00:00And at this time, I would like to recognize the representative from the state of Washington,
00:05Ms. Randall, for five minutes. Ms. Randall. Thank you so much, Mr. Chair, and thank you
00:10to our witnesses here to testify. This is a new policy area for me, and I've been very interested
00:18in learning about the challenges in both fighting corruption, but also supporting the liberty and
00:26sovereignty of the Puerto Rican people. I would like to yield the balance of my time to the
00:32resident commissioner from Puerto Rico to complete some questions he has. Thank you, my dear colleague
00:37Randall. Mr. Mojica, let's talk about things that Congress can do to help Puerto Rico's financial
00:43stability. Would it be good for Puerto Rico for Congress to approve a new tax incentive
00:49for manufacturing to bring back manufacturing to the island?
00:52I'd say, and I think you mentioned this in an earlier part, the loss of 936 contributed
01:03significantly to the economic decline that has happened since then over 20 years. There's been
01:10some blips in between, but you can see a clear path that the economic decline is tied to that
01:15incentive, and that incentive also brought tremendous economic growth. So, you know, I'd leave it
01:20to Congress as what they decide, but I can tell you that that incentive and the loss of that incentive
01:25severely impacted the economy of Puerto Rico and led to some of the actions that led to the bankruptcy.
01:31And for the benefit of my colleagues, there is bipartisan legislation for a new tax incentive
01:36that would focus on supply chain resiliency by giving incentives for companies that relocate from
01:42foreign countries to Puerto Rico, and this will help the country as a whole. And brief history lesson,
01:48936, which was a great incentive for Puerto Rico, was a great incentive for the United States,
01:53and the reason it was eliminated was because the resident commissioner at the time believed it
01:58was incompatible with statehood for Puerto Rico because the requirements of the uniformity clause.
02:03So it's important that we don't let status politics meddle with Puerto Rico's economic development,
02:07and I'm sure that that's something where we can find common ground. Would it be useful or positive for
02:12Puerto Rico to get equal treatment in federal programs like Medicaid, Medicare, and SNAP?
02:20So all the territories are treated differently in some of these programs, and we've advocated for
02:26the SNAP program. I believe there was some bipartisan support for changing that program that would result
02:31in more funding. You know, there is an issue that's realistic with regard to the taxing situation
02:37that affects it, and I know that's something that's been discussed. But we need certainty
02:43with regard to the Medicaid program. You know, the fact that it expires and there's a cliff
02:47prevents long-term budget planning in Puerto Rico. Thank you, and I'm sorry to interrupt,
02:52it's just because of the limited time. And that's another area where there's opportunity for bipartisan
02:56collaboration. The Medicaid extension is supported by Governor González-Colón, Fair Treatment and Medicare
03:01Advantage as well, and the transition to SNAP as well. So I think that's an area where we can work together
03:07to benefit Puerto Rico and the nation more broadly. Mr. Mojica, last week the board voided a 15-year
03:13multi-billion dollar LNG contract between the government and New Fortress Energy. In your opinion,
03:20or in the board's opinion, was that deal rushed through a non-competitive process?
03:26We haven't voided it. We're still reviewing it. Do I think the deal is rushed? Yes. We need time to
03:32evaluate it. We're speaking to the people who negotiated the contract and we have not found
03:37anyone yet who defends all the terms of that deal. That is where we are right now. And just for time's sake,
03:43can you answer yes or no questions? The following ones. Does that contract hand one company near
03:48monopoly power over Puerto Rico's energy supply? That contract does provide exclusivity for all of the
03:56PREPA for any additional LNG supply. Thank you. Was it written so one-sided that it favored New Fortress
04:03over the people of Puerto Rico? It seems to be a one-sided contract and based on what the people who
04:09negotiated the contract told us, these were the terms that were given to them and there was almost
04:15no flexibility in negotiating those terms. And do you think that a fair, transparent process would have
04:20delivered lower costs and more flexibility for our energy future? We think there are probably better
04:26terms that we can work out with that contract and we're working on those. And who would you consider
04:30the party primarily responsible for negotiating this bad contract for the people of Puerto Rico?
04:36Our understanding is the negotiation happened through an organization called the 3PPO,
04:41is the entity that negotiates these contracts. On behalf of the government of Puerto Rico, right?
04:46Yes. Okay, thank you. I'm almost out of time. There are concerns over the board's
04:55striking down contracts for renewable energy, that that has slowed down Puerto Rico's energy
04:59reconstruction. I share a lot of those concerns as well as the ones related to net metering. I see
05:05that I'm out of time, but I wanted to state that for the record and I'd like to submit questions for
05:10the record in writing for later on. Certainly without objection. Thank you. The gentleman's yield,
05:14talking to the President till the time is expired,
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