Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem promises help in her first visit to Puerto Rico
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem pledged Thursday to help Puerto Rico in her first visit to the U.S. territory as it struggles to rebuild from catastrophic hurricanes amid chronic power outages.
Noem spoke briefly with reporters during her one-day trip to the island, saying she would look into how the federal government can cut some of the permitting and requirements of the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency 'to make sure that people are going to get the help that they need and that they were promised.'
FEMA has been funding much of the reconstruction after Hurricane Maria slammed into the island as a Category 4 storm in September 2017, but Puerto Rico Gov. Jenniffer González recently criticized the agency, saying it has not yet released $18 billion slated for the power grid that was razed.
Noem said that she and González talked 'extensively' about energy and how the federal government could help streamline efforts to update energy sources on the island. She did not provide further details and did not take questions from the press.
Under the administration of former U.S. President Joe Biden, the U.S. Department of Energy invested millions of dollars in solar projects across Puerto Rico, generating more than 1,200 megawatts of new renewable capacity.
Some $6 billion in federal funds have been obligated to help rebuild the power grid, with FEMA approving 200 of more than 440 projects submitted to the agency to repair and strengthen the grid. Of those approved, at least 125 are under construction.
González, who is a supporter of U.S. President Donald Trump, said she and Noem also talked about ways to strengthen Puerto Rico's border security, and how the island can beef up relations with federal security agencies.
'We want to dismantle all those criminal organizations hitting our shores,' González said, adding that Noem's visit 'demonstrates how important Puerto Rico is in this fight.'
Noem traveled to Puerto Rico for a ceremony honoring Michel O. Maceda, a U.S. Customs and Border Protection agent who was killed in November 2022 during a shootout at sea with suspected drug traffickers. Three other agents were wounded.
Her visit comes weeks after federal agents in Puerto Rico began arresting people believed to be undocumented immigrants, a move that has been widely criticized on the island.
Noem said González is willing to build partnerships with the federal government 'not only for the betterment of her people, but also for the United States of America. The mission of the Department of Homeland Security is to protect the American homeland, but to do it with integrity and honor as well.'
González met with Noem days after traveling to Washington D.C. to push for U.S. statehood, a central goal of her New Progressive Party.
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