Puerto Rico’s governor takes steps to privatize power utility

 SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico - Puerto Rico’s Governor Ricardo Rossello on Monday pressed proposals for privatizing the U.S. commonwealth’s shattered electrical grid as part of its painstaking recovery from devastating September hurricanes.

Rossello used his State of the State speech to say that he had introduced an energy reform bill on Monday, while outlining ideas for cutting taxes, increasing police pay and introducing education reforms.

Hurricanes Maria and Irma killed dozens of people and caused an estimated $100 billion in damage to a recession-bound economy in which more than 45 percent of its 3.4 million U.S. citizens live in poverty.

Rossello also repeated his call for the federal government to stop treating Puerto Ricans as “second-class U.S. citizens” in terms of disaster relief.

“Disaster response should not be based on the notion of being Republican or Democrat, but rather on the equal treatment and aid to U.S. citizens,” Rossello said, while recognizing support from New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, a Democrat, and Florida Governor Rick Scott, a Republican, who was in Puerto Rico and attended the event.

 Source : nbcnews