House finance committee debates bill to redirect unclaimed lottery and racing prizes to municipal animal-control and caregiver programs

The Commission on Finance and Budget of the House of Representatives of Puerto Rico held a Sept. 18 hearing on Proyecto de la Cámara 511, which would direct a share of unclaimed prizes and tickets from the horse‑racing industry and Puerto Rico lotteries into a special account to fund municipal animal‑control, adoption and vaccination programs, microchipping and support for amas de llaves (home caregivers).

The measure drew support from members who called it a response to growing local needs for animal control and elder care. But officials from the Oficina de Gerencia y Presupuesto (OGP) and the Comisión de Juegos warned the proposal would not create new revenue and could reduce amounts flowing to the general fund and to programs that now rely on those receipts.

OGP legal adviser Carmen Guillén González said the proposal “no genera ingresos nuevos ni gastos adicionales, sino que constituye una redistribución de recursos existentes,” adding that redirecting those receipts would reduce net revenues to the general fund and must be analyzed against the certified fiscal plan. Guillén also told the committee that the current executive administration is pursuing a municipal fiscal and operational restructuring and asked that the administration be allowed to complete that work before moving a policy that reallocates revenue.

Juan Carlos Santaella Marchán, identified in the hearing as director executive of the Comisión de Juegos, told lawmakers that funds from unclaimed racing prizes have been placed into a custodial account since November 2022 and are already committed under law and regulation to industry‑support purposes. Santaella gave the committee a ledger summary and figures: “desde noviembre del 2022 hasta agosto del 2025 se han depositado en dicho fondo 2,072,753.08 dólares, de los cuales se han desembolsado aproximadamente 1,259,733.67,” leaving a balance reported as about $813,000 as of Aug. 31, 2025.

Santaella and other industry witnesses said the account—governed by the law creating the horse‑racing industry fund and by the fund’s regulation (referenced in the hearing as Reglamento 8974)—finances breeder incentives, low‑interest loans for buyers and breeders, transportation and after‑care/retirement programs for racehorses, and two named scholarships. He warned that redirecting these monies would reduce resources available to preserve the island’s horse‑racing infrastructure and related jobs.

Representative Pedro Pellé Santiago, author of the measure, said the bill was intended to address “una problemática social” affecting municipalities and vulnerable residents: “esto no es un capricho, esto es tratando de atender una problemática social,” he told the committee as he pressed for options to fund animal‑control and caregiver programs.

OGP staff also described existing municipal allocations in the current budget: a $15 million appropriation for amas de llaves distributed to 64 participating municipalities (OGP said those transfers have been completed) and a $30 million appropriation intended to support the most vulnerable municipalities. OGP recommended the committee request additional fiscal data from the Department of Finance to determine the measure’s net effect and suggested discussing with the department how a special account would be created and controlled if the bill advances.

Committee members asked for documentary follow‑up. The committee ordered the Department of Finance to produce a certification — and OGP to provide the tables shown at the hearing — within five business days to clarify year‑by‑year amounts and how unclaimed prizes and ticket receipts currently flow into the general fund and to the racing fund. Members also flagged a drafting error in the bill title: the sponsors and staff noted the measure’s text amends article 13, not article 19, and said they would correct the title to reflect the actual statutory change.

No formal vote was taken at the hearing. Lawmakers and witnesses agreed the proposal raises policy choices about whether to (1) reassign funds now supporting the hípico fund and other general‑fund allocations, or (2) pursue budgetary increases or alternative revenue sources to support municipal animal welfare and caregiver programs.

The committee closed the hearing after the presentations and set no final action; members said they would review the requested fiscal data and the corrected legislative text before further consideration.