Puerto Rico in Distress

ABI Analysis

Senate Democrats yesterday blocked a Republican disaster aid bill, saying that it doesn’t do enough to help hurricane-torn Puerto Rico, the Associated Press reported. The 44-49 vote fell short of a majority, much less the 60 votes required to overcome a Democratic filibuster.

The White House is preparing to ask the Senate to confirm the current members of Puerto Rico’s oversight board, according to people familiar with the matter, a move that would disappoint critics of the U.S. territory’s financial supervisors, WSJ Pro Bankruptcy reported.

U.S. District Judge Laura Taylor Swain yesterday granted a request from the unsecured creditors' committee (UCC) that sought to set expedited deadlines for procedures for Puerto Rico to bring avoidance actions in its bankruptcy cases because of a looming deadline, Caribbean Business reported.

Investors are hanging on to bonds issued as part of Puerto Rico’s massive restructuring effort, a sign of confidence in the fiscally troubled island’s prospects, the Wall Street Journal reported. Prices have edged higher for $12 billion in new debt backed by sales taxes that Puerto Rico issued several weeks ago.