Borinquen MadeDated notes on Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico news: economy and politics
This desk gathers dated notes on the economy and politics of Puerto Rico, taken from named outlets. It is not the magazine's historical archive. Each note cites its outlet. It is not original reporting.
A dated, sourced desk. Each note names its outlet. It is not original reporting. Figures are those the source published. If sources disagree, both layers are left in place.
LUMA to the regulator: the shortfall stays at 700–850 MW and summer already looks worst-case
Sep 9, 2026. Filing: 8 days of relief in the base case; 47 days if load +10% and another unit goes down. FY2026: 17 events, ~170 times worse than LOLE 0.1. 800 MW of temporary units would bring it closer to the standard.
SOAR (cloud seeding): “there are no guarantees”; AAA contract up to $400,000
9 Sep 2026. Walker/SOAR: short opportunities; ops since Sep 5. Contract ≠ assured rain.
Genera answers Energy Bureau on TM2500 fleet (San Juan/Palo Seco)
9 Sep 2026. NEPR-MI-2024-0005: 14 units; PSP through Dec 2027. Filing ≠ same-day outage.
Carraízo and twelve other reservoirs rise after rains; La Plata still falling
9 Sep 2026. Carraízo +0.19→39.02 (observation); La Plata −0.08→44.32 (adjustments); Cidra 400.18. Rain ≠ end of drought.
Vocero: 13 reservoirs rise; Carraízo out of adjustments; weekly rationing pause
9 Sep 2026. Carraízo 39.02 observation; La Plata 44.32 adjustments. Pesquera: pause through Monday. Pause ≠ end of drought.
COR3: $42.84 billion allocated and $13.63 billion disbursed
Sep 8, 2026: FEMA/COR3 report $39.74B obligated; Public Assistance accounts for $13.41B disbursed and HMGP $218.8M.
CAPECO accident report: the overflow that exposed technical and response failures
The final 2015 investigation reconstructs the overflow of tank 409, the 107-acre cloud, community damages, and the lack of independent barriers.
After María, federal staff in Puerto Rico jumped from 3,500 to over 10,000
Sep 8, 2026. Timeline Sep 17–29, 2017. $40 million FHWA 'made available'. Deployed ≠ obligated.
ENDI: AAA hires SOAR $400,000 — cloud seeding Carraízo/La Plata
Purchase order Aug 22; first flight Sep 5; 2015 report: limited effectiveness. Soft cap ENDI 2/2. Cousin →716.
ENDI: La Plata falls to 44.40 m; Carraízo still under observation
8 Sep 2026. La Plata −6 cm adjustments; Carraízo 38.83 observation. Cousin →711.
Medicaid in Puerto Rico: 76% federal match through 2027 and 1.3 million enrolled
The official CMS sheet sets the federal match at 76% from Dec 29, 2022 through Sep 30, 2027, under an annual cap; January 2026 enrollment was 1.3 million.
Energy Bureau orders LUMA to file FY2025 MED/SAIDI reliability data
8 Sep 2026. NEPR-MI-2019-0007: ROI in 10 business days. Order ≠ same-day outage.
Comptroller: two water-authority contracts over $9.6M without a staffing analysis
Reading Sep 8, 2026 of OC-27-24 (published Aug 20). Period Jul 1, 2020–Jun 30, 2024. Qualified opinion. Findings ≠ theft. Contractors 4–16 years. Knowledge transfer absent.
PH: AAA starts cloud seeding — SOAR contract up to $400,000
First flight 5 Sep; 2015 report: limited effectiveness. Soft cap. Cousin →718.
Treasury reminder: rescue funds for roads must be spent by September 30
PEG of September 8; SLFRF newsletter of April 2026. Obligation expired in 2024; general expenditure as of December 31, 2026; Title I and Surface Transportation categories as of September 30. Unexpended is returned.
Vivienda: $2.6 million pa’ renovar el estacionamiento del centro urbano de Naguabo
Peg 8 sep 2026. Total $2,602,673.99; ~$2.3 million CDBG-DR + ~$300k otras/FEMA; 7,167 personas — obra ≠ hurto.
Exigimos Agua: 14 months of poor service and a call for González Delgado to go
September 7, 2026. Residents of Juncos, Loíza, and San Juan on Baldorioty. Cuyar: 60% water losses and citizen representative on the Board. Protest ≠ removal.
CDC archive: in 2016, 31,944 local Zika cases and 45 staff in Puerto Rico
The archived NCEZID page (historical material, no longer updated) documents the peak of Zika in Puerto Rico: 31,944 locally acquired cases as of November 23, 2016, and 45 CDC employees still deployed on the Island.
Federal highways propose $90.8 million for five Puerto Rico road emergencies
The table of June 18, 2026 assigns the largest allocation to Irma/María and separates Fiona, Isaias, PR-52, and the sinkhole of Naranjito.
NotiCel: Carraízo within half a meter of adjustment alert
Carraízo 38.87 m (−0.7); La Plata 44.6 (−0.6) in adjustments; metro rationing still paused. Observation ≠ resume cuts.