Florida News Straight From the Source
The latest sign that Florida’s U.S. Senate race is shifting in Sen. Bill Nelson’s direction came today when Puerto Rican Gov. Ricardo Rosselló announced in Orlando his endorsement of Nelson’s campaign for re-election to the Senate. [Read more…] about Puerto Rico’s governor endorses Nelson
At Governor Scott’s direction, the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity’s (DEO) Executive Director, Cissy Proctor, traveled to Puerto Rico over the weekend. She was invited by Puerto Rico Governor Ricardo Rossello to meet with retailers in Puerto Rico. [Read more…] about DEO Director Cissy Proctor Traveled to Puerto Rico to Meet with Businesses
Governor Rick Scott today announced that Florida has donated 25 Florida Highway Patrol (FHP) vehicles to the Puerto Rico Police Department to support law enforcement needs and Hurricane Maria recovery.
Governor Scott said, “Since Hurricane Maria devastated Puerto Rico last year, I have visited the island six times to offer guidance, assistance and support. We’ve made it a priority in Florida to aid Puerto Rico in their recovery from this devastating storm. I’m glad that the Florida Highway Patrol, on behalf of Floridians, has stepped up and honored a request to provide additional surplus police cruisers to the island. These 25 vehicles will assist law enforcement efforts as they work to rebuild. We will continue to do all we can to support Puerto Rico’s recovery.”
This announcement is part of a continued commitment from the state of Florida to assist Puerto Rico as they recover from the devastating impacts of Hurricane Maria. The vehicles had been out of circulation and were ready for surplus before they were donated. Per the state’s replacement criteria, FHP law enforcement vehicles may be taken out of circulation when they reach 80,000 miles or are eight years old. In November, 50 FHP troopers were deployed to Puerto Rico for one month to assist the Puerto Rico Police Department with security operations and traffic control needs.
“The Florida Highway Patrol is proud to continue assisting the Puerto Rico Police Department following Hurricane Maria,” said Colonel Gene Spaulding, Director of the Florida Highway Patrol. “These donated vehicles are another way Florida is supporting the people of Puerto Rico in their recovery.”
Actions taken by Governor Scott following Hurricane Maria:
Today, Governor Rick Scott attended a roundtable hosted by Puerto Rico Lieutenant Governor and Secretary of State Luis Rivera-Marin, where he offered assistance and guidance on their ongoing recovery from Hurricane Maria. At the roundtable, Gov. Scott was joined by Florida Division of Emergency Management Director Wes Maul and Florida Department of Economic Opportunity Executive Director Cissy Proctor, as well as Puerto Rico business leaders.
Governor Scott said, “Hurricane season begins this week, and while we are always working to make sure Florida is prepared, we are also working to help our neighbors in Puerto Rico. At Governor Ricardo Rosselló’s request, I am proud to be in Puerto Rico for the sixth time since Hurricane Maria’s devastating impact to continue working with him and Lieutenant Governor Luis Rivera-Marin to offer assistance and guidance on their ongoing recovery. We will keep fighting to help our friends in Puerto Rico rebuild, recover and be ready for this year’s hurricane season.”
To view the video, CLICK HERE.
Actions taken by Governor Scott following Hurricane Maria:
· On September 28th, at the request of Puerto Rico Governor Ricardo Rosselló, Governor Scott traveled to San Juan, Puerto Rico to help coordinate response and recovery efforts following Hurricane Maria.
· On October 5th, the Governor entered into a host-state agreement with FEMA – Florida is the only state willing to enter into this type of agreement to help families displaced by Hurricane Maria.
· On October 11th, Governor Scott met with Chairman of the House Appropriations Committee Congressman Rodney Frelinghuysen, Chairman of the House Committee on Agriculture Congressman Mike Conaway, Chairman of the House Committee on Homeland Security Congressman Michael McCaul, and Congresswoman Jenniffer González-Colón.
· On October 30th, the Governor’s office sent a letter to the Office of Management and Budget. See the letter HERE.
· On November 3rd, Governor Scott led a delegation of Florida utility providers to Puerto Rico at the invitation of Governor Ricardo Rosselló.
· On November 9th, the Governor activated the State Emergency Response Team to assist families displaced by Hurricane Maria. See the Governor’s press release HERE.
· On November 15th, the Governor sent a letter to U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and House Speaker Paul Ryan urging them to support Florida’s efforts to support those displaced from Puerto Rico by Hurricane Maria. See the Governor’s letter HERE.
· On December 21st, Governor Scott spoke with Congresswoman Jenniffer González-Colón regarding Puerto Rico’s recovery from Hurricane Maria.
· On December 22nd, Governor Scott spoke with U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen regarding recovery efforts for Florida and Puerto Rico.
· On January 3rd, Governor Scott sent a letter to the United States Senate Committee on Appropriations urging the Senate to immediately pass a significant Hurricane Irma and Maria disaster relief package. See the Governor’s letter HERE.
· On January 11th, Governor Scott spoke with Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Administrator Brock Long regarding the FEMA Transitional Sheltering Assistance (TSA) program and the importance of continued communication between federal, state and local partners as families continue to recover from Hurricane Maria.
· On January 12th, Governor Scott met with Governor Ricardo Rosselló and joined him for a Puerto Rico recovery town hall meeting to discuss ongoing relief efforts.
· On January 24th, Governor Scott, Texas Governor Greg Abbott, California Governor Jerry Brown and Puerto Rico Governor Ricardo Rosselló issued a joint letter urging the U.S. Senate to improve and expeditiously pass supplemental disaster funding, and for Congress to send the bill to the President. See the letter HERE.
· On February 5th, Governor Scott visited Puerto Rico with Governor Ricardo Rosselló to assist with ongoing Hurricane Maria recovery efforts.
· On February 7th, Governor Scott spoke with FEMA Administrator Brock Long regarding Governor Scott’s recent trip to Puerto Rico.
· On February 7th, Governor Scott announced a new partnership to connect families displaced by Hurricane Maria with jobs in Florida. See the announcement HERE.
· On March 5th, Governor Scott traveled to Puerto Rico to meet with Congresswoman Jenniffer González-Colón and attend the Puerto Rico State of the State Address.
· On April 18th, Governor Scott met with Congresswoman Jenniffer González-Colón in Washington D.C. to discuss how Florida is working to help Puerto Rican evacuees in the state.
· On April 18th, Governor Scott also spoke with FEMA Administrator Brock Long to discuss the FEMA Transitional Sheltering Assistance (TSA) program and the importance of keeping the FEMA case managers the Governor previously requested on the ground across the state.
· On May 18th, Governor Scott announced that Florida Department of Education Commissioner Pam Stewart would travel to Puerto Rico on May 20th to meet with Puerto Rico Department of Education Secretary Dr. Julie Keleher and offer continued guidance and support. See the Governor’s announcement HERE.
U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson (D-FL) filed legislation today to require the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to activate its Disaster Housing Assistance Program to continue providing housing assistance to thousands of families still displaced after last year’s hurricanes – including thousands of Puerto Rican families forced to flee the island in the wake of Hurricane Maria.
The move comes just two days after FEMA denied the governor of Puerto Rico’s request to activate the program. And just weeks after the agency announced that it will end a separate temporary housing assistance program that’s currently providing hotel rooms to hundreds of displaced Puerto Rican families living in Florida on June 30 – leaving many of them with no assistance and nowhere to go after the program ends.
“This administration has failed the people of Puerto Rico,” Nelson said. “If they’re not going to act, then Congress must. These displaced families are American citizens who desperately need our help. We have a responsibility to help them, just as we would want to be helped if we were in their shoes.”
If approved, Nelson’s legislation would require FEMA and the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to immediately activate a joint interagency housing program, known as the Disaster Housing Assistance Program, or DHAP, to continue providing housing assistance to the victims of Hurricanes Irma and Maria – including hundreds of displaced Puerto Rican families living in Florida – through February 2019.
The DHAP program was first activated in 2007, in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina to help relocate storm victims out of defective FEMA trailers and into more traditional housing. It was used again in 2008 to provide housing assistance to victims of Hurricane Ike and Gustav.
Once activated, DHAP provides monthly rent subsidies to eligible families displaced by a storm to help them pay for temporary housing in the wake of a disaster. The program can provide eligible families with housing assistance for up to 18 months after a disaster is declared, which means it could provide victims of Hurricanes Irma and Maria with housing assistance through February 2019.
The program is initiated through an interagency agreement between FEMA and HUD, where FEMA funds the program and establishes the eligibility criteria for displaced families, while HUD uses its existing processes to administer the program and provide displaced families with the assistance they need.
On Tuesday, FEMA rejected a formal request made by the governor of Puerto Rico in December to activate the program. If approved, Nelson’s legislation would require the agencies to immediately activate DHAP for anyone still displaced by last year’s storms – including hundreds of displaced Puerto Rican families in Florida who could soon be forced out of their hotel rooms on June 30.
In addition to Nelson, the bill is cosponsored by Sens. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-MA), Kamala Harris (D-CA), Ed Markey (D-MA) and Elizabeth Warren (D-MA).
A copy of the legislation is available here.
Florida Insurance Commissioner David Altmaier announced today that staff from the Office of Insurance Regulation (OIR) will travel to Puerto Rico to assist those impacted by Hurricane Maria. In partnership with the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC), an OIR team member will deploy on May 12, 2018 to assist families and individuals with claims and other insurance issues.
Governor Scott said, “Since Hurricane Maria, Florida has provided steadfast support to our neighbors in Puerto Rico and I am proud to continue this aid by sharing an insurance expert from Florida to provide claims assistance to homeowners and business owners as they work to rebuild their lives. I am proud of the work Florida has done to help families from Puerto Rico and we will continue to do all we can to make sure they have the resources needed to get back on their feet.”
CFO Jimmy Patronis said, “Access to insurance help and resources is critical for consumers and businesses in Puerto Rico impacted by Hurricane Maria. As we gear up for the 2018 Hurricane Season, it’s important that we do all we can to provide resources to the people of Puerto Rico to help recover and now prepare ahead of June 1. My office’s bi-lingual insurance experts stand ready to assist with any consumer concerns.”
Florida Insurance Commissioner David Altmaier said, “OIR’s mission is to protect insurance consumers and cultivate a stable insurance marketplace in Florida, and we’ve worked closely with Governor Scott, CFO Patronis, Commissioner Putnam, and Attorney General Bondi to carry out this mission before, during, and after storms. I am proud that our team will now have the opportunity to extend our efforts by providing direct assistance in Puerto Rico.”
Julie McPeak, Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance Commissioner and National Association of Insurance Commissioners President, said, “Having OIR staff available to assist with policyholders with claims processing will be an invaluable service, and the NAIC is thrilled to partner with Governor Scott and Commissioner Altmaier on this initiative.”
The National Association of Insurance Commissioners will provide financial support for travel costs associated with the initiative.
U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson (D-FL) was in Puerto Rico today to meet with local residents and get a firsthand look at several areas still struggling to recover from Hurricane Maria.
The visit was Nelson’s fifth to the island, and third since the storm.
Nelson, who has been an outspoken proponent of providing Puerto Rico additional funding to help the island recover from the hurricane, started the day by meeting with Puerto Rico’s Secretary of Housing Fernando Gil Enseñat in Carolina to get a firsthand look at a recently completed, federally-funded housing project. Local officials thanked Nelson for his help in getting Congress to approve the funding needed for the project.
After seeing the type of work being done to provide additional housing for residents on the island, Nelson headed to Las Piedras, one of Puerto Rico’s most underdeveloped areas where up to 30 percent of the town still does not have electricity after the storm.
“This is unacceptable,” Nelson said about the conditions in Las Piedras. “It’s been eight months since the storm, and we will continue to fight to ensure Puerto Rico is treated the way it should be.”
Before leaving Las Piedras, Nelson got a firsthand look at one of Tesla’s solar energy projects in Barrio Montones. The pilot project, which began in March 2018, provides electricity to 12 homes on top of a mountain that would not otherwise have electricity following the storm. Nelson’s visit to see the solar project comes just days before the U.S. Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee is set to hold – at Nelson’s request – an oversight hearing on the island’s ongoing power woes in the wake of Hurricane Maria. The hearing will be held on May 8.
After visiting with residents in Las Piedras, Nelson met with Puerto Rico’s Gov. Ricardo Rosselló and First Lady Beatriz Rosselló. Nelson expressed his condolences for the nine Puerto Rican Air National Guard members lost this week when their C-130 crashed in Georgia. Nelson and Rosselló then headed to Guaynabo to announce a new housing initiative that will solidify housing for dozens of Puerto Rican families.
Finally, Nelson visited Caño Martín Peña Ecosystem Restoration Project to get a firsthand look at the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ project to clean out the once-navigable channel that’s now clogged with debris. Now blocked, the clogged canal poses a serious health threats to the nearly 26,000 residents who live in nearby communities as untreated sewage entering the canal is unable to properly move through it.
Governor Rick Scott made the following statement today regarding FEMA extending the Transitional Sheltering Assistance program (TSA) for families who were displaced due to Hurricanes Irma and Maria. For more information click HERE.
Governor Scott said, “Florida has done everything possible to help our neighbors in Puerto Rico with their continued recovery from Hurricane Maria. Over the past seven months since Maria made landfall, we have remained in constant communication with Governor Ricardo Rosselló and his leadership team and I have made five trips to Puerto Rico to offer our full assistance and guidance. Florida remains the only state with a Host-State Agreement with FEMA to help families from Puerto Rico. I also recently spoke with FEMA Administrator Brock Long about our joint efforts to make sure we are doing everything possible to help those who evacuated here. This includes keeping the FEMA case managers I requested on the ground across our state to offer assistance. I’m glad to hear that FEMA is once again extending Transitional Sheltering Assistance (TSA) for the many families from Puerto Rico in the Sunshine State and we continue to stand ready to assist in any way possible.”
Action taken by Governor Scott following Hurricane Maria:
More than a half-dozen U.S. Senators today called on leaders of the Senate’s Energy and Natural Resources Committee to investigate Puerto Rico’s ongoing power outages and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ decision to begin reducing the number of utility repair workers on the island while thousands of residents still do not have power.
The request for an oversight hearing on the Corps’ actions was made in a letter led by U.S. Sens. Bill Nelson (D-FL) and Marco Rubio (R-FL and sent today to the Chairman and Ranking Member of the Senate’s Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, Sens. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) and Maria Cantwell (D-WA).
“The Army Corps of Engineers is reportedly drawing down the number of utility repair workers on the island,” the senators wrote. “We would welcome an opportunity to discuss the Corps’ decision to begin reducing this workforce on the island while our fellow Americans in Vieques, Caguas, and elsewhere continue to struggle.”
In addition to Nelson and Rubio, the letter was signed by Sens. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Tom Carper (D-DE), Bob Casey (D-PA), Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Bernie Sanders (I-VT).
Nelson, who has been an outspoken leader in pushing the federal government to do more to help the people of Puerto Rico recover in the wake of Hurricane Maria, was in Kissimmee, Florida earlier today to meet with local Puerto Rican community leaders and discuss the island’s ongoing recovery efforts.
Yesterday, Nelson and Rep. Darren Soto (FL-09) sent a letter to President Trump urging his administration to do more to help the island. Nelson and Soto called the federal government’s response in Puerto Rico “slow, tepid and completely inadequate.”
Copy of the letter Nelson and Soto sent to the president yesterday is here.
A .PDF copy of the lawmakers’ letter today requesting a Senate Committee investigation is available here.
Background article on the issue can be found below.
By FRANCES ROBLES
Published: Feb. 26, 2018
SAN JUAN, P.R. — Though hundreds of thousands of Puerto Ricans remain in the dark five months after a devastating hurricane trampled the island’s power grid, the federal government has begun to scale back the number of contractors it has working to get the lights back on.
The United States Army Corps of Engineers is in charge of the federal effort to repair the power grid on the island, where a Category 4 storm last fall knocked out electricity to every home and business. The corps gave major contracts to two companies, Fluor Corporation and PowerSecure, and coordinates their work with the efforts of the island’s government-run power utility, which has also hired contractors and brought in crews from mainland utilities.
At one point, there were a total of 6,200 workers repairing transmission and distribution lines across the island, about half of them working for the corps. Now that power has been restored to more than 1.1 million people, by the utility’s count — about 86 percent of the island’s customers — the corps said it would begin a “responsible drawdown” of its work force.
Nearly 1,000 power workers have left the island in the past two weeks, according to Twitter messages posted by the corps. Fluor still had 1,600 people in Puerto Rico as of Sunday, but its contract period is “nearing the end,” and PowerSecure is scheduled to wrap up work by April 7, the corps said.
The decision to scale back was met with “indignation” across the island, said Jorge L. González Otero, the mayor of Jayuya, a town in the central part of the island, where about half the residents still lack power.
Fluor has already billed the maximum amount allowed under its $750 million contract, and its subcontractors were told last week to pack up.
“Fluor was among the first companies to get here, about a month and a half ago,” Mr. González Otero said, referring to Jayuya. “They said the contract was over, and they left everything half-done.”
“Imagine, I have people here without power for five months who are 80 years old, disabled, bedridden,” he added, “and they were just beginning to see people 50 meters away get their electricity back. They are growing desperate.”
Fluor’s crews would not be the first contractors to leave abruptly. After a scandal erupted over the Puerto Rico government’s award of its first power restoration contract, worth $300 million, to a small Montana firm, Whitefish Energy, the government canceled the deal.
Many people involved in power restoration said that officials overseeing the work were disappointed with the Army Corps of Engineers contractors. Fluor in particular was criticized for working sluggishly and using up the money available under its contract without accomplishing as much as expected.
Fluor is a Texas-based construction giant that has done more than $30 billion in government work over the past four decades, much of it for the Defense Department, federal records show.
“I understand that they were slow — super slow,” Mr. González Otero said. “Now we don’t have anyone, slow or at all. We have no one.”
Justo González, the interim executive director of the island’s government-owned utility, the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority, also was critical of Fluor’s performance.
“We compared, and saw better work from other companies,” Mr. González said in an interview.
Even so, he said, the corps’s decision to let the Fluor workers leave was worrisome.
“It concerns me,” he said. “It can affect our ability to energize. We wanted them to continue. What do I want? To energize as quickly as possible.”
A spokesman for Fluor denied that there had been any questions about its work.
“To date, we have restored power to 250,000 customers by fixing 7,500 poles, installing 462 miles of wire, more than 20,000 conductors, and repaired 170 transmission lines,” the company said. Under the limits set by the contract on the time and money to be expended, the company said, “we are reaching the end of both, and have been directed by the corps to begin transitioning people and equipment off of the island.”
The corps said that restoring power to some of the hardest-hit areas of Puerto Rico, including Arecibo and Caguas, would take a few more months. The “right number of restoration workers” were “actively engaged” in completing the job, the corps said in a statement.
“We will not rest until we have the lights back on for all of our fellow American citizens in Puerto Rico,” Col. Jason Kirk said in the statement.
Ahsha Tribble, who oversees power efforts for the Federal Emergency Management Agency in Puerto Rico, said it was unfair to single out Fluor for leaving before restoration was complete, because other private companies that came to the island from New York and other states under mutual assistance agreements were also considering scaling back soon.
“At 86 percent restoration, we are starting to shave off people,” Ms. Tribble said. “In any normal course of restoration, you ramp up until you start getting your successes, and then you begin to start ramping down.”
Many of the remaining areas without power are in mountainous regions where it is not possible to squeeze in thousands of workers at once, she said.
Island residents, many of them still struggling to get basic services, were surprised by the corps’s announcement.
“We are so appreciative of everything these people have done — these workers risked their lives coming here, working in dangerous helicopters and all of that,” said Nydia Guzmán, 72, who spent Friday at one of the utility’s customer service offices, along with dozens of other customers who were disputing their bills.
“But they can’t leave now,” Ms. Guzmán said. “There’s too much left to be done.”
Today, Governor Rick Scott traveled to Puerto Rico to offer guidance and assistance regarding ongoing Hurricane Maria recovery efforts. Governor Scott met with Governor Ricardo Rosselló, emergency management officials and visited with utility workers from Florida in Puerto Rico to thank them for their continued efforts. For more information on what the state is doing to support Puerto Rico, click HERE.
