[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 4 (Wednesday, January 8, 2020)]
[House]
[Page H19]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




               SUPPORT DISASTER ASSISTANCE IN PUERTO RICO

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from 
Puerto Rico (Miss Gonzalez-Colon) for 5 minutes.
  Miss GONZALEZ-COLON of Puerto Rico. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in 
support of the people of Puerto Rico. They are still struggling from 
the aftermath of Hurricane Maria in 2017 and now are dealing with 
incessant seismic activity on the island since December 28 of last 
year.
  Puerto Ricans still need ongoing assistance from Federal disaster 
programs, like those offered by FEMA and the Department of Housing and 
Urban Development. Today, I would like to emphasize HUD's work, 
particularly through its Community Development Block Grant program and 
the disaster relief program for Puerto Rico.
  Puerto Rico has an allotment of over $20 billion under CDBG-DR 
programs that will be spent on unmet needs and mitigation expenses to 
ensure local infrastructure is restored and in a better position to 
withstand future disasters. This clearly puts us in a positive position 
to restore our housing stock, economic activity, and damaged 
infrastructure.
  However, of the $20 billion, only $1.5 billion is currently available 
to be drawn down by the grantee, the Puerto Rico Department of Housing. 
Although this is a large amount, delays and other challenges have 
impeded the availability of these additional funds.
  To make matters worse, Puerto Rico has been experiencing a sequence 
of tremors since December 28, including a 6.4 magnitude earthquake 
yesterday during the early morning and a replica of 6.0 in the morning 
as well. The earthquake and subsequent aftershocks have caused 
significant housing and infrastructure damages in the south part of our 
island, including the towns of Guanica, Guayanilla, Penuelas, and 
Ponce, among others.
  My constituents are afraid and uncertain of when these occurrences 
will cease, and the reason for that is approximately more than 400 
people are still in shelters. One death has been reported. 
Additionally, there was an immediate power outage that impacted the 
entire island. As we speak, 75 percent of the island is without power 
and without electricity.
  I commend President Trump for signing the Federal emergency 
declaration last night. It is clear that the people of Puerto Rico will 
need Federal assistance to fully assess damages, recover, and prepare 
for other future events.
  According to the U.S. Geological Survey, aftershocks and an increase 
in overall seismic activity are expected throughout the next week, 
including a chance of another large earthquake that could cause 
additional damage. I am confident that we will show the strength and 
resiliency once more in the face of another disaster, but we cannot do 
it alone.
  That is the reason, when you see schools that were impacted on the 
island, crushing one of the schools in Guanica--thank God there were no 
kids present at that time. Because the Governor resumed order, the 
classes were suspended, and we saved a lot of lives in that school.
  But we can't do it alone. That is the reason we need to secure proper 
disbursement of funds requiring planning and preparation, and we must 
ensure local agencies in Puerto Rico, like the Department of Housing, 
are equipped to manage and oversee the funds. Therefore, I understand 
bolstering capabilities, and I understand the changes and challenges. 
We need improvement, but I do not understand the repeated delays, the 
lack of information, and the violation of congressionally mandated 
deadlines for the CDBG-DR funds.
  Mr. Speaker, whatever changes or improvements need to be made must be 
made within the bounds, guidelines, and deadlines set forth by Congress 
to the Federal agencies. Puerto Rico is currently waiting for an 
agreement for an additional allotment of $8 billion for unmet needs, 
which already has an approved action plan and now needs a signed 
agreement for that money, including $2 billion for restoring our 
depleted power grid. These are urgent needs at this time.

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