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Transformation And Innovation After Devastation: A Plan For Economic And Disaster Recovery For Puerto Rico

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Following hurricanes Irma and María, Puerto Rico’s Housing Department awarded its largest federally funded, recovery-related contract to Foundation for Puerto Rico (FPR) without a proposal that demonstrated the nonprofit organization’s interest or expertise in managing a community planning program. The local government agency did not disclose the criteria used for the selection of FPR, nor did it take into account citizen participation on this matter. There was no competitive bidding process to administer the $37.5 million in federal funds awarded to FPR under the Community Development Block Grant – Disaster Recovery Program (CDBG-DR) to develop the Whole Community Resiliency Planning Program, confirmed Annie Mayol, president and CEO of Foundation for Puerto Rico. More than $6 million would cover operational expenses, personnel hiring, consulting, the creation of a webpage and technological tools for managing information and statistics, the contract shows. Housing recently submitted and amendment to the FPR contract to increase its amount to $55 million.