|
The
bill approved in the wee hours of Wednesday by a vote of 26-21
follows approval of the bill by the Senate on Tuesday. The
measure would allow Governor Alejandro Garcia Padilla to declare
a moratorium on any debt payment he deems necessary, and also
alter the structure of the Government Development Bank.
Garcia Padilla is expected to quickly sign the bill into law.
Burdened by a $70 billion debt load it says it cannot pay and a
45 percent poverty rate that has led to a steady exodus of its
American citizens to the mainland, Puerto Rico faces economic
collapse without a solution that either changes laws and/or
involves an agreement with creditors.
The introduction of the law had drawn a quick rebuke from
creditors who hold the Puerto Rican government's General
Obligation debt.
(Reporting by a contributor in San Juan; writing by Daniel
Bases; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)
[© 2016 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.] Copyright 2016 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
 |
