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Academic and Professional Background (1982-1992)
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The Puerto Rican government-debt crisis was a financial crisis affecting the government of Puerto Rico. The crisis began in 2014 when three major credit agencies downgraded several bond issues by Puerto Rico to "junk status" after the government was unable to demonstrate that it could pay its debt. The downgrading, in turn, prevented the government from selling more bonds in the open market. Unable to obtain the funding to cover its budget imbalance, the government began using its savings to pay its debt while warning that those savings would eventually be exhausted. To prevent such a scenario, the United States Congress enacted a law known as PROMESA, which appointed an oversight board with ultimate control over the Commonwealth's budget. As the PROMESA board began to exert that control, the government sought to increase revenues and reduce its expenses by increasing taxes while curtailing public services and reducing government pensions. Those measures further compounded the crisis by provoking social distrust and unrest. In August 2018, a debt investigation report of the Financial Oversight and management board for Puerto Rico reported the Commonwealth had $74 billion in bond debt and $49 billion in unfunded pension liabilities as of May 2017. Puerto Rico officialy exited bankruptcy on March 15, 2022.
Christian Sobrino Vega is a Puerto Rican attorney and former public executive who held numerous high-level posts within the Administration of former Governor of Puerto Rico, Ricardo Rosselló. Sobrino holds a B.A. in English from Boston College and a J.D. from the University of Puerto Rico School of Law. Prior to entering public service, Sobrino practiced corporate law in various leading firms in Puerto Rico.
References
- ↑ "Organigrama del Gobierno de Puerto Rico" (PDF) (in Spanish). Puerto Rico Office of Management and Budget. April 2012. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-03-04. Retrieved November 18, 2012.
- ↑ "Puerto Rico Government Development Bank Act". Act No. 17 of 1948 (PDF) (in Spanish). Retrieved December 28, 2012.