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Staff ReportsOctober 13, 2017

Saint Leo University says it will provide free room and board and a discounted tuition rate of $8,500 to students from Puerto Rico, which was hit hard by Hurricane Maria. “At Saint Leo, we live by six core values, one of which is community,” said Dr. William J. Lennox Jr., the university’s president. “We are happy to […]

Scott PowersOctober 12, 2017

Declaring that “Americans are dying as we speak,” state Sen. Victor Torres blasted the Puerto Rico federal disaster relief efforts in an impassioned call at the Florida Capitol Thursday. Torres, an Orlando Democrat who’s been active in the Florida-side of the relief efforts since Hurricane Maria devastated the island three weeks ago, also criticized President […]

Associated PressOctober 11, 2017

Mark Zuckerberg has apologized for showcasing Facebook’s virtual reality capability with a tour of hurricane-ravaged Puerto Rico. The Facebook founder and another executive discussed the platform’s virtual reality project through avatars in a video recorded live Monday. The video begins with the avatars pictured on the roof of Facebook’s Mountain View, California, headquarters before heading to […]

Jim RosicaOctober 11, 2017

House Democratic Leader Janet Cruz of Tampa is traveling to Puerto Rico Wednesday “to deliver 30,000 pounds of much-needed relief supplies, including food, water, and medical necessities,” her spokesman said. Cruz is working with “Major League Baseball, the Tampa Bay Rays, and the Moffitt Cancer Center,” according to Anders Croy, communications director for the House Democratic Office. […]

Scott PowersOctober 6, 2017

U.S. Rep. Darren Soto spent the early part of the week touring Puerto Rico and then on Thursday met with the House Natural Resources Committee, leaving convinced that the island is in desperate straights and that the administration of President Donald Trump still has not come to terms, but that Congress has. In an interview […]

Peter SchorschOctober 5, 2017

Whitefish Energy Holdings, the Montana-based company charged with the critical task of rebuilding Puerto Rico’s decimated power transmission lines, has little history demonstrating its ability to complete the Herculean task for which it was hired. Nevertheless, the company has made significant promises of performance in its brief, two-year lifespan. Based on reporting uncovered by FloridaPolitics.com, […]

A.G. GancarskiOctober 4, 2017

Florida Gov. Rick Scott has been a valuable resource for the Trump Administration as they have grappled with the devastation in Puerto Rico. On Friday, for example, Scott talked to President Trump and Vice President Mike Pence about what he saw when he went last week — a prelude to President Trump’s own visit. Yet Gov. […]

Scott PowersOctober 4, 2017

After touring Puerto Rico earlier this week, U.S. Rep. Darren Soto declared the island is in emergency need of robust emergency federal funding, not just to assure full federal relief efforts from Hurricanes Maria and Irma, but to keep the commonwealth’s government operating in a place where almost no one can work. “The stories that […]

Peter SchorschOctober 4, 2017

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Nearly two weeks after Hurricane Maria ravaged Puerto Rico, FloridaPolitics.com learned the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority (PREPA) — per the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ (USACE) guidance — has selected a tiny, two-man company with fewer than two years of experience and merely $1 million in annual revenue to repair its massive and critical […]

Scott PowersOctober 3, 2017

Help for Puerto Rico and for Puerto Ricans evacuating to Florida is going to be best provided by the rapidly-rising group of private groups, churches, and companies and government coordination will have to be done by the state, leaving little direct power for Orange County and other counties, Mayor Teresa Jacobs said Tuesday. Jacobs and […]

Tag: Puerto Rico
U.S. District Court

Pasco’s Saint Leo U. helps students from Puerto Rico

Victor Torres blasts federal response, Donald Trump tweets on Puerto Rico

Mark Zuckerberg sorry for virtual tour of devastated Puerto Rico

Janet Cruz heads to Puerto Rico on aid trip

Darren Soto: Congress understands Puerto Rico plight

Critical Puerto Rico infrastructure contractor lacks history of results

Rick Scott on Puerto Rico: ‘Whatever you need, we’ll be there for you’

Darren Soto: Congress must quickly approve robust relief package for Puerto Rico

Major Puerto Rico power restoration project awarded to small, untested vendor

Teresa Jacobs: Orange County’s role limited for Puerto Rico, Puerto Ricans