Treasury to disburse $50M to P.R. employers affected by hurricanes
The Puerto Rico Treasury Department will disburse an additional $50 million to benefit employers affected by Hurricanes Irma and María, Gov. Ricardo Rosselló announced.
This fifth disbursement will benefit 1,621 employers. With this, Treasury will have allocated $150 million in assistance to local businesses. Four previous disbursements totaling $100 million benefited some 4,342 employers who filed claims for damages.
“More than 5,000 employers have benefited from thousands of dollars thanks to the federal government, getting an economic boost following the impact of Hurricanes Irma and María. Our public policy is to continue encouraging and identifying resources to help small and medium businesses,” said Rosselló.
Meanwhile, Treasury Secretary Teresita Fuentes, said “with this economic support, our entrepreneurs can recover the extra costs incurred due to the passage of two hurricanes, benefiting those who were committed to their employees.”
“We at Treasury are committed to providing all the guidance on the benefit,” she said.
Fuentes said employers may receive up to $1,920 per eligible employee. She added that the eligibility period for the benefit begins on the date on which the business was shut down after Hurricanes Irma or María, and ends on the date on which the business resumed significant operations or Dec, 31, 2017, whichever comes first.
Moreover, the official announced the disbursement of an additional $4.5 million in refunds to individuals and corporate related to income tax returns for the 2017 cycle. The amount broke down to $1.9 million for individuals and $2.6 million corporations.
