Puerto Rico Gov. Alejandro García Padilla said a senior member of U.S. House Speaker Paul Ryan’s legislative delegation reaffirmed a commitment to prompt action that would give the commonwealth the tools for a debt restructuring.
The governor “met with Congressman Jim Sensenbrenner [R-Wisc.], the senior member of the legislative delegation for the speaker of the U.S. Congress, Paul Ryan,” the governor said in a statement late Wednesday. “During the meeting, the governor briefed the congressman about the fiscal and economic crisis facing Puerto Rico. Sensenbrenner reaffirmed the commitment to act promptly to address the crisis so that [Puerto Rico] has the necessary tools to achieve a comprehensive debt restructuring.”
A spokeswoman for Sensenbrenner said the representative “supports finding a responsible solution to the debt crisis that will put the island on a long term path toward economic prosperity.” A spokesman for Ryan referred a reporter to the committees of jurisdiction “working hard on this effort, namely Natural Resources.”
Over the last several months House Republicans have voiced opposition to Puerto Rico being given the right to restructure its debt.
In mid-December Ryan instructed the relevant House committees to come up with a “responsible solution” for Puerto Rico’s fiscal and debt crises by the end of March.
House Republicans have generally advocated fiscal reforms and federal oversight, rather than a debt restructuring, to help the commonwealth deal with its financial crisis.
A few U.S. House Republicans have stated conditional support for debt restructuring. For example Rep. Sean Duffy, R-Wisc., has called for the island’s municipalities and public utilities to have access to Chapter 9 protections as long as the federal government appoints a control board for the island. Natural Resources Committee Chair Rob Bishop, R-Utah, has also called for a similar combination of debt restructuring and control board.
Neither Sensenbrenner nor Ryan has publicly stated support for restructuring Puerto Rico’s debt.
