7:27 AM 11/26/2018 - $3700 Generators and $666 Sinks: FEMA Contractors Charged Steep Markups on Puerto Rico Repairs New York Times
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$3,700 Generators and $666 Sinks: FEMA Contractors Charged Steep ...
 New York Times |
$3700 Generators and $666 Sinks: FEMA Contractors Charged Steep Markups on Puerto Rico Repairs
New York Times SAN JUAN, P.R. — Juan F. RodrÃguez had substantial damage to his house in northeastern Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria slammed through in September 2017, but he felt better when he was told that the Federal Emergency Management Agency would … |
The bureaucracy around the housing repairs was so complex that the first repairs did not begin until more than five months after the hurricane. A full year after the September 2017 storm, a New York Times review found that thousands of Puerto Ricans were still living in ruined houses. For many of them, the FEMA money left over after trickling down through so many middlemen hardly made a dent in what they needed.
Lisandra Oquendo, who lives in Punta Santiago on Puerto Rico’s eastern coast, was told that her house had been approved for $18,000 in FEMA repair funds, and she was stunned at how little was accomplished with the money. The contractors patched up her roof, gave her a generator, replaced more than a dozen broken window crank operators, installed several appliances, two windows and a door, and cleaned mold off the walls. But because her roof is made of concrete, she said, they told her they could not repair it.
“They said, ‘We don’t do paint, we don’t do floors, we don’t work with cement,’” she said. “So what do you do?”
Contractors have said that the rates they collect cover a variety of expenses, including shipping fees, workers’ compensation insurance, vehicle and warehouse rental, taxes and profit. But prices charged for equipment and appliances often bore little relation to what was charged on the retail market, even in storm-ravaged Puerto Rico.
According to Department of Housing records, FEMA paid for about 12,400 people to receive generators at a cost of $3,700 each. The 5,500-watt portable devices and supplies they came with cost the contractors about $800 each, other documents show. FEMA paid $666 apiece for new bathroom sinks, but the contractors who actually bought and installed them paid $260 apiece. FEMA paid almost $4 a square foot to repair roofs; the work was done by subcontractors for $1.64 a foot.
The deal the Department of Housing signed required smoke detectors in every sleeping area, so each of the 122,000 houses in the program was equipped with the devices, for which FEMA was billed $82 apiece. A receipt reviewed by The New York Times showed that one subcontractor ordered them in bulk from an Ace Hardware store in the city of Aguadilla for $6.99 each.
“Fifty-eight percent is being taken off the top as overhead and profit from the two contractors above us,” said Brandon Padgett, owner of BVP Construction in Houston, which conducted repairs on 52 houses under the program. “Is there 58 percent overhead and profit needed to implement this? No, because we are doing 90 percent of the work.”
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The technology industry in Puerto Rico represents 28.3% of the manufacturing sector in the economy of Puerto Rico.[1]
Syracuse.com
I On Politics
Western Queens Gazette-Nov 21, 2018
“In New York, we proudly stand with Puerto Rico as we always have before. ... City represents the largest economic development project in New York State history. ... We're going to use this opportunity to open up good careers in tech to ..... For more information or to register, contact Pheffer Amato's office at ...
Rebuilding Paradise
<a href="http://DSNews.com" rel="nofollow">DSNews.com</a>-Nov 22, 2018
With Puerto Rico having marked the one-year anniversary of ... and Urban Development announced that Puerto Rico would receive $18.5 ... the island continues to face both an economic and a foreclosure crisis. ... “The biggest challenge our industry faces is the lack of identifiable information,” Hurst said.
Hurricane Maria tore apart the green mantle of foliage covering Puerto Rico, leaving destruction in its wake. It laid bare the island’s old and outdated infrastructure, upon which four million people depend. The infrastructure's state of disrepair, compounded by the logistical blunders of federal and local authorities, resulted in a humanitarian crisis, which was characterized by a failure to provide critical aid and restore power. This directly caused many of the thousands of deaths that have been attributed to Hurricane Maria.
The lack of power severely affected those in need of respirators and dialysis machines. Blocked roads prevented patients from seeking medical help and emergency vehicles from reaching their destination. Mental health and public health issues followed. Key among these was the lack of power and the length of the blackout, which was the longest and largest in US history. A number of factors contributed, including the fact that the power plants and grids were in severe need of repair and upgrading at the time of the disaster. The topography of Puerto Rico is also unforgiving; roads and bridges in mountainous regions were destroyed or covered by landslides and fallen trees, which slowed down repairs.
Pie charts illustrating energy consumption by sector and energy sources as of 2015
It was in the mountainous region of Adjuntas however, where a path to Puerto Rico’s future perhaps began. Casa Pueblo served as an example of what the island’s energy future should look like, especially after hurricanes. Casa Pueblo operates a radio station, a movie theatre and a community centre using solar power. In the days and months of darkness that followed Hurricane Maria, Casa Pueblo was an energy oasis for those in need.
Members of the surrounding community were able to visit Casa Pueblo and plug in their respirators, store their perishable food items in refrigerators and charge their cell phones. Seeing the dire necessity, Casa Pueblo also installed solar panels for some of the most vulnerable members of the community. Casa Pueblo’s energy insurrection, as they call it, includes the use of solar power in: a radio transmitter; a radio station; a cinema; 25 homes; 54 refrigerators; a classroom; a barber shop; minimarkets; two restaurants; two hardware stores and other small businesses; 10 homes with a solar backup energy system; 14,000 solar lamps; five permanent systems for dialysis machines ... and more.
While authorities in Puerto Rico were struggling to restore power and navigate through remote areas, destroyed roads and bureaucratic tape, Casa Pueblo was providing energy to its surrounding community. Communities in Puerto Rico spent more than a year in darkness, but Casa Pueblo turned its lights back on immediately after the hurricane. On a wider level, Casa Pueblo demonstrated that, even after a natural disaster, renewable and sustainable energy guarantees communication, innovation, economic activation, food security, education, health services and entertainment.
Hurricane Maria brought destruction to Puerto Rico, but also opportunity. Efforts to restore electricity on the island should include renewable and sustainable sources of energy, with a view to end the use of fossil fuels. As Casa Pueblo has shown, solar energy has minimal downtime after a natural disaster. It provides decentralized energy generation at the point of consumption, eliminating the hazards and difficulties associated with the failure of a main grid. Furthermore, in addition to the ethical failings of fossil fuels in light of climate change, it makes no economic or financial sense to continue the use of fossil fuels on Puerto Rico.
All fuels that are supported by the current infrastructure need to be imported. This makes them subject to cabotage laws such as the Jones Act, which adds a significant surplus to the cost. In fact, 50% of energy costs on Puerto Rico are strictly to pay for fuel. Between 2000 and 2009, $22 billion left the local economy to pay for fuel. Puerto Rico should seize the opportunity to break, once and for all, the needless and obstinate dependence on fossil fuels which was responsible for thousands of deaths in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria.
Given these facts, it is flabbergasting that the financial control board in charge of Puerto Rico’s budget is not seriously considering renewable and sustainable energy options. Instead, it is pushing for the widespread consumption of natural gas. Ignoring the issues of a non-democratically appointed control board making these decisions for Puerto Ricans, a massive investment in natural gas is simply not a sustainable solution for the island. It would require significant changes to infrastructure and the addition of multiple pipelines, which would not only unnecessarily expose Puerto Rico’s natural resources to known dangers and complications associated with pipelines, but would also continue and expand the poisonous and irresponsible addiction to fossil fuels.
Notably, the changes needed to accommodate natural gas would not transform the current infrastructure used to deliver energy to consumers. In other words, despite massive investment, Puerto Rico would be just as vulnerable to another blackout of the same magnitude as in Maria’s aftermath. Puerto Rico would also be just as vulnerable to the loss of life associated with such a blackout. Armed with this knowledge, it is negligent to continue to consider fossil fuels as viable options for Puerto Rico moving forward. The island’s energy future must be anchored by renewable and sustainable sources, not fossil fuels.
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Written by
Yamil Colón, Assistant Professor, Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of Notre Dame
The views expressed in this article are those of the author alone and not the World Economic Forum.
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Economic Opportunity for Puerto Rico by hadeninteractive
Puerto Rico was in a tough economic position before Hurricane Maria. Former Governor Alejandro Garcia Padilla had declared the territory’s enormous debt “unpayable” — the result of decades of borrowing more than the Island could hope to pay back. Nearly half the residents of Puerto Rico lived in poverty and the population was both dwindling and aging as working people left Puerto Rico for the mainland.
The hurricane was economically devastating. More than 80% of the island’s crops were destroyed, some 8,000 small businesses closed permanently, and unreliable electricity and water interfered with economic recovery for nearly a year.
But Puerto Rico is recovering, and a number of industries show promise.
Tourism
Puerto Rico is a beautiful island, a tropical paradise, home of the only rainforest in the United States National Parks system, and well known for its music, food, arts, and friendly atmosphere.
Yet before the 2017 hurricane season Puerto Rico had just half the tourism income Hawaii has. Tourism fuels 25% of Hawaii’s economy but accounted for just 6% of Puerto Rico’s before the hurricane season. That is not only far less than Florida or Hawaii, but an extremely low number for the Caribbean, where tourism can often drive more than half of the total economy of some nations.
With the current focused efforts to encourage tourism on the Island, this industry could grow stronger than before.
Information technology
Puerto Rico has an educated, largely bilingual workforce. Remote hiring of U.S. citizens is easier for tech companies than relying on overseas workers. Information work is often outsourced by companies in many industries, and Puerto Rico lets employers avoid issues with currency and time zones.
All these factors make IT a promising field for Puerto Rico. Governor Rossello is actively courting IT companies.He sees Puerto Rico as a good place for a “human cloud,” which can work remotely for anyone in the world. At the same time, the Island is a good physical location for in-person collaboration among companies in the Americas.
The infrastructure is a key issue for IT. Unstable wi-fi and uncertain electricity would be serious obstacles to the governor’s plans. He wrote in a piece in Wired, “We’re giving businesses a chance to test new technologies on a once-unimaginable scale. The rebuilt energy and telecommunications system will be one of the most modern in the world.” If this happens, Puerto Rico could be in a perfect position to blossom into an IT hub.
Manufacturing
In the 20th century, Puerto Rico was positioned as the manufacturing hub of the Caribbean. Things weren’t really as good as they looked. In the early years, “manufacturing” referred primarily to poorly paid needlework done as piecework in homes. Later, special tax incentives allowed U.S. corporations to wash profits through Puerto Rico without providing many jobs or a significant boost to the economy.
Without the Section 936 deals, manufacturers will need a strong infrastructure and robust logistics to consider building factories inn Puerto Rico. However, companies which build facilities in Puerto Rico will benefit from the “Made in the USA” label and the shorter supply chain compared with Asian factories.
Local businesses can also move into manufacturing, benefiting from the educated workforce and the Opportunity Zone advantages.
Agriculture
Agriculture was beginning to show promise before the hurricanes struck, but the industry had become very weak before that brief renaissance The territory was importing 85% of its food. After Hurricane Maria, it was clear that Puerto Rico would be better off with more local food sources.
Puerto Rico could grow much more in food crops than it currently does. Local farms were increasingly being used in restaurants on the Island before the 2017 earthquake season interrupted the trend.
There may be many more opportunities, but these are some of the obvious good bets for Puerto Rico.
The post Economic Opportunity for Puerto Rico appeared first on Puerto Rico Report.
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Puerto Rico asks Congress for more funding for hurricane recovery
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Puerto Rico Pledges to Go All-Renewable by 2050
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Ricardo Rosselló announced yesterday. The clean energy goal is one of 10 measures included in the newly released plan dubbed the “Puerto ...
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Puerto Rico's Christmas bonus is again under the spotlight as the Oversight Board pressures Gov. Ricardo Rosselló to identify spending ...
Ricardo Rosselló defiende el acuerdo de Cofina
El Nuevo <a href="http://Dia.com" rel="nofollow">Dia.com</a>-Nov 20, 2018
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Puerto Rico could be the next purple state: Gov. Rossello. Ricardo Rossello, Opinion contributor Published 6:00 a.m. ET Oct. 31, 2018. play. CLOSE.
Puerto Rico Oversight Board voices concerns over tax reform
Bond Buyer-Oct 30, 2018
Ricardo Rosselló, Senate President Thomas Rivera Schatz, and House President Carlos Méndez Núñez announced the tax deal on Monday.
Ricardo Rosselló firmará la reforma contributiva
El Nuevo <a href="http://Dia.com" rel="nofollow">Dia.com</a>-Nov 14, 2018
El gobernador Ricardo Rosselló Nevares afirmó hoym miércoles, que firmará el proyecto de ley de reforma contributiva, aunque todavÃa no ...
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by Enrique Garcia Gutierrez
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The plastic arts of Puerto Rico has lost one of its greatest contemporary exponents at the international level with the departure of Arnaldo Roche Rabell. The artist, who died at the age of 62, is recognized inside and outside of our coasts by the strength of his work and unique style. I have considered one of the main exponents of figurative expressionism.
His particular aesthetic derives from a very personal technique that Roche developed and perfected. It is based on the superposition of layers of paint that the artist scratched or rubbed to achieve images as intriguing as extraordinary. Roche also used to cover his models or objects with fabrics, and he traced the shape with his hands covered in paint, spatulas or other instruments.
Thus, the way in which I produced the work was as important as the image itself.
The resulting paintings, pasty, large format and bright colors, are part of the collections of important institutions. These include the Museum of Modern Art in New York (MOMA) and others in Chicago, Boston, Washington DC, Arizona, Miami and, in Puerto Rico, the Museum of Modern Art in San Juan.
The varied theme that covered the canvas of Roche Rabell presented to the world of art of our subjects, such as the African roots, the Puerto Rican culture and religion, as well as the political and cultural relationship with the American continent.
The painter began to explore aspects of Puerto Rican identity and its environment with the same intensity as he did with himself. Hence, it will also present the most intimate aspects and vulnerabilities of the human being, in multiple self-portraits. The human figure was central to his artistic production.
Roche Rabell was born in 1955. Interested since he was a child in art, he began his training at the Luchetti Art School in Santurce. There he had as a teacher the painter and engraver Lope Max DÃaz, at the same time belonging to a previous generation of abstract artists led by Luis Hernández Cruz.
Roche Rabell expressed his vocation for architecture, which he studied for a time, together with Design and Illustration at the University of Puerto Rico. He left those studies to go to Chicago. He obtained his master's degree in Fine Arts from the Art Institute of Chicago. This experience outside the island exposed him to other art figures who served as a guide and support to make themselves known internationally.
As a young man, Roche Rabell also had the opportunity to participate in contests for emerging artists. One of them was from UNESCO, chapter of Puerto Rico. These skills allow young talent to measure each other and make themselves known, but unfortunately they are no longer carried out on the island. It remains a challenge for the public sector, and also the private sector, to stimulate creativity and art through its support. Artists like Roche Rabell test the fruits of this support early in a race.
Personally Roche Rabell was very reserved. But this did not prevent him from exposing his intimate and creative experience before artistic and educational forums. It was a great example of industriousness. His daily and constant work was in a pictorial work of impact and scope. I have supported the training of students of the art schools of Puerto Rico, being himself, in part, a product of the public school.
Roche Rabell leaves a legacy of authenticity and genius that transcended our borders, as an example of the artistic capabilities that Puerto Rico has and that is important to promote.
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Arnaldo Roche Rabell (1955–2018)
Artforum-Nov 18, 2018
Arnaldo Roche Rabell, the oil painter widely considered to be one of Puerto Rico's most significant artists, died yesterday at age sixty-two.
Artist Arnaldo Roche Rabell Dies at Age 62
NBC 10 Philadelphia-Nov 17, 2018
Puerto Rican painter Arnaldo Roche Rabell, considered to be one of the most important artists of the neo-expressionist movement, died in his ...
Muere el pintor Arnaldo Roche Rabell
El Nuevo <a href="http://Dia.com" rel="nofollow">Dia.com</a>-Nov 17, 2018
El pintor puertorriqueño Arnaldo Roche-Rabell falleció esta madrugada en un hospital de la capital, como consecuencia de un cáncer de ...
Recuerdan con cariño al hermano y amigo en Arnaldo Roche-Rabell
El Nuevo <a href="http://Dia.com" rel="nofollow">Dia.com</a>-Nov 20, 2018
Son algunas de las cualidades que utilizaron hoy amigos, conocidos y familiares del artista plástico Arnaldo Roche-Rabell para describirlo, ...
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