As Puerto Rico's debt crisis continues, U.S. lawmakers have been sluggish in finalizing solutions to the commonwealth's issues. Rep. Raúl Grijalva, D-Ariz., ranking member in the House of Representatives' Natural Resources Committee, called for the committee to hold a hearing on the role of hedge funds in the island's financial crisis.

In a letter addressed to Rep. Rob Bishop, R-Utah, the chairman of the Natural Resources Committee, Grijalva urged for an oversight hearing, stating some "aggressive" hedge funds are "unneccesarily preventing Puerto Rico's recovery efforts."

As Grijalva wrote in the letter, the commonwealth, comprising of 3.5 million U.S. citizens, has a double-digit unemployed rate -- at 12 percent -- and approximately 64,000 residents have left the island during the last year. Latin Post reported the island's declining population in July. Based on data from the U.S. Census Bureau, Puerto Rico's population has dropped by 50,000 annually. One of the main reasons for leaving the island has been the lack of jobs.

"Hedge funds bought up Puerto Rican debt when it was high risk thinking it was a good investment, despite experts warnings to the contrary," Grijalva wrote. "Rather than absorbing the occasional investment losses that are expected as a matter of course when assessments are wrong, even by the most successful investing firms, these hedge funds are now working to pad their profits by cutting off relief options for families in the territory."

The congressman, representing Arizona's 3rd Congressional District, and his staff published a report in early September about select hedge funds' actions in the commonwealth. Titled "Profit at Any Cost," the report stated that some hedge funds ignored warnings about the island's bond offerings. The report also noted the hedge funds have demanded Puerto Rico to cut some services for the island's residents and opposition for the island's effort to obtain Chapter 9 bankruptcy law protections.

According to Grijalva, on top of the $72 billion debt, Puerto Rico's cash reserve is projected to exhaust in November.

On Oct. 14, fellow Latino congressional members will meet in Orlando to develop "a national Puerto Rican agenda and provide actionable strategies" for the issues affecting the island. Democratic Reps. Luis Gutierrez of Illinois and Jose Serrano and Nydia Velasquez of New York have been named to convene at the two-day meeting. Although the economic crisis has been a priority in the island, the meeting will also discuss strategies to improve Puerto Rico's health care problems.

As Latin Post reported, Puerto Rico Gov. Alejandro Garcia Padilla said the island's current debt is "unpayable" and its size impedes the commonwealth from improving. According to Garcia Padilla, Puerto Rico inherited more than $70 billion of debt -- a figure he claimed "is essentially the same" as two years ago, but he denied allegations that the debt is solely the result of loans.

"These are not easy times that we have had to live," said Garcia Padilla. "But if we battle together, against any enemy, against any crisis, united, Puerto Rico will prevail."

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For the latest updates, follow Latin Post's Politics Editor Michael Oleaga on Twitter: @EditorMikeO or contact via email: m.oleaga@latinpost.com.

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