program Puerto Rico has had in decades, and details specific actions in the short and long term to grow the economy.

It is based on performance metrics that measure growth in the economy, competitiveness and job creation.

Through this framework, we have been implementing a pro-growth reform agenda supported by a series of key public policy reforms.

We addressed a tax code that was putting our businesses at a competitive disadvantage.

Puerto Rico, as a U.S. territory, has a code that is close to a mirror image of the Internal Revenue Code. We faced the same challenge presented by the federal code in that high taxes – especially on the corporate side –hindered our competitiveness.

So we exacted the largest across-the-board tax cuts at the individual and corporate level in Puerto Rico history.

Starting January 1 of this year, we cut the top corporate rate from 41 percent to 30 percent. In 2014, that top rate will drop further to 25 percent. The previous seven-tier corporate bracket has been flattened, into first three, and then two lowered rates.

For individuals, tax rates are dropping an average of 25 percent this year, increasing to a nearly 50 percent reduction over six years.

To ensure that we sustain fiscal responsibility, individual tax reductions for years 2014 through 2016 will be contingent on the government meeting targeted goals to guarantee that we continue to balance our budget.

Thus, we are making the taxpayer the watchdog for fiscal discipline, and ensuring government keeps that discipline.

In addition, 1 percent of the budget in 2014, and 1.5 percent in 2015 and 2016 will be deposited into a fiscal reserve fund, providing a “rainy day” fund to make sure we never again sink into the financial hole from which we’ve managed to emerge.

In addition to tax reform, we have instituted other significant planks in our economic reform agenda to promote growth and create jobs.

We enacted one of the most advanced and aggressive Public-Private Partnership law in the country to encourage greater private investment and bring competition and efficiencies to schools, roads, airports, energy, water facilities and other public infrastructure.

This has been the model for much new infrastructure around the world, with the conspicuous exception of the United States.

Through our P3 program, we’re currently in the process of moving forward $3.5 billion in infrastructure projects.

That includes the full concession of major toll roads and of our main airport, and the modernization of 100 public schools throughout the Island, among other major infrastructure projects.

We have some of the highest energy costs in the nation and rely on imported oil for almost 70 percent of our power generation. So we have begun a comprehensive energy program to dramatically reduce our dependence on oil, in favor of natural gas and renewable energy.

By 2012, we are working to shift Puerto Rico’s fuel mix from 69 percent petroleum to 72 percent natural gas. Vía Verde, or “Green Way,” as our natural gas project is known, will reduce fuel costs by double digit percentages.

We are further diversifying our fuel mix to include renewable sources such as solar, wind and waste-to-energy. Renewable energy projects are bringing with them hundreds of millions of dollars in new investment in Puerto Rico and the creation of thousands of new jobs in our economy.

We launched the best housing market incentives in the country – available to residents and non-residents through June of this year.

We’re seeing a double digit spike in housing sales in Puerto Rico, because these incentives include:

-ZERO property taxes for five years for new residential properties purchased during this special window

-ZERO recording fees and

-ZERO capital gains tax obligation, with no expiration date.

Purchases of existing properties benefit from 50 percent exemption on recording fees and a 50 percent exemption on capital gains.

People who buy either a new or existing property to rent during this time frame, are also eligible for ZERO tax obligation for 10 years on net rental income.

To all of you, let me say this: this is the best time to buy a second home or investment property in Puerto Rico.

We are also merging government agencies to cut duplications, and streamlining operations to be quick, agile and efficient so that government red tape doesn’t get in the way of entrepreneurship and job creation.

A perfect example is the government permitting process. We had government agencies issuing 28 different permits. Now we have 1 permit to do business.

In cases not requiring detailed evaluations, the new system has resulted in an 85 percent reduction in the permit granting and approval process. And for major projects involving site and land use consultations, a process that could take three to five years is now down to a maximum of 180 days.

On the tourism front, we enacted a comprehensive incentives package to attract the development of world-class tourism projects, and that strategy is already bearing fruit.

New luxury resorts such as the St. Regis Bahia Beach Resort in Río Grande and the W Resort in Vieques are important new additions to our portfolio.

Construction is currently underway for the six-star Dorado Beach Ritz Reserve. We currently have 11 projects under evaluation with more than 1,300 additional rooms and a total investment of almost $900 million.

Earlier this month, I signed into law a new Film Incentives Law designed to make Puerto Rico’s current production incentives among the most attractive in the industry, as well as promote the development of state-of-the-art media infrastructure, including high-capacity studios.

Over 60 productions have taken advantage of Puerto Rico’s current incentive program, including Disney’s “Pirates of the Caribbean 4,” Universal Picture’s “Fast 5” and Warner Brothers’ “The Losers,” and we’re expanding our ability to attract both Hollywood and international productions.

We are also positioning ourselves to make Puerto Rico a hub for global shipping. The expansion of and our proximity to the Panama Canal provides us a unique opportunity, so we are readying our Port of the Americas to be a world class international trans-shipment port.

We have installed super Post-Panamax cranes and dredged a shipping channel that can handle the world’s largest cargo freighters.

In the future, cargo ships leaving from Singapore could head east instead of west, passing through the Panama Canal on to Puerto Rico, with goods destined for both the Eastern Seaboard and Latin American markets – and even Europe by way of Rotterdam.

This route would allow freight from Asia to bypass chokepoints along the western route, made more volatile by piracy off the Somali coast and unrest in North Africa.

Today, the government of Puerto Rico is fully engaged in serious economic reform. We have reduced government payroll, slashed bloated budgets, and introduced bold reforms of entrenched government programs that promise to re-ignite economic growth.

My advice to other Governors facing the same challenges has been: Don’t wait and don’t blink. Make the tough decisions early and stick to them with courage, because at the end of the day, people are expecting leadership.

In my case, I have found that some may not like every decision, but they will respect you for doing what is right and what you said you would do.

And by pursuing long-term reforms that hold the promise of dramatically improving the island’s economic position in the coming decades, Puerto Rico is sending an unmistakable message to companies and investors that the island is permanently changing its business environment for the better.

By scaling back the size of government while at the same time reducing tax rates, simplifying the tax code, increasing private investment in infrastructure, and diversifying our energy sources, I am convinced that we have the right equation for an economic renaissance in Puerto Rico.

Thank you all very much.

Open letter to former congressman Jay Kim,

(Letter in response to a blog post written by former Congressman Jay Kim)

Dear Mr. Kim,

I feel compelled to respond to your blog post, as an American citizen, a puertorican and as a history student at the University of Puerto Rico. I specially feel compelled to write to you as a pro-statehood activist in the island.

To start off, I would expect a former congressman, an honorable man as you to research facts before you state them. For example, Puerto Rico has indeed been a colony of the United States, but its residents have been United States Citizens since 1917, due to the fact Congress passed the Jones Act, in March 2^nd of that year, effectively granting citizenship to the resident of its colony which allowed them to be available to serve in the military. Since then, puertoricans have died in every mayor battlefield, including Korea, where the 65^th infantry regiment, composed mainly of my fellow puertoricans, held the invading Chinese at bay, giving the rest of the army time to retreat back into South Korea, your homeland. My grandfather and his brothers fought bravely so that South Korea may today enjoy democracy.

As for the reason why Puerto Rico has yet to decide between independence and statehood, is due to the fact that the Popular Democratic Party, one of the 2 main local parties, that advocates for the status-quo, has lied, time and time again to the people. Time and time again they have gone before Congress to ask for more powers, yet to retain the “best of both worlds” relationship they say has made Puerto Rico a prosperous island. In all occasions, Congress has denied them their requests. Unfortunately, when past referendums have been held, this same party has demonized statehood, and independence. Their argument against statehood and independence is frivolous at best, but rings enough into the hearts of my fellow colonial citizens to instill fear.

It is this same party that has gone to Congress and given a negative perspective of our society, claiming we are lazy, good for nothing, welfare leeches. The reality is completely different. The average resident of Puerto Rico strives to excel and better themselves by looking for an education, or aiming to do an honest living. Unfortunately, due to the unsustainable colonial status we currently “enjoy”, Puerto Rico has seen an exodus of families into the states, crime has risen, and the economy has stagnated.  Even with these limitations, Puerto Rico is one of the leading exporters of pharmaceutical products in the United States. Many of the top pharmaceuticals, like Pfizer and Glasko-Smith, have factories here.

The statehood movement, has slowly but surely, been gaining more and more followers, throughout the years. A recent poll by the largest local newspaper, “El Nuevo Dia”, shows this trend is correct. To believe we want to be a State because the local politicians want to be more influential in national politics is completely off base. We want to be a State because we wish the U.S. Constitution to be applied fully to Puerto Rico. We want to be considered first class citizens, the right to vote for our representatives to Congress whom will give our voice to the rest of our brothers and sisters in the continent, we want the right to vote for the man who sends our men to battle in defense of freedom and democracy, amongst other very major reasons. We want to be held accountable, and do our part to help our nation steer into the future; we also want the sovereignty that is protected in the 9^th and 10^th amendments of the Bill of Rights so that our State may grow and prosper, while we contribute to the growth of our nation.

Puerto Rico is the bridge between the United States and the rest of Latin America, it is the place where the United States becomes a Caribbean nation, and its beauty surpasses anything you may encounter in the mainland.

Mr. Kim, maybe you would understand us if you moved here. Did you know that a man born and raised in Virginia may not vote for the president of our nation if he moves to Puerto Rico? That is a serious Civil Rights issue, and it has been overlooked for many years, because the enemies of freedom have lied to our people and to Congressmen like you.

I urge you to do a proper research of the matter, and as a minority in the United States, I urge you to support Puerto Rico Statehood, instead of advocating with false facts the status quo.

Attentively,

-Edwin R. Jusino-

Student UPR- Mayaguez

Former president of the Puerto Rico Statehood Students Association UPR Mayaguez Chapter

Director of the José Celso Barbosa Pro Statehood Education Campaing

Se opone Pierluisi a recortes presupuestarios que afectarían a Puerto Rico

WASHINGTON, DC- El Comisionado Residente en Washington, Pedro Pierluisi, se opuso hoy a los recortes presupuestarios presentados por el liderato de la Cámara de Representantes de Estados Unidos y que afectarían a Puerto Rico, principalmente en los programas de Becas Pell y COPS.

“Reconozco y comparto la necesidad de reducir el déficit de la nación de una manera pensada. Pero como se estableció recientemente en un editorial, estos recortes son los incorrectos, a los programas incorrectos y en el momento incorrecto”, expresó el Comisionado Residente en un mensaje sometido para el récord congresional.

Pierluisi mencionó específicamente los recortes propuestos a los programas de Becas Pell, COPS y a los fondos que reciben los estados para garantizar la calidad y potabilidad del agua.

“Las becas Pell son de ayuda para más de 10 millones de estudiantes en desventaja económica, muchos de los cuales no podrían recibir una educación universitaria si no fuera por este beneficio… Esta legislación reduce el dinero que reciben los estudiantes en aproximadamente $690. En mi distrito el recorte es de aproximadamente $720 por estudiantes”, dijo Pierluisi.

De acuerdo al Comisionado Residente, debe quedar claro que el recorte en los fondos a este programa de becas atenta contra una nación más educada, una economía más próspera y un país más competitivo.

Asimismo, Pierluisi hizo un llamado a reconsiderar la eliminación del programa COPS, para el reclutamiento de policías.

“Este programa pone policías en nuestras calles, protege nuestras comunidades y salva vidas… Como Secretario de Justicia de Puerto Rico durante los años ’90, trabajé con la Administración Clinton para asegurar la creación de este programa mediante legislación. Desde mediados de los ’90, Puerto Rico ha recibido más de $160 millones de estos fondos, lo que ha significado el reclutamiento de más de 3,500 nuevos policías en nuestras comunidades y puedo dar fe de que han representado un ingrediente importante en la lucha contra el crimen… Proponer la eliminación de este programa es profundamente irresponsable”, indicó el Comisionado Residente.

Por último, Pierluisi expresó preocupación ante los propuestos recortes a los fondos que recibe la Agencia de Protección Ambiental (EPA, en inglés), específicamente en el programa de “Agua Limpia y Potable”, así como de los fondos destinados a reducir las emisiones de diesel. En ambos casos, argumentó que los recortes atentarían contra la salud de sus constituyentes.

Unleashing the Freedom to Prosper

FREEDOM WATCH

Unleashing the Freedom to Prosper

By Luis G. Fortuño from the February 2011 issue

The glory and genius of our nation -- one, under God -- is that our Founding Fathers devised just the right formula for a system of government that would allow the newly born society to attain some of the greatest advances not just in individual freedoms, democracy, and human rights, but in economic prosperity, scientific and technical innovation, and progress for itself and for all mankind.

From Puerto Rico, where Old Glory flies high atop La Fortaleza, the oldest working Executive Mansion in the entire Western Hemisphere, both the value and fragility of the fundamental free-doms that sustain the American experiment are plain to see. Not far from our shores, two well-known despots continue to espouse and attempt to export ruinous ideologies that stifle individual freedoms and enslave people to the state. Other neighbors, although democratic, have economic systems that thwart their citizens' ability to reach their full potential.

This is the country that the world still turns to and emulates as the greatest force for freedom, progress, and prosperity in history. But the truth is that not all threats to the political and economic freedoms that undergird the United States are external. It is from within, in fact, that we face the threat of government encroachment and irresponsible fiscal policies that undermine the very foundations of our nation's success and imperil the future of the rising generations of the 21st century.

At the state and territorial level, many of my fellow like-minded governors are striving to do everything within our power to stem the tide of red ink. When I took the oath of office in January 2009, our administration inherited a budget deficit of $3.3 billion, the highest deficit, proportionally speaking, in the country. Following the better part of a decade of reckless spending and bloated government, Puerto Rico's credit teetered on the brink of being downgraded on Wall Street to junk status.

I went to work to fulfill our voters' mandate to restore fiscal responsibility and align public policy with proven pro-growth strategies that would help Puerto Rico reach its full potential for economic growth and a better quality of life for all our citizens. Now just past the midway mark of my current term in office, I am pleased to report that my constituents are beginning to reap the benefits of the tough decisions we made and the wise course of action that we have relentlessly pursued.

In just two years, we have shrunk our budget gap from 44 percent to 11 percent -- now, 31 states of the Union have higher deficits, proportionally, than Puerto Rico -- and we will achieve a balanced budget in fiscal year 2013. Last year, Puerto Rico received the highest credit rating increase of any other state or territory in the nation, as well as its first positive credit outlook in nearly three decades.

Most importantly, as a result of the tough but necessary action we took to right our course, we're now in a position to truly unleash our people's freedom to prosper, by implementing the biggest tax cuts in Puerto Rico's history. Thanks to these tax cuts, the tax burden on individuals will be reduced by an average of 50 percent, and the tax burden on businesses by 30 percent.

The benefits of tax reform are central to a new era of economic vitality on the island, and they go hand in hand with the implementation of state-of-the-art public-private partnership investment legislation, reform of permitting, and energy reform, among other pro-growth initiatives.

Our experience in Puerto Rico, as well as those of other states and territories that are also grappling with equally formidable fiscal panoramas, can provide a lesson for Washington. As we rise together to meet the perilous challenges of fiscal irresponsibility and government encroach-ment that face us as a nation, we all have a responsibility to lead and keep the United States the number-one driver of peace, progress, and prosperity for generations to come.

Luis G. Fortuño is the governor of Puerto Rico, president-elect of the Council of State Governments, second vice president of the Southern Governors Association, and a member of the Board of Directors of the National Governors' Association Center for Best Practices.

Shooting of Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords of Arizona

Jan 9th, 2010
Lakeland, Fl.

The National Committee and members of the Republican National Hispanic Assembly (RNHA) are saddened by the shooting today of Arizona Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords. RNHA National Chairman Alci Maldonado released the following statement: "The RNHA family is stunned and saddened by the shooting today of Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords of Arizona. This violence is shocking and distressing and there is no place for this in our free society. We express our opinions and debate peacefully in this country. A tragedy like this unites us all as Americans irrespective of political party affiliation. We lift up Congresswoman Giffords and her family in our thoughts and prayers. "

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CBO’s Preliminary Analysis of H.R. 2, the Repealing the Job-Killing Health Care Law Act

CBO’s Preliminary Analysis of H.R. 2, the Repealing the Job-Killing Health Care Law Act


The House of Representatives is planning to consider a bill (H.R. 2) to repeal the major health care legislation enacted last March—that is, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) and the provisions of the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010 that are related to health care. CBO has not yet developed a detailed estimate of the budgetary impact of repealing that legislation, although it is working with the staff of the Joint Committee on Taxation (JCT) to complete such an estimate in the near future. Because Congressional deliberations on H.R. 2 are beginning, CBO today issued a less-detailed preliminary analysis of that legislation.

Because CBO and JCT estimated that the March 2010 health care legislation would reduce budget deficits over the 2010–2019 period and in subsequent years, we expect that repealing that legislation would increase budget deficits. The resulting increase in deficits projected for fiscal years 2012 through 2019 is likely to be similar in size to—but not exactly the same as—the reduction in deficits that was originally estimated to result from the enacted legislation.

The forthcoming detailed estimate will reflect a number of developments that have occurred since CBO and JCT produced the cost estimate for the March 2010 legislation, including changes in the economic outlook, technical revisions to CBO’s projections of program spending, the initial steps that have been taken to implement the new laws, and enactment of legislation that modified those laws. Those developments will probably not have a major effect on the overall budgetary impact of repealing the legislation. In addition, CBO has seen no evidence to date that the steps that will be taken to implement the March legislation—or the ways in which participants in the health care and health financing systems will respond to that legislation—will yield overall budgetary effects that differ significantly from the ones that CBO and JCT projected earlier. We cannot predict whether the various changes that will be incorporated in the detailed estimate will increase or decrease the estimated impact of H.R. 2 on federal deficits through 2019.

The estimate for H.R. 2 will differ in one significant way from the estimate for the enacted health care legislation. The original estimate covered the period from 2010 through 2019, the period used for Congressional budget enforcement procedures when the legislation was being considered; new estimates will span the period from 2012 to 2021.

Today’s letter describes—in broad terms and on a preliminary basis—CBO’s assessment of the effects that repealing PPACA and the relevant provisions of the Reconciliation Act would have on federal budget deficits, the federal government’s budgetary commitment to health care, the number of people with health insurance, and health insurance premiums in the private market. (Repealing the provisions of that legislation would also have a variety of other effects on the health care and health insurance systems that this letter, like previous CBO cost estimates, does not address.)

Impact on the Federal Budget in the First Decade

As a result of changes in direct spending and revenues, CBO expects that enacting H.R. 2 would probably increase federal budget deficits over the 2012–2019 period by a total of roughly $145 billion (on the basis of the original estimate), plus or minus the effects of technical and economic changes that CBO and JCT will include in the forthcoming estimate. Adding two more years (through 2021) brings the projected increase in deficits to something in the vicinity of $230 billion, plus or minus the effects of technical and economic changes.

Those projections do not include any potential savings in discretionary spending, which is governed by annual appropriation acts. By CBO’s estimates, repeal of the health care legislation would probably reduce the appropriations needed by the Internal Revenue Service by between $5 billion and $10 billion over 10 years. Similar savings would accrue to the Department of Health and Human Services.

There is no clear basis for projecting other effects of H.R. 2 on discretionary spending. PPACA contained a number of authorizations for future appropriations, which, if left in place, might or might not result in additional appropriations. For example, most of the authorizations were for activities that were already being carried out under current law or that were previously authorized and that PPACA authorized for future years. Thus, repeal of the PPACA authorizations might or might not result in discretionary savings associated with those authorizations.

Impact on the Federal Budget Beyond the First 10 Years

CBO estimates that enacting H.R. 2 would increase federal deficits in the decade after 2019 by an amount that is in a broad range around one-half percent of GDP, plus or minus the effects of technical and economic changes that CBO and JCT will include in the forthcoming estimate. For the decade beginning after 2021, the effect of H.R. 2 on federal deficits as a share of the economy would probably be somewhat larger.

As with all of CBO’s cost estimates, these estimates—both for the first 10 years and beyond—reflect an assumption that the provisions of current law would otherwise remain unchanged throughout the projection period and that the legislation being considered would be enacted and implemented in its current form. CBO’s responsibility to the Congress is to estimate the effects of proposals as written and not to forecast future legislation. However, current law now includes a number of policies that might be difficult to sustain over a long period of time. If those policies or other key aspects of the original legislation would have subsequently been modified or implemented incompletely, then the budgetary effects of repealing PPACA and the relevant provisions of the Reconciliation Act could be quite different—but CBO cannot forecast future changes in law or assume such changes in its estimates.

Effects on the Federal Budgetary Commitment to Health Care

CBO uses the term “federal budgetary commitment to health care” to describe the sum of net federal outlays for health programs and tax preferences for health care. H.R. 2 would roughly reverse the outcome projected for the original legislation, diminishing the federal budgetary commitment to health care over the next decade and increasing it in subsequent years.

Effects on the Number of People with Health Insurance

Under H.R. 2, about 32 million fewer nonelderly people would have health insurance in 2019, leaving a total of about 54 million nonelderly people uninsured. The share of legal nonelderly residents with insurance coverage in 2019 would be about 83 percent, compared with a projected share of 94 percent under current law (and 83 percent currently).

Effects on Health Insurance Premiums

If H.R. 2 was enacted, premiums for health insurance in the individual market would be somewhat lower than under current law, mostly because the average insurance policy in this market would cover a smaller share of enrollees’ costs for health care and a slightly narrower range of benefits. Although premiums in the individual market would be lower, on average, under H.R. 2 than under current law, many people would end up paying more for health insurance—because under current law, the majority of enrollees purchasing coverage in that market would receive subsidies via the insurance exchanges, and H.R. 2 would eliminate those subsidies.

Premiums for employment-based coverage obtained through large employers would be slightly higher under H.R. 2 than under current law. Premiums for employment-based coverage obtained through small employers might be slightly higher or slightly lower (reflecting uncertainty about the impact of the enacted legislation on premiums in that market).


Letter to Speaker of House Hon. John Boehner

Originally posted on CBO Director's Blog.

Alberto Escudero elected Chairman of the RHNA of Puerto Rico

Jan 6th, 2010
Washington, DC

The Republican National Hispanic Assembly (RNHA) welcomes a new state chapter. The RNHA congratulates the RNHA of Puerto Rico and its new chairman, Mr. Alberto Escudero as well as Governor Fortuno of Puerto Rico and the Chairman of the Republican Party of Puerto Rico.

RNHA National Chairman Alci Maldonado stated: "It has been my vision and dream even before I was elected as National Chairman that we grow our organization by bringing new chapters into our national membership, especially where state Republican Parties have taken an active role in working to form, supporting and encouraging the founding of a new RNHA chapter as has occurred with the new RNHA of Puerto Rico."

"This is great news! We have added yet another new chapter of committed, enthusiastic Republican activists to our national RNHA family, and I am so pleased that the Republican Party of Puerto Rico and Puerto Rico Governor Fortuno have given full support to the new chapter! I welcome Puerto Rico RNHA Chairman Alberto Escudero and the members of his new chapter to our RNHA family. All of us look forward to working with them to advance the cause of the RNHA and the Republican Party. We should be very proud that our organization is growing yet again and with such quality members! Here's to our continued expansion, to our many RNHA accomplishments in 2010 and to a great 2011!"




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