Puerto Rico drains half of emergency funds as it awaits White House response on disaster designation
Puerto Rico hasn't heard back from the White House, so officials are taking matters into their own hands.
After the U.S. territory was hit with yet another significant earthquake on Wednesday, rattling the island even further as residents scramble to recover from a series of tremors up to 6.4 magnitude in recent weeks, Puerto Rican Gov. Wanda Vázquez Garced requested the White House declared a major disaster. President Trump did approve some federal emergency funding for the island, but declaring a "major disaster" — rather than an "emergency" — would authorize further federal funding. The request for the new designation came on Jan. 11, but officials still haven't gotten a response, despite pleading letters both from Florida congressmembers and more than two dozen Democratic senators, reports CBS News' David Begnaud.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
While Puerto Rico drains half of its entire emergency fund, the Trump administration imposed "severe restrictions" on billions of dollars in aid for the island, reports The New York Times. The new requirements bar Puerto Rico from paying its $15 minimum wage to contractors working on federally funded disaster projects, and restrict any money from going toward the island's delicate power grid. If Puerto Rico doesn't agree to the requirements, the administration could withhold the allocated funding entirely, reports The Washington Post. A White House spokesperson called the restrictions on emergency funding "a great win for Puerto Ricans and U.S. taxpayers."
-
The EU’s war on fast fashionIn the Spotlight Bloc launches investigation into Shein over sale of weapons and ‘childlike’ sex dolls, alongside efforts to tax e-commerce giants and combat textile waste
-
How to Get to Heaven from Belfast: a ‘highly entertaining ride’The Week Recommends Mystery-comedy from the creator of Derry Girls should be ‘your new binge-watch’
-
The 8 best TV shows of the 1960sThe standout shows of this decade take viewers from outer space to the Wild West
-
Judge orders Washington slavery exhibit restoredSpeed Read The Trump administration took down displays about slavery at the President’s House Site in Philadelphia
-
Hyatt chair joins growing list of Epstein files losersSpeed Read Thomas Pritzker stepped down as executive chair of the Hyatt Hotels Corporation over his ties with Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell
-
Judge blocks Hegseth from punishing Kelly over videoSpeed Read Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth pushed for the senator to be demoted over a video in which he reminds military officials they should refuse illegal orders
-
Trump’s EPA kills legal basis for federal climate policySpeed Read The government’s authority to regulate several planet-warming pollutants has been repealed
-
House votes to end Trump’s Canada tariffsSpeed Read Six Republicans joined with Democrats to repeal the president’s tariffs
-
Bondi, Democrats clash over Epstein in hearingSpeed Read Attorney General Pam Bondi ignored survivors of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein and demanded that Democrats apologize to Trump
-
El Paso airspace closure tied to FAA-Pentagon standoffSpeed Read The closure in the Texas border city stemmed from disagreements between the Federal Aviation Administration and Pentagon officials over drone-related tests
-
Judge blocks Trump suit for Michigan voter rollsSpeed Read A Trump-appointed federal judge rejected the administration’s demand for voters’ personal data
