Earlier today we got final confirmation that Governor Alejandro Garcia Padilla will be presenting before the United States Senate Committee on Energy & Natural Resources during their hearing on Puerto Rico. The hearing will focus on the economy, debt and options Congress has to deal with the crisis in the Caribbean territory.

There was much speculation as to whether Garcia Padilla would be present during the hearing, given his hesitance to appear before previous panels on Puerto Rico, after being lambasted for his performance during previous hearings. This would be the third hearing held this year in Congress on Puerto Rico following one in June before the House Subcommittee on Indian, Insular and Alaska Native Affairs and another in September, before the Senate Committee on Finance, meant to discuss the political status and economy of the territory respectively.

The hearing begins at 10:00 am in the Dirksen Senate Office Building Room 366. Besides Garcia Padilla, the panel will hear from Resident Commissioner Pedro Pierluisi (D, NPP), Antonio Weiss, who is the Counselor to the US Treasury Secretary, Sergio Marxuach, the Policy Director of the Center for a New Economy, and Steven Fetter, the founder and president of Regulation UnFettered.

Presiding the hearing will be Chairman Lisa Murkowski (R), accompanied by ranking member Maria Cantwell (D). Last time Murkowski and Garcia Padilla exchanged words during a hearing in 2013, we got to witness some testy exchanges over the ambiguity of Garcia Padilla’s position on the status of Puerto Rico. Tomorrow might be as contentious, given that Murkowski will likely not be too open to the ideas the governor might have regarding Congress and the federal government’s role in the economic crisis plaguing the islands.

As with previous hearings, do not expect much to happen in terms of Congressional action. However, the fact that there have been as many consecutive hearings in such a relatively short amount of time could be seen as an encouraging sign to those hoping Congress finally takes action to help alleviate the crisis. That said, Republican opposition to key proposals such as the extension of Chapter 9 bankruptcy protection to Puerto Rico municipalities and utilities remains steadfast, and a hearing is unlikely to make much of a difference.

Stay tuned tomorrow for our coverage on the hearing.