The Puerto Rico government has not paid for the fuel used by its official vehicles during the current fiscal year, Carla Mercado, administrator of the General Services Administration (ASG), told a Senate public hearing, attributing the lapse to problems with the Integra PR system. The unpaid bills could affect gasoline supply for essential government vehicles, including Puerto Rico Police patrol cars, Fire Bureau units, emergency management vehicles, correctional units and Metropolitan Bus Authority (AMA) buses.
"We are not presenting operational risks at this moment," she said.
Mercado clarified to Telemundo that the situation has not yet caused interruptions in government operations. She warned, however, that payments on the outstanding invoices will have to begin next month because of the 90-day billing period set for these services. "We are not presenting operational risks at this moment," she said.
She added that if payments do not begin next month, talks would have to start to determine how to address the debt and keep operations running. The matter emerged during the Senate hearing, which also examined problems related to the rollout of the Integra PR system.