Rep. Aponte Hernández opposes elimination of pilotage commission.

Rep. José Aponte Hernández

By THE STAR STAFF

At-Large Rep. José Aponte Hernández said Thursday that he does not support eliminating the Puerto Rico Pilotage Commission, as is being discussed.

In a written statement, the chairman of the Committee on Federal Affairs and Veterans in the island House of Representatives said he has never been consulted about any bill or other legislative measure that may be under development to eliminate the aforementioned commission.

“Everyone who knows me is aware of my track record regarding safety in San Juan Bay,” Aponte said in a written statement. “In recent days, there have been reports about a draft bill, and San Juan Bay pilots have stated publicly and in the San Juan Federal Court that there are attempts to introduce legislation to repeal Law 226-1999, which created the Pilotage Commission. In my case, I have not been consulted, nor have I been presented with anything on this matter.”

“However, I want to make my position clear, and it is against the elimination of the Pilotage Commission, which plays an extremely important role in the safety of maritime traffic and everything related to it in San Juan Bay,” the veteran lawmaker and former speaker of the House said. “This law regulates this profession and has served Puerto Rico well since its enactment. Furthermore, it is this structure that has prevented NFE [natural gas supplier New Fortress Energy] from jeopardizing the port area of Puerto Nuevo by saving money through the use of smaller tugboats to navigate the channels for liquefied natural gas carriers -- an action that would have put the entire bay at risk in case of an emergency.”

According to the preamble of Law 226-1999, the commission is “responsible for regulating the admission of pilots to practice in Puerto Rico and for enforcing the pilotage regulations.”