Serrano and Velazquez Make Demands of Oversight Board

In passing PROMESA, Congress was able to create an entity that would be responsible for making the decisions it wasn’t willing to enforce, in the form of the Financial Oversight & Management Board for Puerto Rico. The board however, seems to be too good at playing the role of villain, to the point that members of Congress themselves are unhappy with the way the federally-mandated board is acting.

Reps. José Serrano (D-NY) and Nydia Velázquez (D-NY) have written a letter to Puerto Rico’s PROMESA Financial Oversight Board, demanding greater transparency and better stewardship of public funds.

“It has come to our attention,” the New York representatives wrote, “that the Oversight Board has spent over $30 million—which comes from Puerto Rican taxpayers—for salaries, equipment, and services during its first year of operations. At a time when the government of Puerto Rico and its people have had to endure financial sacrifices, it is incumbent upon the Board to do the same and lead by example.”

Granted, Congress could very well force the board to act as it wishes, but with a Republican majority focused on other priorities, the concerns of these two democratic representatives are likely not to going to cause changes to PROMESA.