Title 48 — Territories and Insular PossessionsRelease 119-73

§2145 Recommendations on financial stability and management responsibility

Title 48 › Chapter CHAPTER 20— - PUERTO RICO OVERSIGHT, MANAGEMENT, AND ECONOMIC STABILITY › Subchapter SUBCHAPTER II— - RESPONSIBILITIES OF OVERSIGHT BOARD › § 2145

Last updated Apr 6, 2026|Official source

Summary

The Oversight Board can send recommendations at any time to the Governor or the Legislature to help the territory follow its Fiscal Plan and to improve financial stability, economic growth, management, and service delivery. These recommendations can cover many topics, such as money management and forecasting, information technology, spending controls (including pay and benefits), buying practices, how agencies are organized, changing or adding revenue sources, options for paying pensions, which services the government or others should provide, how laws and court orders affect operations, employee performance systems, training and staffing, and privatization. The Governor or the Legislature must reply to the Oversight Board within 90 days saying whether they will adopt the recommendations. If they will adopt them, they must include a written plan with clear performance measures and a timetable. If they will not adopt recommendations they could have adopted, they must explain why and send that explanation to the President and Congress.

Full Legal Text

Title 48, §2145

Territories and Insular Possessions — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)The Oversight Board may at any time submit recommendations to the Governor or the Legislature on actions the territorial government may take to ensure compliance with the Fiscal Plan, or to otherwise promote the financial stability, economic growth, management responsibility, and service delivery efficiency of the territorial government, including recommendations relating to—

(1)the management of the territorial government’s financial affairs, including economic forecasting and multiyear fiscal forecasting capabilities, information technology, placing controls on expenditures for personnel, reducing benefit costs, reforming procurement practices, and placing other controls on expenditures;

(2)the structural relationship of departments, agencies, and independent agencies within the territorial government;

(3)the modification of existing revenue structures, or the establishment of additional revenue structures;

(4)the establishment of alternatives for meeting obligations to pay for the pensions of territorial government employees;

(5)modifications or transfers of the types of services that are the responsibility of, and are delivered by the territorial government;

(6)modifications of the types of services that are delivered by entities other than the territorial government under alternative service delivery mechanisms;

(7)the effects of the territory’s laws and court orders on the operations of the territorial government;

(8)the establishment of a personnel system for employees of the territorial government that is based upon employee performance standards;

(9)the improvement of personnel training and proficiency, the adjustment of staffing levels, and the improvement of training and performance of management and supervisory personnel; and

(10)the privatization and commercialization of entities within the territorial government.

(b)(1)In the case of any recommendations submitted under subsection (a) that are within the authority of the territorial government to adopt, not later than 90 days after receiving the recommendations, the Governor or the Legislature (whichever has the authority to adopt the recommendation) shall submit a statement to the Oversight Board that provides notice as to whether the territorial government will adopt the recommendations.

(2)If the Governor or the Legislature (whichever is applicable) notifies the Oversight Board under paragraph (1) that the territorial government will adopt any of the recommendations submitted under subsection (a), the Governor or the Legislature (whichever is applicable) shall include in the statement a written plan to implement the recommendation that includes—

(A)specific performance measures to determine the extent to which the territorial government has adopted the recommendation; and

(B)a clear and specific timetable pursuant to which the territorial government will implement the recommendation.

(3)If the Governor or the Legislature (whichever is applicable) notifies the Oversight Board under paragraph (1) that the territorial government will not adopt any recommendation submitted under subsection (a) that the territorial government has authority to adopt, the Governor or the Legislature shall include in the statement explanations for the rejection of the recommendations, and the Governor or the Legislature shall submit such statement of explanations to the President and Congress.

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

48 U.S.C. § 2145

Title 48 — Territories and Insular Possessions

Last Updated

Apr 6, 2026

Release point: 119-73