Airbnb generated a record $1.87 billion in economic impact for Puerto Rico in 2025, marking a 10% increase from the previous year, as the island experienced unprecedented tourism growth. (Facebook via View from YOUR window (the ORIGINAL Group!) By THE STAR STAFF Airbnb generated a record $1.87 billion in economic impact for Puerto Rico in 2025, marking a 10% increase from the previous year, as the island experienced unprecedented tourism growth. The amount represents Airbnb’s

Puerto Rico Housing Secretary Ciary Pérez Peña Sworn statement shows Pérez Peña owned vehicle inspection center in Yabucoa until end of last year By THE STAR STAFF Senate Ethics Committee Chairman Juan Oscar Morales Rodríguez on Wednesday said Housing Secretary Ciary Pérez Peña has much to explain. Morales’ comments followed a sworn statement revealing that Pérez Peña owned the Yabucoa Auto Service vehicle inspection center until Dec. 4, 2025. On that date, she transferred ow

The U.S. Coast Guard indicated that the refloating of the fuel barge Defiant occurred at about 2:22 a.m., shortly before high tide, after three tugboats were positioned and the pressurization of the vessel’s cargo tanks, empty spaces, and compartments was completed. By THE STAR STAFF The U.S. Coast Guard reported Wednesday that the barge Defiant was successfully refloated and removed from the shore near Castillo San Felipe del Morro and towed to Pier 16 in San Juan Bay. “We w

Robert Mujica, executive director of the Financial Oversight and Management Board for Puerto Rico By THE STAR STAFF Discussions on tax reform must take place alongside budget talks as the island moves from crisis management to strategic planning, Robert Mujica, executive director of the Financial Oversight and Management Board for Puerto Rico, said Wednesday. “Conversations need to happen now. We are no longer in a crisis budget; we are in strategic planning,” Mujica told rep

By THE STAR STAFF Puerto Rico’s Public-Private Partnerships Authority (P3A) has released a request for qualifications (RFQ) for the development of the 600-megawatt (MW) Costa Sur power generation project. Key dates for the Costa Sur RFQ are as follows: the deadline to submit requests for clarification (RFCs) is March 6, with responses to RFCs issued on March 12. Statements of qualifications and project descriptions are due by March 17. Qualified respondents are expected to be

By THE STAR STAFF Gov. Jenniffer González Colón has signed Law 26 of 2026, regulating the use and designation of multi-occupancy restrooms in agencies, public corporations, the University of Puerto Rico and municipalities. The measure, House Bill 165, was introduced by Rep. Lisie Burgos Muñiz and co-authored by several legislators. The new law prohibits the installation of inclusive, mixed-gender, or gender-neutral restrooms and requires that multi-occupancy restrooms be sepa

By THE STAR STAFF The Cidra municipal government will bring its services to the eastern-central town’s Bayamón neighborhood this Saturday as part of the “Mayor’s Office Close to You” initiative, an effort to bring municipal programs and services closer to the communities, Mayor Delvis Pagán Clavijo announced Wednesday. The event will take place at the neighborhood sports complex court starting at 10 a.m. “The purpose of this project is to facilitate access to municipal servic

By THE STAR STAFF Pensions for employees of the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority (PREPA) will continue to be funded through electricity rates, since no alternative source of funding has been found, Robert Mujica, executive director of Financial Oversight and Management Board for Puerto Rico, said Wednesday. Mujica said using the island’s General Fund to pay for the pensions is not an option. PREPA’s revenues are declining year after year. The options are: not funding the

“That was the message we took to the nation’s capital: the need to identify resources to address situations [involving coastal erosion] like those in Loíza, Arecibo, and parts of San Juan, among others,” said Puerto Rico Senate Vice President Marissa Jiménez Santoni, right foreground. By THE STAR STAFF Puerto Rico Senate Vice President Marissa “Marissita” Jiménez Santoni met this week in Washington with the director of intergovernmental affairs at the U.S. War Department, Bet

The U.S. Coast Guard said response personnel and salvage teams would meet Tuesday to reassess the plan for freeing the still-grounded fuel barge Defiant and make adjustments before a second tugboat-assisted refloating attempt during the next high tide today. By THE STAR STAFF The U.S. Coast Guard reported Tuesday that a tugboat attempted to refloat the barge Defiant at high tide early in the morning and moved it nearly 30 feet from its original grounding position. “In close c