Transition team warns FEMA deadlines could put thousands of Puerto Rico projects at risk

Unidentified Speaker 1, presenter (first speaker in the briefing), said the transition team reviewed the 'score three' agency and reported that "hay veintitrés mil trescientos setenta proyectos," with project stages ranging from planning through completed work. The presenter said $684 million had been disbursed for completed projects as of Sept. 30 and that a large remainder of assigned/obligated funds remains in earlier stages.

The briefing stressed urgency because FEMA granted only a six‑month extension that ends in March. "FEMA dio la extensión solamente por seis meses," the presenter said, and the team is preparing to ask the governor‑elect and the commissioner to press federal authorities in Washington to honor extension requests for projects the new administration will submit.

Why it matters: the figures and deadlines mean projects that do not reach bidding and contract signing before the federal deadline could lose their federal obligations, shifting the new administration to difficult triage decisions. Speaker 1 cited a Cortés report to Congress described in the briefing as "veinticuatro punto nueve" (24.9) billion assigned and obligated in total, with roughly $17 billion appearing in the transition team table as still pending to move through project stages. The presenter noted public confusion in the briefing about the use of the Spanish word "billones" and corrected the phrasing during remarks.

The briefing also flagged concentration of FEMA funds: Speaker 1 said 60–73% of FEMA dollars are focused on four agencies (energy, aqueduct, education, public housing) and that adding the University of Puerto Rico in some tabulations approaches 73% of funds. Reported agency usage rates from the 'score three' tables included Education ~2.3%, Aqueduct ~13.4%, PREPA ~15.7% and Public Housing ~25.7%; data for the University of Puerto Rico was not present in the table and the presenter said they "inclino a pensar" it was likely very low.

Municipalities, by contrast, were described as executing faster: the presenter said municipalities account for 9.6% of already‑disbursed funds and have higher execution rates for many smaller projects. The briefing recommended operational steps for the incoming administration: identify six key endorsement agencies, require weekly coordination meetings, assign responsible staff for federal projects, and eliminate avoidable paperwork delays so projects can move to bidding and contract signing before deadlines.

The transition team said it will provide the governor‑elect and the commissioner with these data and push for federal consideration of extension requests; the commissioner had the information and had begun immediate follow‑up, the presenter said.

Next steps: the briefing closed with the team expecting further documentation to be submitted the next day and with plans to press federal officials and the governor‑elect to act quickly to preserve obligations.