The U.S. territory is in a decade-long recession and owes a $2 billion debt payment to creditors on July 1.
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“In addition to the additional financial cost of registration, the administrative costs of providing duplicative information already provided to the FDA, and the burdensome new information will make doing business in Puerto Rico costlier than any other US state or territory”, NPA explained in its talking points distributed before last weekend’s ruling. Democrats also were peeved that Republicans brought the bill straight to the floor without the opportunity to try and amend it. Though several Democrats have raised concerns about the structure of the legislation, many also argue that the consequences of a default without a plan in place are too serious to justify opposing the bill. But the oversight board that has a massive amount of work ahead of it to untangle Puerto Rico’s finances before it can figure out how much debt the commonwealth and each issuer can handle.
Separately, Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew lobbied Democrats to back the package in a last-minute bid to secure the votes and help the US territory with its crippling $70 billion debt.
An advertising campaign, believed to be backed by creditors, charged that the legislation was a taxpayer bailout of Puerto Rico, though no taxpayer funds would be provided through the legislation.
The measure, which got 68 votes, is identical to the plan passed by the House of Representatives this month. Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid told reporters Tuesday that he would vote for the bill.
Sanders, a self-described democratic socialist who turned an unlikely presidential bid into a political movement to combat inequality, warned that legislation due for a crucial Senate vote on Wednesday would subject Puerto Rico to Republican trickle-down economics and favor “vulture capitalists” at the expense of the island’s increasingly impoverished population.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Jack Lew said the Brexit vote doesn’t signal the start of yet another global financial crisis. Senate rules allow for debate to continue for up to 30 hours after the procedural vote, but senators could agree to speed up the action. The Democrat said he hopes in the future to change some provisions attached by Republicans, such as those on overtime pay and a lower minimum wage.
He also urged policymakers in Britain and other European nations and elsewhere should use all available tools, including fiscal and monetary policy and structural reforms, to boost global demand in the aftermath of the United Kingdom vote to leave the European Union, Reuters reported.
“The U.S. territory of Puerto Rico is in crisis and it could be forced to leave residents without essential services”, McConnell said.
Senator Bob Menendez of New Jersey, who contends the measure would treat Puerto Rico like a colony, wants to revise it to make it more favorable for the territory.
“There is going to be significant resistance among the voting population, so I’m just wondering whether or not they’ll be taking the decisive steps as early as they need to”, Tillis said.
Lew and Puerto Rican Gov. Alejandro Garcia Padilla made last-minute visits to Capitol Hill to lobby for votes.
“The legislation before us is far from flawless”, Reid said before the vote.
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As several senators remained uncommitted, some bondholder groups worked to turn lawmakers against the bill, arguing that the measure doesn’t protect bondholders and is tantamount to a bailout for the territory.
