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Pelosi Statement on Treasury Puerto Rico Plan

October 22, 2015

Contact: Drew Hammill/Evangeline George, 202-226-7616

Washington, D.C. – Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi released the following statement regarding the Treasury Department's plan for Puerto Rico:

"Today, the Obama Administration proposed a bold package of legislative measures to address the fiscal and public debt challenges faced by Puerto Rico. We must stand with Puerto Rico in restructuring its unsustainable debt burden and growing its economy so that Puerto Ricans can focus on the essential work of investing in a brighter economic future.

"We must recognize that inequitable treatment by the federal government has constrained Puerto Rico's ability to restructure its debt through an orderly court-supervised process. Congress must level the playing field for Puerto Rico and grant the government with the comprehensive legal authority to restructure all of the territory's public debts. Furthermore, we must reform Puerto Rico's Medicaid program to increase access and provide stability and extend the Earned Income Tax Credit to put more money in the pockets of hard-working families.

"As we move forward, Congress must respect Puerto Rico's autonomy as we conduct appropriate oversight of the fiscal reforms needed to foster economic growth. I urge Republicans in Congress to move expeditiously and on a bipartisan basis to enact the Administration's legislative proposals, so that Puerto Rico has the tools it needs to restructure its public debt and expand opportunity for the 3.5 million U.S. citizens who live on the island."

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