The Anne Krueger report on Puerto Rico

You’ll find it here (PDF), co-authored with Ranjit Teja and Andrew Wolfe.  Here is a bit of the introductory summary:

Structural reforms

Restoring growth requires restoring competitiveness.  Key here is local and federal action to lower labor costs gradually and encourage employment (minimum wage, labor laws, and welfare reform),  and to cut the very high cost of electricity and transportation (Jones Act). Local laws that raise input costs should be liberalized and obstacles to the ease of doing business removed. Public enterprise reform is also crucial.

Fiscal reform and public debt.

Probably the most startling finding in this report will be that the true fiscal deficit is much larger than assumed. Even a major fiscal effort leaves residual financing gaps in coming years, which can be bridged by debt restructuring (a voluntary exchange of existing bonds for new ones with a longer/lower debt  service  profile). Public enterprises too face financial challenges and are in discussions with their creditors.  Despite legal complexities, all discussions with creditors should be coordinated.

Institutional credibility.

The legacy of weak budget execution and opaque data – our fiscal analysis entailed many iterations – must be overcome. Priorities include legislative approval of a multi-year fiscal adjustment plan, legislative rules on deficits, a fiscal oversight board, and more reliable and timely data.

If I were a Puerto Rican considering statehood…I know how I would vote.

For the pointer I thank Felix Salmon.

Comments

Comments for this post are closed