U.S. House To Vote On Bill After Committee Approves Legislation By 29-10 Vote
Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI): “It’s Important That We Go Through Regular Order To Pass PROMESA, Our Bipartisan Legislation That Protects American Taxpayers. I Commend The Members Of The Natural Resources Committee – On Both Sides Of The Aisle – Who Worked To Responsibly Address Puerto Rico’s Fiscal Crisis And Prevent A Bailout.”(Press Release, “House Takes Next Step To Responsibly Address Puerto Rico Crisis,” Speaker Paul Ryan, 5/25/16)
House Committee On Natural Resources Chair Rob Bishop (R-UT): “Congress Has A Moral And Constitutional Responsibility To Address The Growing Crisis In Puerto Rico. The Legislation We Passed Today Through Committee Provides A Responsible Framework To Do Just That.” (Press Release, “Bishop Issues Statement On PROMESA Advancing In House,” U.S. House Committee On Natural Resources, 5/25/16)
Representatives Rob Bishop (R-UT) And Sean Duffy (R-WI): “[PROMESA] Last Shot At Mitigating An Economic Collapse And Our Best Shot At Protecting U.S. Taxpayers.” “Congressional action must be carried out in a careful and responsible manner so that Puerto Rico is best equipped to help itself. The PROMESA framework accomplishes this by establishing an independent Oversight Board that will restore order, accountability, economic freedom, and prosperity. This is the island’s last shot at mitigating an economic collapse and our best shot at protecting U.S. taxpayers.” (Representatives Rob Bishop & Sean Duffy, Op-Ed, “PROMESA Promises Hope For Puerto Rico And Its Investors,” National Review, 5/22/16)
FreedomWorks: PROMESA “An Important Step In The Right Direction.” “Following the markup of the Puerto Rico Oversight, Management, and Economic Stability Act (H.R. 5278), FreedomWorks Senior Economic Contributor Stephen Moore commented: ‘The Puerto Rico rescue bill being considered today by the House Committee on Natural Resources is an important step in the right direction in helping solve the financial crisis on the island.’” (Press Release, “Puerto Rico Bill A Step Toward Solving Island’s Financial Crisis But Needs Improvement,” FreedomWorks, 5/25/16)
Center For Freedom And Prosperity: “It’s Time For Congress To Pass Puerto Rico Debt Fix.”(Andrew F. Quinlan, “It’s Time For Congress To Pass Puerto Rico Debt Fix,” The Daily Caller, 5/24/16)
Puerto Rico Resident Commissioner Pedro Pierluisi Comes Out In Favor Of Updated PROMESA Legislation. “Resident Commissioner Pedro Pierluisi, Puerto Rico’s non-voting representative to Congress, announced his support Tuesday for a bill to help the commonwealth handle its debt crisis. Pierluisi, a Democratic gubernatorial candidate, urged his colleagues to support the ‘imperfect, but indispensable’ bill and told its critics to ‘get real’ about the lack of alternatives.” (Sylvan Lane, “Puerto Rico’s Delegate To Congress Tells Debt Bill Critics To ‘Get Real,’” The Hill, 5/24/16)
Representative Raul Grijalva (D-AZ): “So Here Is The Bottom Line: Puerto Rico Is Drowning In Debt, And H.R. 5278 Is A Lifeline.” (Laura Barron-Lopez, “Legislation To Help Puerto Rico Manage Its Crippling Debt Advances In The House,” The Huffington Post, 5/25/16)
Greg Bell, Former Utah Lieutenant Governor: PROMESA Bailout Claims Are “Precisely The Opposite” And Inaction Would Force A “Costly Federal Intervention.” “With a new draft of House Committee on Natural Resources Chairman Rob Bishop’s bill to resolve the crisis about to be released, there has been a barrage of ads opposing the bill as a taxpayer bailout of Puerto Rico … The truth is precisely the opposite: Unless Congressional action is taken now to restructure Puerto Rico’s massive $70 billion-plus debt, it is all but guaranteed that much more dramatic and costly federal intervention will be required when a full-blown economic and humanitarian crisis hits the island in the wake of a full default.” (Greg Bell, “Bishop’s Bill To Restructure Puerto Rico’s Debt Is Not A Bailout,” The Salt Lake Tribune, 5/21/16)
Kenneth Klee, Nationally Recognized Bankruptcy Law Expert: “PROMESA Puts No Taxpayer Money At Risk.” “The word ‘bailout’ can prompt an immediate, visceral reaction … A prime example is the Puerto Rico Oversight, Management, and Economic Stability Act (PROMESA), currently before Congress. PROMESA puts no taxpayer money at risk. Yet the proposal’s critics (a shadowy cast of powerful hedge funds) are cynically referring to it as a bailout so they can profit handsomely from an actual taxpayer bailout down the road, once the situation in Puerto Rico spins further out of control.” (Kenneth Klee, “Speaker Ryan’s Puerto Rico Legislation Is Not A Bailout,” The Hill, 5/23/16)
The Washington Post Editorial: PROMESA Preserves “Existing Lawful Priorities.” “Creditors still howl that the board could pay public employee pensions before bondholders; the bill actually preserves existing lawful priorities and leaves it up to the board to grant any adjustments, subject to court review.” (Editorial, “Much-Needed Relief For Debt-Ridden Puerto Rico,” The Washington Post, 5/19/16)
The Wall Street Journal: PROMESA Using “Free-Market Reforms And Fiscal Discipline” To Help Puerto Rico. “[T]he Republican Congress is using conservative principles to solve an urgent problem caused by progressive government. With some fortitude and a little luck, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico might even be able to grow again … the overall bill steers the commonwealth in the direction of free-market reforms and fiscal discipline after years of welfare-state politics.” (Editorial, “Puerto Rico Breakthrough,” The Wall Street Journal, 5/23/16)