​​Biden appoints Luis Ubiñas to Puerto Rico’s Financial Oversight Board

As part of the White House announcement, Biden reappointed to the board Arthur González, a former bankruptcy judge and retired NYU School of Law professor, and Betty Rosa, New York State Commissioner of Education.

President Joe Biden announced on June 26 his intention to appoint Luis Ubiñas as a member of the Financial Oversight and Management Board (FOMB) for Puerto Rico.

Ubiñas, currently president of the Statue of Liberty-Ellis Island Foundation, will fill the vacancy left by Antonio Medina, the former director of the Industrial Development Company.

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The White House made the announcement as part of a group of intended appointments of individuals to serve in key positions on different boards and commissions.

According to the White House statement, Ubiñas has ample experience in business, government, and the nonprofit sector. He served as president of the Ford Foundation, a senior partner at McKinsey & Company, and was appointed to the Export-Import Bank and the International Trade Commission during the Obama-Biden Administration. 

As part of the White House announcement, Biden reappointed to the board Arthur González, a former bankruptcy judge and retired NYU School of Law professor, and Betty Rosa, New York State Commissioner of Education and president of the State University of New York. Their terms had expired earlier this year.

González has been a member of the fiscal entity since its inception in August 2016.

The FOMB consists of seven members appointed by the president and one ex officio member designated by the governor of Puerto Rico. 

In August, it will be eight years since the FOMB was created under the Puerto Rico Oversight, Management, and Economic Stability Act (PROMESA) to revise and approve the budget and obligations of the island’s government.

Ubiña and Rosa’s appointments were recommended by Senate Democratic Majority Leader Charles Schumer, while González was reappointed on the recommendation of House Democratic Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, according to El Nuevo Día.

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Democratic Congresswoman Nydia Velázquez told the newspaper that the FOMB should focus on promoting economic development. “So far they have not done so,” Velázquez said, noting that the board has seemed to act primarily as a “creditor collection agency.”

Washington Resident Commissioner Jenniffer González, who’s the New Progressive Party (PNP) candidate for governor of the island, said in a statement that the agency should prioritize accelerating reconstruction, economic development, and addressing Puerto Rico’s “energy situation.”