House Republicans and Democrats have reached a deal with the White House to try to rescue Puerto Rico from $70 billion in debt as millions of Americans in the cash-strapped U.S. territory struggle with the loss of basic services, ABC News reported yesterday. A revised House bill would create a board to help manage the territory's financial obligations and restructure some debt. Negotiations between the Obama administration and House Speaker Paul Ryan's office helped finalize the legislation. Ryan said that the legislation would avoid an eventual taxpayer bailout. Puerto Rico has already missed several payments to creditors; a $2 billion installment, the largest yet, is due July 1. A vote could happen next week in the Natural Resources Committee. Puerto Rican Gov. Alejandro García Padilla said that the bill still isn't "consistent with our country's basic democratic principles." He wants a less powerful board that can't fully control the island's finances. Under the legislation, the control board would require Puerto Rico to create a fiscal plan. That includes directing the territory to provide adequate funds for public pensions, which the government has underfunded by more than $40 billion.
