THURSDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2015 | VOL. 1 EDITION 8
| WEEKLY $2.00 | © 2015 LATIN MEDIA HOUSE, LLC | CARIBBEANBUSINESS.PR
Prepa on the Verge of Deal With Insurers
Bernier Taking Some Heat for Autonomous Stance
Amended Restructuring Agreement in Works
PDP Factions at Odds Over Status Position
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EB-5 Amendments Unlikely to Affect P.R.
The 12 Days of Christmas in the Mambo Tropics
Program Obtains One-Year Extension
A Special Political Parody
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COVER STORY
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TOP STORY
State Elections Commission Rushes to Prepare New Budget Cost Unclear for 2016 Elections, but $36.6 Million Spent on 2012 Elections
The Year in Review
New electoral realities, such as the use of machines to tally votes, could increase the cost of the electoral process, even though there is an aggressive search to cut spending. The president of the State Elections Commission (CEE by its Spanish initials), Liza García
of the new electoral reality. The CEE has preliminarily mentioned that the entity could consider spending proposals for the coming elections of about $32 million. She said shutting down schools is something being worked on with the Education
Vélez, said that up to now the money assigned to that entity for managing the primaries remains at $1.2 million, even though it should receive $10 million, as agreed to by the Office of Management & Budget (OMB). She added that the CEE is working alongside electoral commissioners to identify needs and adjustments based on the demographic changes
Department in search of alternate voting centers to compensate for sites that have closed. The use of machines for the vote count, she said, requires electric power, which has led the team working on the issue to inspect schools to see what modifications have to be completed to use those installations as voting precincts.
P.R. Economy Stuck in Winterland As 2015 comes to a close, Puerto Rico’s economy is entering its 10th year of negative or flat growth, facing well-known challenges of the past, as well as some new ones. This year was characterized by several key events and issues that negatively affected the island’s economy and undermined any chances for growth—both short- and long-term, according to several economists interviewed by Caribbean Business. Additional credit downgrades into junk territory by the three
major credit-rating agencies in late June essentially closed the Puerto Rico government’s dim chances of accessing the capital markets for borrowing. This, in turn, raised the threat of a government default and shutdown, as the commonwealth is quickly running out of cash—and options. Meanwhile, a massive exodus of Puerto Ricans to the U.S. mainland, estimated at 1,200 people every month, is further shrinking the island’s population and tax base, which further
complicates the government’s tax revenue-raising efforts. The failed attempt at comprehensive tax reform last summer forced the government to approve new taxes, including raising the sales & use tax (IVU by its Spanish acronym) to 11.5% from 7.5%, becoming the highest sales-tax rate in all the U.S. In addition, the government imposed a new 4% business-tobusiness (B2B) tax in July, which is slated to go up to 10.5% on April 1, 2016. BY JOSÉ L. CARMONA pages 16-20
BY ISMAEL TORRES continues on page 4