OVERSIGHT BOARD CERTIFIES $31 BILLION FISCAL YEAR 2024 BUDGET
Compliant Commonwealth General Fund Budget Submitted for Oversight Board Certification; Reflects Government’s Spending Priorities on Education, Health, and Public Safety; Additional Funding for UPR and Municipalities
San Juan, PR – June 30, 2023 – The Financial Oversight and Management Board for Puerto Rico today certified the fiscal year 2024 consolidated budget for the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico that includes a compliant general fund budget submitted by the Government of Puerto RicoOn Thursday, June 29, 2023, Governor Pedro R. Pierluisi signed the $12.7 billion general fund budget adopted and submitted by the Puerto Rico Legislature for the fiscal year starting on July 1, 2023.
On Thursday, June 29, 2023, Governor Pedro R. Pierluisi signed the $12.7 billion general fund budget adopted and submitted by the Puerto Rico Legislature for the fiscal year starting on July 1, 2023.
About 70% of the general fund budget is allocated towards education, public safety, health, economic development, and government pensions. Further, the general fund budget includes targeted investments aligned with Fiscal Plan priorities and provides additional funding for municipalities, the University for Puerto Rico, technology investments, and social programs.
The Oversight Board certified this general fund budget as compliant with the Fiscal Plan for Puerto Rico together with the $5 billion special revenue fund budget and the $13.3 billion federal fund budget, bringing the consolidated budget for the Puerto Rico government to $31 billion.
“A government budget submitted by the Governor and approved by the Legislature that is compliant with the Fiscal Plan for Puerto Rico is a significant step towards implementing the fiscal responsibility and stability that Puerto Rico needs and deserves,” said the Oversight Board’s Executive Director Robert F. Mujica Jr. “The fiscal year 2024 budget is a milestone for Puerto Rico’s recovery.”
“The budget includes significant investments to support real change for Puerto Rico,” Mujica said. “We need to create a stronger foundation for economic growth, and education is at the center of it. That is why the consolidated budget allocates $5.5 billion to education, including significant additional funds for the University of Puerto Rico (UPR).”
The Oversight Board had certified UPR’s $1.3 billion budget, which includes an additional $102 million in Commonwealth funding contingent on UPR establishing and committing to goals, objectives, and milestones for fostering academic excellence, economic development, and financial responsibility.
The budget also includes additional funding for municipalities. The Commonwealth direct support to municipalities includes $44 million through the Municipal Equalization Fund, and an additional $30 million to support funding to municipalities in need for greater financial support. Further, the budget includes an additional $66 million in unused funds carried over from the previous fiscal year’s cost-sharing programs to support municipal services related to changes to the inventory tax.
The consolidated Commonwealth budget includes $6.4 billion, or 21% of total spending, for health-related expenditures; $3.5 billion, or 11%, for families and children; and $2.6 billion, or 8%, for pay as you go payments to retired government employees.
The Oversight Board also certified the fiscal year 2024 budgets for:
- Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority (PREPA)
- Puerto Rico Aqueduct and Sewer Authority (PRASA)
- Puerto Rico Highways and Transportation Authority (HTA)
- University of Puerto Rico (UPR)
- Puerto Rico Sales Tax Financing Corporation (COFINA)
- Puerto Rico Industrial Development Company (PRIDCO)
- Public Corporation for Supervision and Insurance of Cooperatives (COSSEC)
- Municipal Revenues Collection Center (CRIM)
All budgets are available on the Oversight Board’s website at https://oversightboard.pr.gov/budgets/