SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico — After the government failed to turn over several reports on disaster funds tied to post–Hurricane María reconstruction, the Centro de Periodismo Investigativo (CPI) filed a petition for mandamus on Tuesday, Dec. 9, against the Puerto Rico Public-Private Partnerships Authority (AAPP, in Spanish) in the San Juan Superior Court.
Three months ago, CPI reporter Vanessa E. Colón Almenas requested two documents, known as Recoupment Reports, from the Central Office for Recovery, Reconstruction and Resiliency (COR3), an office under the AAPP. Although COR3 states on its website that transparency is a central component of Puerto Rico’s recovery and resiliency efforts, the office ignored multiple follow-up attempts from the reporter.
The reports contain data on the amount and status of disaster funds owed by entities that received COR3 grants, often because of overpayments from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). They also include essential information for examining the government’s efforts to recover those funds and for assessing compliance with federal regulations governing their use.
“Transparency in the use of recovery funds is crucial because there has been a great deal of noise and uncertainty about how the limited recovery funds disbursed are being used,” said CPI Executive Director Carla Minet. “These reports are essential to evaluate how billions of dollars are being managed in projects that determine the safety, infrastructure and quality of life of our communities. COR3’s failure to respond is a troubling sign of opacity in a process that should be completely transparent,” she added.
Both Recoupment Reports should be publicly accessible because COR3 submitted them to Puerto Rico’s Office of Management and Budget (OGP) between 2023 and 2024. They are also referenced in the status reports the government of Puerto Rico sends to the U.S. Congress every six months on its economic and disaster recovery plan.
CPI is represented in this case by attorneys Luis José Torres Asencio, Judith W. Berkan Barnett and Steven P. Lausell Recurt of the Inter American University’s Access to Information Project.
