Menendez opposing Puerto Rico debt bill

A top Senate Democrat on Tuesday said that while he is encouraged by the progress made to craft legislation to aid Puerto Rico, a House bill doesn’t go far enough to help the island territory.

Sen. Bob Menendez (N.J.) said on the Senate floor that “Congress is faced with an immediate and serious choice” when it comes to passing legislation to help the island territory restructure $72 billion in debt.

{mosads}“Indeed, the decisions we make in the next month will have profound consequences on the people of Puerto Rico for a generation,” Menendez said.

“The stakes are so high, we simply have to get this right,” he said.

Menendez said he is encouraged by the efforts of Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) and House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Rob Bishop (R-Utah) to craft a measure to “prevent this fiscal crisis from becoming a full blown humanitarian catastrophe.”

Bishop’s panel is expected to approve the legislation on Wednesday. 

Democratic frontrunner Hillary Clinton backs the bill as well as Ryan, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and the White House.

But Democratic hopeful Bernie Sanders has heavily criticized the bill, mainly because of the inclusion of a seven-member control board to oversee the restructuring plan. 

Menendez said that the legislation creates several obstacles that could derail the island’s ability to make debt payments that don’t overwhelm Puerto Rico’s books.

“While most reasonable people agree it’s absolutely vital for Puerto Rico to be able to restructure its debt, this authority can be blocked by a simple minority of the board,” he said. 

He argued that the control board has too much power and it could veto laws and regulations, override budgets and determine the level of debt payments.

“To me, it’s simply wrong and un-American to take away the basic and fundamental democratic rights of the people of Puerto Rico,” Menendez said. 

The legislation puts speculating hedge funds above pensioners and cuts minimum wage rules and new overtime protections, he said.

“So while it’s absolutely clear that we need to act and act decisively and expediently to help our fellow citizens in Puerto Rico, just as importantly, we need to get this right,” he said.