{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://hernandez.house.gov/media/press-releases/comisionado-residente-propone-cinco-medidas-para-atender-la-crisis-de-agua", "Comisionado Residente propone cinco medidas para atender la crisis de agua", "2026-08-07", "2026", "2026-08", "Democrat", "House", "PR", "Pablo Jos\u00e9 Hern\u00e1ndez", "H001103", "hernandez.house.gov", "hernandez", "https://hernandez.house.gov/media/press-releases", "scraper", "SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico \u2014 El Comisionado Residente de Puerto Rico, Pablo Jos\u00e9 Hern\u00e1ndez present\u00f3 hoy un plan de cinco puntos dirigido al gobierno federal para atender la crisis de agua que afecta a cientos de miles de puertorrique\u00f1os, que incluir\u00eda pr\u00e9stamos federales para peque\u00f1os negocios y agricultores.\n\nDurante una entrevista nacional este viernes en NBC News Daily, el Comisionado Residente hizo un llamado a la gobernadora para que solicite al presidente de los Estados Unidos una declaraci\u00f3n federal de emergencia ante la crisis de agua en Puerto Rico.\n\nBajo la Ley Stafford, la gobernadora tiene la facultad de presentar formalmente esa solicitud. Hern\u00e1ndez reiter\u00f3 su disposici\u00f3n a buscar respaldo congresional para fortalecer la petici\u00f3n y aumentar sus probabilidades de \u00e9xito, tal como hizo con la declaraci\u00f3n de emergencia energ\u00e9tica en 2025.\n\nDe lograrse, dicha declaraci\u00f3n aumentar\u00eda la disponibilidad de recursos de FEMA para atender la escasez de agua, incluyendo la distribuci\u00f3n de agua almacenada y el reembolso de gastos de emergencia para los municipios y la AAA.\n\nEl Comisionado Residente adem\u00e1s pidi\u00f3 que la solicitud incluya asistencia individual, lo cual habilitar\u00eda pr\u00e9stamos de la SBA para los negocios afectados por la sequ\u00eda.\n\nPor separado, el Comisionado Residente recomendar\u00e1 al Departamento de Agricultura federal que emita la designaci\u00f3n de emergencia por sequ\u00eda que las condiciones actuales incluyendo la sequ\u00eda extrema ya registrada en el sur de la isla\u2014 ameritan bajo sus propios criterios, lo cual proveer\u00eda ayuda para nuestros agricultores.\n\nFinalmente, el Comisionado Residente indic\u00f3 que deben iniciarse las gestiones necesarias para el regreso de los cientos de puertorrique\u00f1os de la Guardia Nacional actualmente desplegados en Washington, D.C., de manera que puedan apoyar la respuesta a esta crisis en la isla.\n\n\u201cComo reflejan estas cinco medidas, el gobierno estatal y federal pueden hacer m\u00e1s, y estoy en la mejor disposici\u00f3n de ayudar para que as\u00ed sea\u201d, concluy\u00f3 el Comisionado Residente.\n\nHern\u00e1ndez Proposes Five Measures to Address Puerto Rico\u2019s Water Crisis\n\n(See the full interview)\n\nSAN JUAN, Puerto Rico \u2014 Congressman Pablo Jos\u00e9 Hern\u00e1ndez of Puerto Rico today unveiled a five-point plan calling for federal action to address the water crisis affecting hundreds of thousands of Puerto Ricans, including potential federal loans for small businesses and farmers.\n\nDuring a national interview Friday on NBC News Daily, Congressman Hern\u00e1ndez called on the Governor to request a federal emergency declaration from the President of the United States in response to Puerto Rico\u2019s water crisis.\n\nUnder the Stafford Act, the Governor has the authority to formally submit such a request. Hern\u00e1ndez reiterated his willingness to seek congressional support to strengthen the request and increase its likelihood of approval, as he did with the 2025 energy emergency declaration.\n\nIf approved, such a declaration would increase the availability of FEMA resources to address the water shortage, including the distribution of stored water and reimbursement of emergency expenses incurred by municipalities and the Puerto Rico Aqueduct and Sewer Authority (PRASA).\n\nHern\u00e1ndez also called for the request to include individual assistance, which would make SBA loans available to businesses affected by the drought.\n\nSeparately, Hern\u00e1ndez recommends that the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) issue an emergency drought designation based on current conditions including the extreme drought already recorded in southern Puerto Rico, which would make additional assistance available to farmers.\n\nFinally, Hern\u00e1ndez said the necessary steps should be taken to bring back the hundreds of Puerto Rican National Guard members currently deployed in Washington, D.C., so they can support the response to the crisis on the island.", 1, "2026-08-08T05:41:38Z", "2026-08-08T05:43:24Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://hernandez.house.gov/media/press-releases/comisionado-residente-propone-cinco-medidas-para-atender-la-crisis-de-agua"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 0.9557739831507206, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}