...If Congress wants to put the island’s economy on a more sustainable path, however, it will have to do more to help Puerto Rico help itself.
It might start by exempting Puerto Rico from the Jones Act, an onerous 1920 law requiring cargo shipped between points in the U.S. to be carried by ships that are built, owned and crewed by U.S. companies. Not only does that make gas, food and other "imports" from the mainland moreexpensive, but it also reduces Puerto Rico’s potential as a maritime hub.
Meanwhile, a provision in the just-passed bill to fast-track newer power plants may lower energy costs, but it has also riled environmentalists. Congress could make amends by supporting the island’s transition to natural gas and renewables, and pushing for the development of a cleaner Caribbean power grid -- something that would also help undermine Venezuela’s noxious petro-diplomacy.
One of Puerto Rico’s biggest challenges is tapping and shrinking its informal economy, which may amount for as much as one-quarter of its gross national product. Extending the Earned Income Tax Credit to Puerto Rico would both bring workers into the fold and fight poverty. So would granting Puerto Rico the flexibility to provide earning supplements and job training to welfare recipients willing to take jobs in the formal sector.
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