A former U.S. Naval base on the eastern edge of Puerto Rico has been included in a federal program that aims to spur economic activity..
Maria Contreras-Sweet, who heads the SBA, announced Monday that the Roosevelt Roads Naval Station has been designated a Historically Underutilized Business Zone, or HUBZone.
HUBZones aim to spur economic activity and create jobs within the borders of distressed areas by encouraging small and medium businesses to set up shop.
Contreras-Sweet also announced $220,000 in funding to help Puerto Rico small businesses through the federal Microloan program and the agency's PRIME discretionary program.
It provides technical assistance to small businesses in economically challenged districts and communities.
Puerto Rico is in the middle of a financial crisis that has seen many of its residents relocate to Central Florida.
In response to the problems, Puerto Rico officials recently increased taxes from 6 percent to 10.5 percent, by far the highest rate in the U.S.
Jaime Perello-Borras, the island’s House Speaker, said in a statement that small and medium businesses “are the engine to strengthen our economy.”
He said the program will support small and medium businesses by helping them obtain federal contracts, while also providing training for entrepreneurs.
Comprueba que el aeropuerto está donde dice la aerolínea
Sé consciente de que algunas aerolíneas low-cost dan una información errónea sobre la localización del aeropuerto. Para evitar gastar dinero en un taxi o un tren, asegúrate de investigar un poco o incluso comprar un vuelo un poquito más caro, para evitar sustos.
3/23:
Desactiva el roaming
Aunque muchos teléfonos desactivan automáticamente el uso de datos internacionales cuando estás fuera, algunos mantienen el servicio y seguirán cobrándote hasta dejarte con una factura impresionante. Para evitarlo, asegúrate de que está apagado.
6/23:
Aprovecha al máximo tu equipaje de mano
Para evitar un exceso de equipaje, intenta llevar tus objetos ligeros como los zapatos o la ropa en tu equipaje de mano. E incluso puedes llevar puesta tu ropa y zapatos más pesados.
7/23:
Evita cambiar de divisa en el aeropuerto
Si es posible, evita cambiar tu dinero en el aeropuerto, porque la tasa de cambio es demasiado alta. Una mejor manera de hacerlo es cambiar el dinero en tu banco o en una oficina de correos cercana, antes de llegar al aeropuerto.
13/23:
Busca hostales
Otra manera de ahorrar dinero es escoger hostales en vez de hoteles, porque muchos hostales ofrecen grandes descuentos, internet gratis e incluso desayuno.
14/23:
Sigue la norma de 8 semanas
Asegúrate de comprar tus billetes exactamente ocho semanas antes para conseguir el mejor descuento. Según el economista Makoto Watanabe es el mejor momento, ni una semana antes ni otra después.
16/23:
Sal a comer
Uno de los mejores momentos para comer fuera es a mediodía, en vez de para cenar, porque puedes ahorrar dinero con menú del día. Además, tomar una cena ligera es más sano.
20/23:
Duty-free
La mayoría de los aeropuertos tienen tiendas duty-free con buenas ofertas. Así que aprovéchalas, pero haz tus deberes y asegúrate de que estás ahorrando dinero.
22/23:
Habla con los vecinos
Que no te avergüence o dé miedo hablar con la gente de allí, puesto que pueden ayudarte a encontrar lugares baratos y buenos en los que comer y alojarte.
23/23:
Usa la tarjeta de crédito adecuada
Muchas tarjetas de crédito te cobran una comisión de un 2 o 3 por ciento en cada compra que hagas en el extranjero. Para evitarlo, asegúrate de que usas una tarjeta que no te cobre.
Since the Great Recession ended, employment levels have recovered on most of the U.S. mainland, and companies have added to payrolls. Jobs gains have ranged from just above breakeven in states like West Virginia to North Dakota's big, 28 percent boost, which came thanks to the boom in oil and natural gas exploration in that state.
But Puerto Rico's job base continues to shrink, taking its economy along with it. Since the recession ended, overall payrolls have contracted by 8 percent, as a lack of job prospects has sent many Puerto Ricans fleeing to the mainland, where the job market is much stronger.
The out-migration began before the recession sent the U.S. economy into reverse in 2007. From a peak of 3.8 million in 2004, Puerto Rico's population fell to about 3.5 million last year, according to census estimates, marking a fall of roughly 8 percent.
Puerto Rico's economic decline began before the Great Recession, in part due to the loss of a tax credit for companies that set up manufacturing on the island. Those credits expired in 2006.
Since then, the drop in employment continues to drive the out-migration as unemployment remains stubbornly high at 12.6 percent—more than twice the U.S. average rate of 5.3 percent, as of June.
The departure of younger workers has left the territory with an older, poorer population, further straining the government's social services. It's also left the local economy with fewer active workers; as of June, just 40 percent of Puerto Rico's population was officially counted as part of the labor force. (The U.S. state average in June was 62.6 percent.)
Some of those missing from the workforce are part of the local "informal" economy that employs "a large segment of the population" and allows "workers and firms to avoid many of the taxes and other costs associated with formal employment," according a report last year by the New York Federal Reserve. Because that work is conducted off the books, it's difficult to know just how much tax is lost, but the New York Fed report put the informal economy at roughly a quarter of Puerto Rico's gross domestic product.
With its job base shrinking, and sales and income taxes lost to an underground economy, the government has financed its budget shortfalls with borrowed money, adding to a crushing debt burden. As a share of GDP, Puerto Rico's $72 billion in debt has swollen its public borrowing from 60 percent of GDP in 2000 to more than 100 percent as of 2013, according to the New York Fed.
The government's heavy debt load has brought a series of credit downgrades, raising its borrowing costs further. Efforts to narrow its budget deficit brought higher taxes and layoffs of government workers, further dampening the prospects for economic growth.
"Due to the lack of appropriated funds for this fiscal year, the entirety of the PFC payment was not made today," Government Development Bank head Melba Acosta said.
This week's debt default, though not unexpected, will propel the government into uncharted territory, and likely marked the beginning of wider defaults and a series of lawsuits from bondholders.
The government has proposed several restructurings in recent years. But the default and continued job loss likely will make it harder to reverse the downward spiral and get the territory's economy back on track.
"The island appears to face two alternatives," New York Fed officials wrote a year ago. "Either manage its own economic adjustment and put the commonwealth on a secure fiscal basis, or wait for out-migration and the discipline of the market to force an even more painful adjustment, particularly for those unable or unwilling to leave the Island."
Debt deadline nears for Puerto Rico: Impact on Education [Video]
Educations are really important and better future.
UPR receive $900 Million in public funds every physical year, with National debt of $73 Billion and debt payment due on August 1st, of $94 Million due to Private Edge funds Creditor.
