WASHINGTON -- The House of Representatives on Thursday overwhelmingly passed a rescue package for debt-stricken Puerto Rico, clearing a hurdle in the ongoing effort to help the U.S. territory of 3.5 million Americans.
The vote was 297-127 for the legislation that would create a financial control board and allow restructuring of some of Puerto Rico's $70 billion debt.
Three members of Arkansas' congressional delegation, Reps. French Hill, Steve Womack and Bruce Westerman, all Republicans, supported the Puerto Rico legislation. Rep. Rick Crawford, also a Republican, voted against it.
The measure now heads to the Senate, just three weeks before the territory must make a $2 billion payment. The bill has the support of President Barack Obama; House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis.; and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif.
"The Puerto Rican people are our fellow Americans. They pay our taxes, they fight in our wars. We cannot allow this to happen," Ryan said in imploring lawmakers, especially reluctant conservatives in the GOP caucus, to back the bill during debate.
The legislation would allow the seven-member control board to oversee negotiations with creditors and the courts over reducing some debt. It does not provide any taxpayer funds to reduce that debt.
It also would require the territory to create a fiscal plan. Among other requirements, the plan would have to provide "adequate" funds for public pensions, which the government has underfunded by more than $40 billion.
Puerto Rico Gov. Alejandro Garcia Padilla said Thursday that he didn't like the plan, but it is the least harmful alternative for Puerto Rico. "This will protect us from the chaos that will result from an inevitable default that looms on July 1," he said.
Westerman, who sits on the House committee that initially reviewed the legislation, took to the House floor to defend the measure.
"HR5278 is a compromise bill designed to save Puerto Rico from economic calamity and prevent a taxpayer bailout," he said. "Puerto Rico is spiraling out of control, and it's our constitutional responsibility to put our territory on a different path and change the economic trajectory.
The White House said just after the vote that the Senate should act quickly.
"We urge leaders in both parties to build on today's bipartisan momentum and help Puerto Rico move toward lasting economic prosperity," said White House spokesman Josh Earnest.
Senators said this week that they would watch the House vote. Sen. John Cornyn of Texas, the No. 2 Senate Republican, said it's likely that the Senate will now take up the House version of the bill.
Puerto Rico has missed several payments to creditors and faces the $2 billion installment on July 1. A lengthy recession has forced businesses to close, driven up the unemployment rate and sparked an exodus of hundreds of thousands of people to the U.S. mainland. Some schools on the island lack proper electricity, and some hospitals have said they can't provide adequate drugs or care.
"It is regrettable we have reached this point, but it is reality," said Pedro Pierluisi, Puerto Rico's observer in Congress.
Despite leadership support, the measure faced opposition from some in the ranks of both parties, as some bondholders, unions and Puerto Rican officials have lobbied against it.
A group opposing the measure had run advertising in Westerman's district portraying the legislation as a "bailout," an allegation Westerman said is false.
"There are zero taxpayer dollars going for this oversight board," he said in an interview. "Even the [Congressional Budget Office] said it's zero cost. Even the cost for the oversight board will be paid for by Puerto Rico."
Westerman said he doesn't know who is paying for the ad campaign. "It's kind of a mystery. ... It's been speculated that these are Wall Street hedge fund investors that bought Puerto Rico bonds at 40 cents on the dollar" and want Congress to help them more than double their money, he added.
Democrats and labor unions also have opposed a provision in the bill that would allow the Puerto Rican government to temporarily lower the minimum wage for some younger workers.
Still, Pelosi said the bill will provide the people of Puerto Rico with the tools they need to overcome the crisis and move forward.
"Today, more than 3 million of our fellow American citizens in Puerto Rico are facing a fiscal and public debt emergency that threatens their economy, their communities and their families," Pelosi said.
In a push to get the bill passed, Obama summoned House Democrats with ties to Puerto Rico to a meeting Wednesday in the Oval Office, including supporters and opponents of the measure.
Some Republicans strongly opposed the bill, expressing concern that it could set a precedent for financially strapped states.
"If Congress is willing to undermine a territory's constitutionally guaranteed bonds today, there is every reason to believe it would be willing to undermine a state's guarantee tomorrow," said Rep. Tom McClintock, R-Calif.
nformation for this article was contributed by Mary Clare Jalonick of The Associated Press; and by Frank Lockwood of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette.
A Section on 06/10/2016