DEMOGRAPHIC / SOCIOECONOMIC

In the aftermath of Hurricanes Irma and María, the
Government of Puerto Rico, with numerous federal
partners and local stakeholders, worked to compile
“Transformation and Innovation in the Wake of
Devastation: An Economic and Disaster Recovery Plan
for Puerto Rico” (the Recovery Plan), which is a
Recovery Plan for Puerto Rico. In accordance with the
Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018, the Recovery Plan was
submitted to Congress on August 8, 2018.
The vision for transforming Puerto Rico set forth in the
Recovery Plan is grounded in the present, taking into
account a variety of preexisting factors that will
continue to challenge the Island and its citizens in the
years ahead. These include Puerto Rico’s location and
geography, changing demographics, the economic
trends and fiscal conditions prior to the hurricanes,
and the limited maintenance of critical infrastructure.
This recovery effort represents more than simply the
effort to physically repair and reconstruct the damage
caused by the hurricanes; it is also an opportunity to
implement the social, governmental, fiscal, and
economic reforms that will lead to a 21st-century Puerto Rico.

Over the last generation, the Hudson Valley has become a nexus where the economic, social, and cultural forces of a major global capital, New York City, meet and intermingle with the dynamics associated with the Valley’s small cities, towns and rural areas—vibrant legacies in agriculture and food, industrial innovation (stretching back to the D&H Canal and the invention of the steamboat), the arts and outdoor recreation.