Huffman, Thompson, Hernández, Heinrich Want Answers on Puerto Rico’s Water Crisis from Gov Watchdog

Huffman, Thompson, Hernández, Heinrich Want Answers on Puerto Rico's Water Crisis from Gov Watchdog

Washington, D.C. - Today, House NaturalResources Committee Ranking Member Jared Huffman (D-Calif.), House Homeland Security Committee Ranking Member Bennie G. Thompson (D-Miss.), Resident Commissioner Pablo José Hernández (D-P.R.), and Senate Energy and Natural Resources Ranking Member Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) sent a letterto the Government Accountability Office (GAO) requesting a briefing and a full investigation into Puerto Rico's drinking water shortages, the condition of its water and wastewater systems, and what federal agencies are doing to help.

"Puerto Rico is experiencing drinking water supply shortages and service interruptions affecting households and economic activity," the members wrote. "Failing pipelines and infrastructure regularly leak about half of the territory's treated water."
Almost 3.2 million people on the island depend on that system for the water they drink, cook with, and bathe their kids in. Half of what gets cleaned and treated for them leaks away before it reaches a single home, and nine years of federal repair money has yet to stop it.

The members point to nearly a decade of federal spending that has yet to produce a reliable system. Puerto Rico's water utility, the Puerto Rico Aqueduct and Sewer Authority (PRASA), runs 21,000 miles of pipelines along with dams, filter plants, and tanks that supply most of the island. Since Hurricane Maria in 2017, FEMA, EPA, HUD, and USDA "have provided almost $9 billion to pay for much of the PRASA infrastructure repair," while earthquakes in 2020 and additional hurricanes in 2022 and 2023 "further damaged facilities and contributed to delaying repairs."

The utility finished a strategic plan, a Capital Investment Plan, and a new rate structure in 2025. The members write that those plans "identify what the territory and water utility need to do to rebuild from disasters and prepare for future challenges such as drought and flooding. However, these projects are long-term capital projects and do not help to resolve the immediate water crisis facing Puerto Rico."

The letter asks GAO to answer, at a minimum, "What is known about the reasons that the distribution system is in an advanced state of disrepair despite federal funding and PRASA's creditworthiness?" and "What are federal agencies doing to help address Puerto Rico's drinking water supply shortage, in the short-term and long-term?"

The members also request a deeper review covering the condition and resilience of reservoirs, treatment facilities, pumping stations, and distribution networks; the reliability of the wastewater system; how much federal funding has been obligated, disbursed, and expended; the status and completion dates of federally funded projects; and "the extent to which funded projects are expected to reduce water losses."

They close by asking GAO to look at "legislative, regulatory, administrative, or operational recommendations that could improve project delivery, accountability, and long-term water system reliability in Puerto Rico."

"We look forward to your help in putting the people of Puerto Rico on a path to water security," the members wrote.

Read the full request to the Government Accountability Office here.

Background

July was the driest month on record for San Juan in more than 120 years, going back to 1899, with barely half an inch of rain. As of August 4, federal monitors put over two-thirds of the island in drought. The government of Puerto Rico recently declared a state of emergency and announced alternating 48-hour water supply shuts-offs and rationing that would affect more than 180,000 households.

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