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51-606: The authority was ruled by a board of directors appointed by the governor with the advice and consent of the Senate . After 2014, PREPA was subject to the Puerto Rico Energy Commission , another government agency whose board of directors was also appointed by the governor. Hurricane Maria in September 2017 destroyed PREPA's distribution network, creating a blackout in all parts of the island. PREPA

102-409: A framework agreement , is a contract reached between parties , in which the parties agree to most of the terms that will govern future transactions or future agreements . A master agreement delineates a schedule of lower-level service agreements, permitting the parties to quickly enact future transactions or agreements, negotiating only the points specific to the new transactions and relying on

153-569: A Montana company which had only two employees on the day the hurricane struck. The award was controversial on those and other grounds, and was cancelled on October 29. By December 2017, the Army Corps of Engineers had other contractors in place, along with crews brought in through mutual aid agreements with utilities such as Con Edison . Six weeks after Hurricane Maria, 30% of customers had been restored. After two months, almost half had been restored. On January 6, 2018, representatives of FEMA ,

204-677: A decrease in the earnings of the agency. Investigations by the office of the Comptroller revealed from 2010 to 2018 the AEE had mismanaged $ 192 million on projects without utility. In March 2021 the AEE announced increase in electric bills for the next three months equivalent to an average of $ 12 more on clients bills. As part of the contract with LUMA Energy, the AEE has begun transferring funds to LUMA, including $ 128 million sent by April 2021. Governor of Puerto Rico The governor of Puerto Rico ( Spanish : gobernador de Puerto Rico )

255-490: A deficit of about $ 354 million against revenues of $ 4.8 billion. In terms of costs, $ 2.6 billion or about 58% of PREPA's expenses are attributed to fuel purchases alone while salaries and collective bargains represent less than 13% of the authority's expenses. On May 23, 2014, Citigroup severely curtailed PREPA's line of credit for fuel purchase, forcing PREPA to run out of cash to pay Petrobras , its main oil supplier. Petrobras, in turn, threatened to cut off further shipments to

306-741: A lack of agreement between the government of Puerto Rico and bond holders. PREPA's debt totals over $ 9 billion and according to David Skeel, the new president of the Financial Oversight and Management Board for Puerto Rico , it will have to be renegotiated in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. Additional to a lack of progress on debt negotiation a 2020 law passed due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Puerto Rico halted cutting service to clients who failed to pay their utility bills, this resulted in

357-539: A legal challenge. Less than a week later, the Supreme Court of Puerto Rico declared that Pierluisi had taken office on unconstitutional grounds and removed him from office, effective 5 p.m. AST on August 7. At that time, the next in line was then Secretary of Justice, Wanda Vázquez Garced , who became governor following the original line of succession as it was on August 2 at 5 pm. Master service agreement A master service agreement , sometimes known as

408-428: A recount occurred. Upon the death, resignation, or removal from office (by impeachment and conviction) of a sitting governor, the secretary of state would then take the office of governor until the end of the four-year term. In case the secretary of state is unwilling or unable to assume it, the secretary of justice would assume the governorship, followed by the secretary of treasury , the secretary of education ,

459-650: A result of the 2019–20 Puerto Rico earthquakes the Costa Sur Power Plant located in Guayanilla was knocked out of service. An estimated 327,000 clients where left without power and many as a result without water service. The President of the AEE/PREPA, Jose Ortiz, informed there was extensive damage in the facilities and that repairs would take more than a year. FEMA assigned $ 238 million to help cover cost related to backup units which are used to meet

510-513: Is also studying the possibility of selling energy to the United States Virgin Islands with the installation of an underwater power cable between Fajardo and the island of St. Thomas —similar to the power cable with which it services its clients in the island municipalities of Vieques and Culebra . As of 2014 the authority carries liabilities of US$ 10.1 billion against assets of $ 6 billion. It also operates with

561-775: Is the head of government of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , and commander-in-chief of the Puerto Rico National Guard . Currently, Pedro Pierlusi is serving as the 189th governor of the archipelago and island . The governor has a duty to enforce local laws , to convene the Legislative Assembly , the power to either approve or veto bills passed by the Legislative Assembly, to appoint government officers, to appoint justices , and to grant pardons . Since 1948,

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612-478: The Popular Democratic Party of Puerto Rico . Only a plurality vote (more than any other candidate) is required to win election, rather than a majority (more than half the votes). The Puerto Rico Elections Code states that if the margin of victory of a candidate is less than 0.5% of the votes, a full recount must take place. So far, only in the gubernatorial elections of 1980 and 2004 has

663-757: The President of the United States . In 1900, William McKinley signed the Foraker Act as a United States federal law , which established civilian (limited popular) government on Puerto Rico. The new government had a governor and an executive council appointed by the President, a House of Representatives with 35 elected members, a judicial system with a Supreme Court, and a non-voting Resident Commissioner in Congress. The first civilian governor of

714-556: The Puerto Rico National Guard and the chief diplomat. On July 25, 1952, the Constitution of Puerto Rico was enacted by Governor Muñoz Marín after the approval by Congress and the President of the United States. Pursuant to section Three, Article IV of the Constitution of Puerto Rico, the governor must be a citizen of the United States , a resident of Puerto Rico for five consecutive years prior and at least 35 years old at

765-512: The Supreme Court and all the lower courts of the island. The governor must address the legislature at the beginning of each year to present two speeches, one is the State of the Commonwealth speech and another in which the governor presents the "Recommended Budget" for the next fiscal year, in which the governor proposes to the legislature a budget. They are also the commander-in-chief of

816-417: The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and their armed security details entered a Palo Seco warehouse owned by PREPA to obtain and distribute a massive store of spare parts were needed to restore grid power. PREPA has been accused of hoarding the materials and hence delaying the restoration of power. The equipment has since been distributed. In January 2018, it had been predicted that generation would reach 95% by

867-472: The governor and the legislature belong to the same party , one of the earliest laws amended by the legislature is the one governing PREPA's board composition. The governor is usually required to appoint four members with the advice and consent of the Senate , who along with the incumbent political officeholders which serve in ex officio capacity effectively render the authority a partisan tool rather than an electric utility. The last structural change to

918-400: The secretary of labor and human resources , the secretary of transportation and public works , the secretary of economic development and commerce , the secretary of health and the secretary of agriculture . If none of them is available for succession the Legislative Assembly meets to elect by majority vote of all of its members a governor for the rest of the term. Other provisions exist for

969-511: The Constitution of the Commonwealth was ratified by the people of Puerto Rico in 1952. Rafael Hernández Colón, however, served three non-consecutive terms: first from 1973 to 1977, and then from 1985 to 1993. The governor is elected by a direct vote of the people. Candidates typically represent a political party , with every elected governor to date (as of 2019 ) having been a member of the New Progressive Party of Puerto Rico or

1020-464: The Puerto Rican government passed legislation requiring the closure of coal fired power plants by 2028 and achieving 100% renewable energy by 2050. A report in 2021 criticized the government for delays in processing applications for electrical interconnection. At the time of said report only 327 applications where approved, representing 0.09% of the total. In 2021 the government unveiled plans for

1071-539: The Puerto Rican legislature." On June 11, 2014, Fitch Ratings downgraded its rating on the authority's to speculative non-investment grade ("junk status") from BB+ to BB while putting the authority on negative rating watch. PREPA filed for bankruptcy in July 2017. PREPAs' two largest creditors are OppenheimerFunds and Franklin Templeton . As of 2021 the payment of PREPA's debt remains in an indefinite "limbo" due to

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1122-619: The Puerto Rico Ocean Technology Complex (PROtech) an Ocean thermal energy conversion project on the southeast coast. PREPA serves close to 1.5 million customers through several power plants (as of 2015): In 2020 the agency continues to report that it serves 1.5 million customers. In July 1, 2023, every generation plant owned by PREPA got taken over by private company Genera PR. The public corporation also provides fiber optic broadband to private carriers through one of its subsidiary, PREPA Networks . PREPA

1173-415: The authority by residential and commercial consumers, some of them by consumers living in public housing . The authority argues that it wouldn't have a problem being self-sufficient if it were paid the aforementioned debt and if it weren't forced to give out subsidies. On June 3, 2014, senator Ramón Luis Nieves admitted publicly that, "part of the financial problem at PREPA was provoked by the government and

1224-403: The authority. This forced the authority to take $ 100 million out of its Capital Improvements Fund in order to pay its debt to Petrobras. PREPA argues that the different agencies of the government of Puerto Rico owe them more than $ 290 million in debt, while an additional $ 375 million of revenue is lost through subsidies enacted by the Puerto Rican legislature. An additional $ 600 million is owed to

1275-514: The board occurred on June 11, 2018, after governor Ricardo Rossello . There are four labor unions that represent the workers from the authority exclusively UTIER , UITICE , UEPI , and UPAEE . In 2021 three of the five unions will disband due to the LUMA energy contract. The majority of Puerto Rico's electricity is generated using oil and natural gas fired power plants. Puerto Rico also has 21 reservoirs that produce hydroelectric energy. In 2019

1326-403: The chief executive and head of government. The first known and recorded heads of government in the history of Puerto Rico were the caciques , the tribal chiefs of the natives known as Taínos that inhabited the island before the arrival of Spaniards. It is believed that the cacique rank was apparently established through democratic means. His importance in the tribe was determined by

1377-402: The company control of the AEE/PREPA electric grid for 15 years. The meeting in which the contract (which contains over 300 pages in length) was approved lasted only 43 minutes. The UTIER along with the other unions of the authority expressed disapproval of the contract, organized strikes and submitted amendments to the contract. The Puerto Rico House of Representatives called for postponing

1428-549: The contract until 2022 and launched an investigation into the contract. In October 2024, the Special Commission of the Puerto Rico Bar concluded that the contract, between the two agreements, violated fundamental legal principles, but also contributed to worsening the energy situation of Puerto Rico. The Special Commission of the Puerto Rico Bar recommends, a Litigation in nullity, or Resolution according to

1479-556: The contractual terms. PREPA's board of directors serves as the authority's governing body, with a membership that usually consists of private citizens entrusted with representing the public interest and may or may not include exofficio political officeholders (typically the Secretary of Economic Development and Commerce ). Three members of the board are directly elected by consumers by plurality-at-large ; two of them by residential consumers and one by commercial ones. However, when both

1530-409: The demand previously covered by Costa Sur. In 2017, during Hurricane Maria an unsolicited offer by New Fortress Energy was made to PREPA. In 2020, a court order required the awarded-contract documents be made public and showed several irregularities including that the company doesn't have a liquid-gas production track record in Puerto Rico and that rather than go through a bidding process, the contract

1581-418: The entire island without power. Two weeks later, power had been restored to about 10% of customers. Full restoration took months, and many Puerto Ricans bought generators. Electric companies in unaffected areas ordinarily make contracts for speedy assistance to those hit by disaster, but in this case negotiations took weeks. The initial $ 300 million contract for power restoration was given to Whitefish Energy ,

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1632-480: The first democratically elected governor. The current governmental structure was established under the Constitution of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , ratified in 1952. Sitting governor Luis Muñoz Marín was re-elected as the first governor under the Constitution. Under Article IV of the Constitution, the governor continues to be popularly elected every four years and is the head of the Commonwealth's executive branch. The governor-elect takes office on January 2 of

1683-491: The first elected governor to resign. His resignation took effect on August 2, 2019, at 5 pm. Before leaving office, Rosselló nominated Pedro Pierluisi as secretary of state, intending to make Pierluisi his successor, but his nomination was not approved by the full legislature before Rosselló's resignation took effect. Despite not having been confirmed by the Senate of Puerto Rico , Pierluisi was sworn in as governor, which prompted

1734-443: The following month, and 100% of customers would be restored by June 2018. On April 18, 2018, an accident at a transmission line knocked out the electrical grid of Puerto Rico. All the island lost power. The following afternoon, PREPA announced that service had been restored to 97% of customers, the same percentage as before this blackout. 40,000 customers were still out of service due to the hurricane seven months earlier. With June 1

1785-484: The following year in a public inaugural ceremony which may be preceded by a private oath-taking ceremony. The governor is head of the government of Puerto Rico . They have the power to veto legislation that the Puerto Rican legislature passes. The governor also has the power to appoint the members of their cabinet, who in turn must be ratified by the Legislature. The governor also has the power to appoint Justices to

1836-458: The governor has been elected by the people of Puerto Rico . Prior to that, the governor was appointed either by the king of Spain (1510–1898) or the president of the United States (1898–1948). Article IV of the Constitution of Puerto Rico vests the executive power on the governor and empowers them with the faculty to appoint officers. These two faculties in allow the governor to delegate most of their functions while continuing to be

1887-572: The island under the Foraker Act was Charles Herbert Allen . This system was still used after the approval of the Jones–Shafroth Act , which altered the structure of government in Puerto Rico, and was in use until 1948. Following the approval of the federal Elective Governor Act by President Harry S. Truman in 1947, the governor has been elected through a democratic process every four years since 1948. At that time, Luis Muñoz Marín became

1938-626: The island's first governor. Vicente Yáñez Pinzón had been appointed to take the position of Captain General of the City of Puerto Rico prior to the island's colonization, but he never performed this function. As part of the Spanish Empire, the Spanish monarchy was in charge of appointing the governor of Puerto Rico. The person selected was in charge of the island's development and wealth and

1989-424: The official start of the 2018 hurricane season, an estimated 11,000+ customers remained without power, possibly for another two months. Although an estimated $ 3.8B was spent on power grid work since the September hurricanes, the grid is still considered fragile and vulnerable. PREPA announced a $ 500M one-year master services agreement with MasTec for further power grid reconstruction and modernization services. As

2040-601: The outbreak of the Spanish–American War , Puerto Rico was invaded by the United States . Following the conclusion of the war, Spain was forced to cede Puerto Rico, along with Cuba , the Philippines and Guam , to the United States under the 1898 Treaty of Paris . Puerto Rico began the twentieth century under the military rule of the United States with officials, including the governor, who were appointed by

2091-504: The powers of the governorship rarely devolved upon the secretary of state or other Cabinet officers. More accessible travel has made the acting governorship a much more common occurrence. During recent times, not only has the secretary of state frequently served as acting governor, but the secretary of justice, and secretary of treasury have as well. On July 24, 2019, Governor Ricardo Rosselló announced his resignation after two weeks of protests and demonstrations in Puerto Rico . He became

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2142-531: The provisions in the master agreement for common terms. This master agreement can be used to mediate employer-employee conflict in the workplace by having a reference point to work out solutions and set specific terms. Contracts are often negotiated as a unified master service agreement and statement of work , such as with information technology service providers . There are two main reasons for using MSA: MSA allows counterparties not to create new agreements for every action between parties because it creates

2193-666: The removal of seaweed since the filters to prevent the accumulation of such needed replacement. The power outages resulted in the cancellation of classes at the Pontifical Catholic University of Puerto Rico and a student protest at the University of Puerto Rico . At the first days of September 2017, the eye of Hurricane Irma passed north of the island. The strong winds left 1 million residents without power. Power had been restored to 980,000 people by September 20, when Hurricane Maria struck, leaving nearly

2244-678: The size of his tribe rather than his warlord skills, since the Taínos were mostly a pacifist culture. Agüeybaná I is the most-well known cacique as he was the one governing all others when the Spaniards arrived in 1493 although many others existed during his period, as well as before and after him . When the Spanish Empire colonized Puerto Rico during the 16th century, the Spanish conquistador Juan Ponce de León established himself as

2295-491: The time of the election. The governor serves a four-year term which begins on the second day of January after the year of their election and ends on the date their successor takes office. Consecutive service is unlimited, according to the Constitution of the Island. Luis Muñoz Marín , its first elected governor, served for four consecutive terms from 1949 to 1965, but almost all subsequent governors served either one or two terms;

2346-408: The transition between an incumbent governor and a governor-elect. Similar to some U.S. states, such as California, if the governor is temporarily away from Puerto Rico, the secretary of state, or in their absence the highest ranking Cabinet member in the line of succession , becomes acting governor until the governor's return. In decades past, when off-island gubernatorial travel was infrequent,

2397-408: Was $ 202 million. Throughout its history, PREPA has suffered several outages that have left regions or the entire island of Puerto Rico without power. In August 2012 14,000 residents where left without power following the passing of tropical storm Isaac. One of these islandwide outages occurred on September 20, 2016, due to a fire at one of PREPA's plants—Central Aguirre. All of Puerto Rico

2448-441: Was approved quickly. Chris Christie , the former governor of New Jersey was listed as a paid lobbyist for PREPA, in the documents. Ingrid Vila Biaggi , the former Puerto Rico Chief of Staff, made a request for an independent investigation. In 2021 various environmental groups requested the cancellation of the contract. In June 2020 governor Wanda Vázquez Garced and the AEE/PREPA signed a contract with LUMA Energy that would give

2499-524: Was originally named the Puerto Rico Water Resources Authority (PRWRA) which was created by Act. 83 of May 2, 1941, during the governorship of Rexford G. Tugwell . Government-owned , PRWRA unified diverse regional and local electric power companies into one unified electric grid. Over the years the budget for maintenance, such as clearing trees near power lines, has diminished: in 2007 it was $ 251 million and in 2014 it

2550-542: Was responsible for reporting the colony's status to the government in Spain. The first native Puerto Rican to perform the function was Juan Ponce de León II , grandson of the conquistador, who served as interim governor in 1579. After 1580 Puerto Rico's government was established as the Captaincy General of Puerto Rico , and subsequent governors held the office of Captain General as well. On July 25, 1898, at

2601-410: Was without power for three days. On occasion, entire sectors are reportedly left without power when an animal, such as a cat or an iguana, causes damage to the system. In September 2021 demand for electricity exceeded supply, after mechanical and maintenance problems affected various power plants, resulting in four days of consecutive rolling blackouts. Central Aguirre and Palo Seco faced problems with

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