By The Star Staff
The incoming vice president of the island House of Representatives, Ángel Peña Ramírez, on Wednesday offered assurances on his commitment to the work agenda of governor-elect Jenniffer González Colón and incoming House Speaker Carlos “Johnny” Méndez Nuñez, which includes the creation of an energy czar, improving services for seniors, reforming the permit system, greater attention to people with special needs, and the search for a second operator for Puerto Rico’s electric power transmission and distribution network, among other initiatives.
“The agenda of the new majority of the House of Representatives, led by our speaker, Carlos “Johnny” Méndez, is to implement the proposals contained in the Action Plan for Puerto Rico, the government program of the New Progressive Party that was overwhelmingly approved at the polls,” said Peña, who was reelected last week for a fifth term as District 33 (Las Piedras, Juncos and San Lorenzo) representative, in a written statement. “The priorities are clear, to legislate the figure of the Energy Czar, to whom we will give the power by law to review compliance metrics of all private operators, including the reconstruction work of the electrical infrastructure. Enough of the delays.”
“Reforming the permit system is a priority and our Governor-elect has been clear that this must be addressed in the first 100 days of the next Legislative Assembly,” Peña added. “In Puerto Rico, we need around 50,000 new housing units to meet demand. However, only 60 (approximately) new homes are built each month; that is not enough. There are many factors that delay the construction of new housing complexes, the most important of which is obtaining permits, which in turn increases costs associated with construction materials and labor due to delays in the issuance of these permits. We are going to work on this legislation now so that it is filed in January 2025 and worked on in a transparent but agile manner because the need is there.”
Peña said the treatment of older adults, including identifying resources to pay caregivers, will also be a priority in the new four-year term that begins in just over five weeks.
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