Puerto Rico board approves budget as legislators quibble

By DÁNICA COTO
Associated Press

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — The federal control board that oversees the finances of Puerto Rico’s government has approved a $12.4 billion general fund budget for the U.S. territory after legislators failed to approve one amid bickering. The board’s version of the budget approved Thursday had been rejected last month by Gov. Pedro Pierluisi because it reduced government spending by $100 million. He said then that legislators would submit their own version, but the presidents of the island’s Senate and House of Representatives clashed and failed to approve anything before the July 1 deadline. The board says the general fund budget includes $5.5 billion for public health, $4.6 billion for education and $1.3 billion “to protect future government pensions from economic uncertainty.”