I have been living in Puerto Rico since I was born. So, as an island that lays in the Caribbean, we are used to hurricanes.

We must prepare and have the resiliency to deal with this natural phenomena when they occur.

The mitigation is a big issue, and how we met with those situation, I think the Army Corps of Engineers has been working in Puerto Rico.

The only way for a territory to obtain broader representation in Congress, equal or otherwise, or in electing a President is to become a State or for the Constitution to be amended.

The rights to vote and to be equally represented in the government that make one's laws and to have elections conducted thoroughly are the most fundamental and essential elements of democracy.

I can report that Puerto Rico does want to be a State of the Union, and it wants equality and democracy within the United States.

The United States is history's greatest democracy, but it has never been a perfect democracy.

Thank you, Representative Graves for yielding and actually for visiting the island after Hurricane Maria and Irma and helping us out.

The bill will amend Federal law to study the potential for an authorized offshore wind energy development in the exclusive economic zone adjacent to the five U.S. territories.

I have long argued that private partnership investment is crucial to transform Puerto Rico's energy system if properly executed.

My first question will be to Mr. Ortiz. Mr. Ortiz, you were talking in your statement about different amounts of funds.

We must also ensure funding allocated in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria is no longer delayed by bureaucratic processes.

We need to pursue policies to at-risk high electricity costs that hinder economic growth.

The transformation of Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority, or PREPA as we know it, is long overdue.

I am just asking the Committee to submit those documents to Mr. Ortiz as well as the Ranking Member.

the Puerto Rico government entities receiving disaster aid from Federal agencies.

Resident Commissioner Gonzalez asked PREPA to submit a list detailing all Federal funds appropriated and utilized by PREPA to date.

I just want to highlight bipartisan legislation I introduced that could help Puerto Rico's energy transformation.