Fitzpatrick inspects post-hurricane Puerto Rico recovery efforts

U.S. Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA) last week traveled to Puerto Rico to examine post-hurricane rebuilding efforts there.

“One year after Hurricane Maria, I want to make sure people don’t forget about Puerto Rico,” Rep. Fitzpatrick wrote in a Nov. 23 Facebook post. “As a member of the Homeland Security Committee, I was pleased to see much work done on the island, but there’s much more to be done.”

Specifically, the congressman said that Congress must ensure resources to enable the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to provide sustainable reconstruction.

While in Puerto Rico, Rep. Fitzpatrick met with FEMA officials at the Caribbean Area Division facility, which handles emergency management in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, and together they inspected the Dorado Water Treatment Plant, according to his Facebook post.

“Prior to Hurricane Maria, Puerto Rico faced serious water infrastructure challenges involving contamination, poor investment, and a challenging geography,” the lawmaker posted on Friday. “The hurricane greatly exacerbated these issues. While there are efforts underway to repair and replace this infrastructure, much more needs to be done to provide sustainable clean drinking water.”

Rep. Fitzpatrick also visited a house rebuilt after the storms through the Voluntary Agencies Leading and Organizing Repair (VALOR) program, which received FEMA supplies and materials that are provided to such programs for temporary repairs permitting survivors to move back home. After the 2017 hurricanes, more than 166,000 homes needed repair or reconstruction, he said.

“After Hurricane Maria effectively destroyed Puerto Rico’s electrical, water, telecommunication, and transportation infrastructure, many families in our community are rightly concerned about the restoration of vital services in Puerto Rico,” said Rep. Fitzpatrick last week. “As American citizens, the people of Puerto Rico deserve the full backing of the federal government and its representatives.”

Coincidentally, the congressman’s scheduled trip came at the same time that Puerto Rico Gov. Ricardo Rosselló requested that Congress increase aide for the American territory.

“Even with the significant support provided by Congress to date, the Recovery Plan, which was drafted in conjunction with FEMA, explicitly acknowledged that additional federal assistance will be needed to ensure that Puerto Rico can achieve full recovery in the wake of the massive destruction caused by Hurricanes Irma and Maria,” the governor wrote in a Nov. 19 letter sent to congressional leaders in the U.S. Senate and U.S. House.

“I implore you to consider and address Puerto Rico’s ongoing recovery and reconstruction needs … in the upcoming legislative vehicles,” he wrote. “Time is of the essence, and continued action by Congress now is critical.”

For example, Gov. Rosselló wrote that significant emergency response work remains to be done on the island and millions of cubic yards of debris still need to get cleaned up. To pay for it now, he requested that cost-share waivers for federal funding be approved by FEMA and Congress. He also seeks to continue Medicaid emergency funding “to address the ongoing crisis in Puerto Rico’s healthcare system.”

As a member of the House Homeland Security Committee, which has congressional oversight of FEMA, Fitzpatrick, along with U.S. Rep. Peter King (R-NY) and Puerto Rico Resident Commissioner Jenniffer González-Colón, also last week requested that Congress address Puerto Rico’s health care crisis, saying the U.S. government should support incentives to encourage skilled medical professionals to remain working on the island.

Rep. Fitzpatrick last month hosted González-Colón in his home state of Pennsylvania, where they participated in a roundtable discussion with members of the Puerto Rican Cultural Association of Bucks County regarding the current status of recovery efforts there.

Rep. Fitzpatrick’s recent island trip is the second time he has spent the Thanksgiving break in Puerto Rico. In 2017, the congressman met there with Congresswoman González-Colón to examine post-hurricane recovery efforts.