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In recent months, Puerto Rico has received an unusual share of the limelight in mainstream American media due to the extreme economic conditions that some believe may cause a default on its sovereign bonds. The problem is that as legislators and the Obama Administration grapple with how to address Puerto Rico's debt crisis, Congress must pay careful attention to the intricacies of Washington's intervention and the danger of unintended consequences on the other U.S. territories.

Some 400,000 Americans reside in the territories of Guam, American Samoa, the Northern Mariana Islands and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Like Puerto Rico, these territories rely on uniquely attractive, tax-exempt bond offerings to fund infrastructure improvements and essential services for their people. These bonds can provide a critical cover for the gap that occurs when the territories do not receive the same federal funding or benefits as the states.

Yet leaders in the Obama and Garcia Padilla administrations, as well as some Congressional Democrats, are threatening the attractiveness of those bond offerings by calling for a special territorial bankruptcy regime - not only for Puerto Rico, but for all the U.S. territories.

The proposed legislation would grant Puerto Rico - and, by default, the other U.S. territories - extraordinary bankruptcy protection known as Super Chapter 9. This would allow restructuring all debts, including the general obligation debt, or "full faith and credit" debt, exceeding the authority presently granted to the states under Chapter 9. Under Chapter 9, states are only allowed to restructure municipal and public corporation debt, but at the same time are restricted from restructuring their general obligation debt.

In crafting such a regime, through the so-called "super" control board or otherwise, lawmakers would certainly adversely impact the territories' ability to access the market at reasonable rates by inserting a risk factor for which investors would want compensation in the form of higher returns or higher interest rates.

Guam Gov. Edward B. Calvo recently told Bloomberg, "When it comes to the policymakers in Washington, D.C., dealing with the Puerto Rico situation, I've made it very clear: Guam has no need nor desire to look at any type of backdoor such as bankruptcy protection. ... That's something we've always believed has made our triple tax-exempt bond sales very attractive - that we were treated a certain way."

These are sentiments that have been echoed by other territorial leaders, including the director of American Samoa's commerce department.

It seems absurd to me that Congress would lump in the other U.S. territories with Puerto Rico's draconian solution to decades-long mismanagement of its territorial wealth when some other measures are still being debated.

Congress has other tools at its disposal. For example, legislators can extend to Puerto Rico's municipalities and public corporations the very same restructuring capabilities already possessed by those in the states under Chapter 9 of the bankruptcy code. Likewise, it can appoint a control board to reform the island's finances, as the federal government did for Washington, D.C., in the 1990s. A combination of these measures would both address the crisis in Puerto Rico's economy and allow the island to restructure an extremely significant portion of its outstanding debt obligations.

Importantly, neither measure infringes upon the sovereignty of the other territories nor sets a dangerous precedent for the island's territorial peers. If anything, this plan merely amounts to a step toward more equitable, state-like treatment of the territories by Washington.

Lawmakers should not inflict harm on the people of Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, the U.S. Virgin Islands and American Samoa simply because of their shared political status with Puerto Rico. Any legislative solution to Puerto Rico's debt should be done within the existing legal framework and should not impose unique market constraints on America's territories.

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Not so super: Puerto Rico's debt crisis may affect all territories

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In recent months, Puerto Rico has received an unusual share of the limelight in mainstream American media due to the extreme economic conditions that some believe may cause a default on its sovereign bonds.

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THE islands' employers will reach the numerical limit for CNMI-Only transitional worker permits prior to Oct. 1, according to attorney Juan Carlos Benitez, President Donald Trump's point of contact for the CNMI and Guam.

Speaking before members of the Society for Human Resource Management-NMI chapter on Wednesday, Benitez said it is important for employers to figure out now what can be done as they brace for a worst-case scenario.

"That is the reality," Benitez said as he also discussed what can be done executively and legislatively to prevent an "exodus" of foreign workers that will have a detrimental effect on the islands' economy.

When 1,300 employees were affected by the CW cap last year, he said U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services came up with a short-terms solution by allowing certain CW-1 permit holders to apply for deferred action.

This time, Benitez said, "I just want to be clear, as of today, the Trump administration has not expressed itself on exercising this discretionary authority."

He also disclosed that there were companies that have petitioned for a large number of CW-1 permits, about 5,000 of them, but these are not being used.

"Those [CW] visas are presently not on our island but when our [long-term] employees [who are here] require those visas, there's none for them now that the cap has been reached."

Once the cap is reached, he said USCIS will not accept any cap-subject petition. It will reject petitions and will return all filing fees to petitioners. This includes CW-1 petitions for extension of stay which are also subject to the CW-1 cap.

Benitez expects that there will be a lot of announcements in the newspapers in the next couple of weeks.

Many people are "doing the math," and determining the best time to file petitions, he said, as he urged employers to start working on the CW-1 renewal petitions right now.

One of the "potential paths forward" that can be done through executive action, Benitez said, is to "re-capture those unused CW visas."

Deferred action and continued employment authorization can also be reestablished, he added.

The other solutions that can be done executively are to exempt CW renewals from consular processing; allow for CW renewals to be filed more than six months in advance; and an executive order mandating a repeal of two regulations before the implementation of a new regulation.

He said Trump already signed an executive order requiring either USCIS or the U.S. Department of Labor to identify two regulations they can repeal to address the CNMI's CW issues before any new regulation is approved.

"So we would have to find those two [regulations to be repealed] before USCIS will be able to do [anything] through the regulatory process," Benitez said.

There is also a legislative way to address the CW issue, he added, referring to U.S. Congressman Gregorio Kilili Camacho Sablan's bill, H.R. 339, which the U.S. House has passed and is now in the U.S. Senate.

The bill will increase the CW cap from 12,998 to 15,000.

Last year, Kilili introduced H.R. 5888 to increase the cap to 18,000 and extend the CW program for another 10 years, but the U.S Congress did not act on it.

The U.S. Senate, Benitez said can move H.R. 339 as a separate or an independent bill. If they are going to take that route, he said "we need to see if they are going to refer it to Energy and Natural Resources Committee or the Judiciary Committee's immigration subcommittee."

He added, "If they refer the bill to the immigration subcommittee, it will be a lot harder to get something done expeditiously because that subcommittee wants to do comprehensive immigration reform."

CNMI leaders, he said, will have to convince the judiciary committee that the islands are facing a desperate situation and Congress needs to move the bill now.

But the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee, he said, "is very reluctant in moving any immigration issue unless it is for a comprehensive national strategy. And I don't feel that we have the time that it would take to go that route."

But if the bill is referred to the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, "then it can quickly hold a hearing because they oversee all the territories and they are aware of what's happening here," Benitez said.

Members of the committee, moreover, have a good relationship with Kilili, he added.

"They can move on it faster in one of two ways," he said. "They can try to get to vote on the bill by bringing it to the floor, or, if they feel it'll have a better chance of passing, they can just add it to the natural resources appropriations bill as an amendment. And the expectation is that bill will be voted on by around April or May."

According to Benitez, "Congressman Kilili is doing a good job. He is fighting for this, and working with Gov. Ralph Torres."

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THE islands' employers will reach the numerical limit for CNMI-Only transitional worker permits prior to Oct. 1, according to attorney Juan Carlos Benitez, President Donald Trump's point of contact for the CNMI and Guam.

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TAMUNING, Guam - A decades-old effort to have Guam World War II survivors receive reparations from the federal government could be decided in the courtroom.

A group of advocates are working to finalize a nonprofit organization called Guam World War II Reparations Advocates Inc., which plans to sue the U.S. government in hopes that survivors finally receive compensation the group believes they deserve.

Sen. Frank Blas Jr., one of the group's directors, said members of Guam's "greatest generation" continue to pass away every day.

The people involved in the group have met for months to discuss how they can help war survivors get what they rightfully deserve, Blas said.

The group is made up of local leaders from both political parties, lawyers and others.

A press conference was held at IHOP restaurant in Tamuning Monday to announce the group and its plan to sue the federal government.

Blas said the restaurant was chosen to reflect the nonpartisan effort of the group.

Former U.S. Department of Justice Special Counsel Juan Carlos Benitez said that as more survivors pass away, it becomes even more important for something to be done now.

"We really feel that this is injustice that has not been made right," he said.

Former Lt. Gov. Frank Blas Sr., a WWII survivor, said the issue isn't about money, but about recognition for him and others who suffered during the conflict.

He said the act would show the United States' sincerity towards the people of Guam.

"Where is the justice for our sufferings?" he said.

He said there needs to be closure soon because the reality is that survivors are dying every day.

"What would it take for us here on Guam to be recognized," he said.

Guam Del. Madeline Bordallo in a release, stated her support for the suit and said she would continue to work her bill in Congress to move the issue forward.

During her current term in Congress, Bordallo again introduced the Guam World War II Loyalty Recognition Act.

Her war claims legislation has successfully passed the House five times, but has failed to clear the Senate.

"However, I will not cease in my determination in doing all that I can to move this issue forward in Congress despite the persistent opposition," she said.

Benitez said the suit would be part of a dual approach to try to move reparations forward. He said the suit could help Bordallo's legislation get passed.

Attorneys who will represent the suit are Washington D.C.-based Mauricio Tamargo, Jason Poblete and Jeremy Ibrahim.

The suit will be filed in the nation's capital and legal fees will be paid using private funds, according to the group.

Once the group is officially formed as a nonprofit, it will begin fundraising and receiving funds to help with the efforts. Some people have already made commitments to provide support for the cause, the group said.

The group expects the suit to be filed sometime this year.

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Guam WWII survivors to sue U.S. government for reparations

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TAMUNING, Guam - A decades-old effort to have Guam World War II survivors receive reparations from the federal government could be decided in the courtroom. A group of advocates are working to finalize a nonprofit organization called Guam World War II Reparations Advocates Inc., which plans to sue the U.S.

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Watch the C-SPAN collection of videos, access clips including recent appearances by Juan Carlos Benitez. View positions held along with a brief bio.

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Politics Hispanics, Apr 10 2006 | Video | C-SPAN.org

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The guests discussed proposed changes to U.S. immigration policy and their impact on the Hispanic/Latino vote in the 2006 congressional and 2008 presidential elections. Both guests worked with their...

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Host Ray Suarez and guest panelists Algernon Austin, Marcos Vilar and Juan Carlos Benitez discuss why job creation remains low.

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Host Ray Suarez and guest panelists Marcos Vilar, Albert Morales, Algernon Austin and Juan Carlos Benitez discuss the current state of the economy and how it is affecting the Latino minority.

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Host Ray Suarez and guest panelists Marcos Vilar, Juan Carlos Benitez, Albert Morales and Algernon Austin discuss why the health care industry jobs are being left unfilled