Mujica Outlines Ground Rules for Fiscal Year 2026 Budget during Public Board Meeting
The budget process for the next fiscal year has begun and Oversight Board Executive Director Robert F. Mujica, Jr. stressed the importance of permanent budget reform during the 47th Public Board Meeting.
“The most critical work will be to improve the budget process, not just for the upcoming fiscal year but, at a minimum, for the next five-year budgets. There are significant structural gaps for the years ahead that must be acknowledged and planned for,” Mujica said.
For example, non-recurring federal funds will eventually be exhausted. That is why long-term budget planning is critical to identify the Government’s spending needs, Mujica said. The Government must also adopt realistic revenue forecasts to prevent returning to the pre-PROMESA deficits.
Fiscal year 2026 begins on July 1, 2025.
Other topics Mujica discussed during the Oversight Board’s 47th Public Board Meeting include the 2025 PREPA Fiscal Plan, funds approved for municipalities to enhance their emergency services and the “Ama de Llaves” program, and the Puerto Rico Health Workforce Study.
Experts from FTI consulting participated in the Public Board Meeting and explained the results of their study, which was commissioned by the Oversight Board together with the Puerto Rico Department of Health, and Puerto Rico Fiscal Agency and Financial Advisory Authority (AAFAF).
The FTI report offers details on the current state of Puerto Rico’s healthcare workforce based on interviews with hundreds of healthcare professionals, including doctors, nurses, technicians and administrators, and analysis of thousands of records. The result is not as simple as saying Puerto Rico doesn’t have enough doctors and nurses. There is serious misalignment between workforce demand and supply across multiple healthcare professional sectors. For example, Puerto Rico has no shortage of primary care professionals overall, but a significant shortage of geriatricians and physician assistants. The report identifies which parts of the Island lack doctors and from which specialties and includes recommendations for improving healthcare in Puerto Rico.
2025 PREPA Fiscal Plan Focuses on Investments Needed to Restore the Grid
The new Fiscal Plan for the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority (PREPA), recently certified by the Oversight Board, reflects the real costs to adequately restore and operate Puerto Rico’s deteriorating energy system, so PREPA can provide more reliable electricity to families and businesses today and in the future.
“We must prioritize the needed investments in the energy grid above all else, while holding all parties accountable,” said Robert F. Mujica, Jr., the Board’s Executive Director. “Our goal is to strengthen the electric system, complete the energy transformation, and lift PREPA out of bankruptcy with a Plan of Adjustment that is fair and reflects the reality PREPA faces today so it can serve Puerto Rico tomorrow.”
Read PREPA’s 2025 Fiscal Plan here.
Municipalities Receive More Funds for Services to Residents
The Puerto Rico Government is supporting the island’s municipalities with almost $350 million this fiscal year. Of that $350 million, $89 million was added specifically to support targeted programs for those municipalities most in need of additional funding.
For example, the Oversight Board recently approved the distribution of
$24 million to support two critical services municipalities provide for their residents: $9 million to support municipalities’ responses to medical emergencies through the 9-1-1 system and $15 million for the “Ama de Llaves” program, which provides care for elderly (age 65 and older) and disabled residents.
This $24 million is part of the nearly $350 million earmarked for municipalities this fiscal year.
Working with the municipal governments and the Office of Management and Budget, 38 municipalities qualified for the additional funds for medical emergencies and 51 qualified for the “Ama de Llaves” program, known as Home Helpers in English.
Read more about the Oversight Board’s work supporting municipalities by clicking here.
New AI-Assisted Hiring Platform Gets Stellar Results
The Oversight Board held a webinar to discuss a recruitment and talent management pilot program that was implemented last year within nine agencies of the Puerto Rico Government and has greatly improved the process for finding qualified candidates.
As part of Civil Service Reform pilot program, a new hiring platform that uses artificial intelligence (AI) to initially match candidates with the skills required for specific job openings was used for seven months at the agencies. Human Resource officials would then conduct phone and in-person interviews to help them make the final decisions on who to hire.
During the seven months of the pilot program, 339 candidates were hired in an average of two months. Some positions were filled in as little as 13 days. Normally, the hiring process can take several months and even up to a year.
The goal is for the new hiring platform to be implemented in all 56 Puerto Rico Government agencies.
Watch the webinar (in Spanish) to learn more about the successes and potential for improvement of the pilot program and to hear what Human Resources experts had to say about the initiative.
Salary Increases Approved for Symphony Orchestra
The Oversight Board approved salary adjustments for the Puerto Rico Symphony Orchestra Corp. to strengthen recruitment and staff retention, in accordance with the principles of the Civil Service Reform, based on leading compensation practices, market data, fiscal responsibility, and equity.
The base salary of the 75 Symphony Orchestra musicians will increase, on average, by about $35,000 a year, nearly doubling their current pay. The salaries of six administrative staff will also increase.
The salary raises are an investment in the cultural and musical arts of Puerto Rico and are retroactive to July 1, 2024.
Find out more here.
UPR Salary Increases Approved for Low-Wage Workers
The Oversight Board approved over $4.2 million for the University of Puerto Rico to provide salary increases for 1,774 non-faculty employees who were earning less than $10.50 an hour, which is the new minimum wage rate for Puerto Rico.
The salary increases to bring these wages up to the $10.50 an hour rate are retroactive to July 1, 2024.
The Board acknowledges the importance of fairness to these workers and values their contributions to the UPR’s mission.
Read more details here.
New Energy Information Website is Launched
The Oversight Board and the U.S. Department of Energy jointly created the new website “Ruta Energética para Puerto Rico” to provide information about the Island’s energy transformation and modernization, and federal government funding to repair, remediate, and stabilize the energy system.
Congress authorized over $17 billion to rebuild Puerto Rico’s energy grid. The funds are provided by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), and other agencies and departments. The website rutaenergeticapr.org gives an overview of the available funding and tracks spending and progress on the energy projects underway.
“We introduced this website so everybody in Puerto Rico and elsewhere can track the progress energy players together make in working towards getting Puerto Rico’s energy system in the shape Puerto Rico deserves,” said the Oversight Board’s Executive Director Robert F. Mujica, Jr.
Find out more at rutaenergeticapr.org/en/.
In the news:
February 23, 2025
Financial Oversight and Management Board’s Chair Arthur Gonzalez wrote a El Nuevo Día column stressing that he and his fellow Board members will continue to work with all parties to reach a consensual agreement that will end the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority’s (PREPA) bankruptcy. He also stated that the utility must have the critical resources so that Puerto Rico’s residents and businesses have reliable electricity.
Read it in English here.
February 21, 2025
Robert F. Mujica, Jr., the Oversight Board’s Executive Director, wrote in Primera Hora that the 2025 PREPA Fiscal Plan, certified by the Oversight Board this month, provides “straightforward data and facts” on the reality of a system that has been failing Puerto Rico’s families and businesses for too long. The Island must prioritize the needs of the energy grid above all else, he wrote in his column published in Primera Hora.
Read it in English here.
February 21, 2025
Robert F. Mujica, Jr., the Oversight Board’s Executive Director was interviewed by Metro for their online Punto X Punto segment and his responses to various important issues impacting Puerto Rico residents were highlighted in three articles. Among the topics discussed were the 2025 PREPA Fiscal Plan and the utility’s debt process, the Oversight Board’s continuing support of the Island’s municipalities, and the importance of achieving a consensual Puerto Rico Government budget for the next fiscal year.
Click here for the first article on PREPA.
The second article on municipalities can be found here.
Read the third article on the budget process here.
February 20, 2025
Robert F. Mujica, Jr., the Oversight Board’s Executive Director, wrote in El Vocero that while disputes continue with a group of PREPA’s bondholders, the Oversight Board is committed to ending PREPA’s bankruptcy as soon as possible on terms that are in the best interests of Puerto Rico residents.
“The Oversight Board cannot agree to a settlement until we find a balance between bondholders’ interests and Puerto Rico’s need for reliable electricity,” he added.
Read it in English here.
February 12, 2025
Robert F. Mujica, Jr., the Oversight Board’s Executive Director discussed a number of topics during a sit-down interview with Jay Fonseca. Mujica spoke about the Trump administration’s possible impact on Puerto Rico, especially with pending federal funds, and the Board’s work with PREPA and the state of the electrical grid. Portions of the interview were aired on WAPA TV’s (Channel 4) Los Datos Son Los Datos and Cuarto Poder segments.
Click here to watch the full 43-minute interview.
Stakeholder engagement:
February 27, 2025
Oversight Board Executive Director Robert F. Mujica, Jr., and Board members Cameron McKenzie and John Nixon held a meeting with the Senate Majority Delegation.
Among the topics discussed were PROMESA, the Oversight Board’s work, the importance of aligning legislation with Puerto Rico’s Fiscal Plan, securing funding sources, and the importance of collaboration in the yearly budget process.
A previous meeting with Oversight Board officials and the House Majority Delegation was held on February 20, during which time they discussed similar issues.
February 7, 2025
The Oversight Board and the Puerto Rico Government’s executive team held a meeting to discuss the status of various projects, introduce new initiatives, and outline a collaborative path forward for government transformation and Puerto Rico’s economic growth. The Oversight Board’s team was led by Executive Director Robert F. Mujica, Jr. and Deputy Executive Director Arnaldo Cruz, while La Fortaleza’s team was led by Chief of Staff Francisco Domenech.
January 10, 2025
Oversight Board Executive Director Robert F. Mujica, Jr. and Deputy Executive Director Arnaldo Cruz held an introductory meeting with new P.R. Governor Jenniffer González Colón’s executive team. This was one of several meetings the Oversight Board’s executive staff held with new Fortaleza officials and lawmakers, after González became the Governor.
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