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Legislative hearing examines bill to shorten municipal notice for emergency utility work; agencies warn of safety, reimbursement risks
Summary
The House of Representatives’ Comisión de Asuntos Municipales held a hearing May 14 on Proyecto de la Cámara 430, which would reduce from five days to 24 hours the written-notice period municipal governments must give before beginning utility-repair work during a declared municipal emergency.
The House of Representatives’ Comisión de Asuntos Municipales held a public hearing May 14 on Proyecto de la Cámara 430, a proposal to amend inciso 5 del artículo 1.018 of Ley 107 de 2020 (Código Municipal de Puerto Rico) to cut the required written notification from five days to 24 hours before a municipality may begin work to restore electrical service or water and wastewater systems during a declared municipal emergency.
Why it matters: The change would speed municipal responses after disasters but, according to agency witnesses, could endanger workers, complicate eligibility for federal reimbursements and conflict with existing operational roles and contractual arrangements between public utilities and private operators.
Maricarmen Zapata Acosta, directora ejecutiva de la Autoridad de Energía Eléctrica (AEE), told the commission that the bill’s goal—to enable faster municipal action—“tiene el potencial de reducir significativamente los tiempos de respuesta,” but she warned that…
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