Jean Peña Payano, secretary of Public Affairs at La Fortaleza (the governor’s office), acknowledged on Tuesday, November 10, that Puerto Rico’s Education Department has debts to school transportation operators dating back to 2021 that remain unpaid. He admitted some of those debts should have been reconciled earlier. "Certainly there are some debts that should have been reconciled, some date from 2021, some date from the beginning of the year, and it should be in the hands of the Education Department, together with the Office of Management and Budget, to issue those payments," Peña Payano said during the press conference En Récord.
The money is there because it was budgeted,
He explained that Education has already submitted the request to the Office of Management and Budget (OGP) to seek authorization from the Oversight Board. He said the funds are available to cover the outstanding obligations. "The money is there because it was budgeted," he stated.
Regarding October invoices, he said they are ordinarily paid during November. His remarks came after a school transportation company claimed that about 1,000 students would have been left without service on Tuesday. Peña Payano maintained that the information he received early that morning said otherwise.
"The information sent to me at 7 in the morning was that they were providing the service and no minor was affected," he said, though he acknowledged he would have to verify whether the situation had changed later.