1 00:00:01,966 --> 00:00:04,533 JUDY WOODRUFF: One aspect of this tax bill that hasn't gotten as much attention, a couple 2 00:00:04,533 --> 00:00:09,333 of provisions that may hit the economy of Puerto Rico, even as the island struggles 3 00:00:09,333 --> 00:00:12,333 to recover fully from Hurricane Maria. 4 00:00:12,333 --> 00:00:14,466 Jeffrey Brown zeros in on those issues. 5 00:00:14,466 --> 00:00:18,733 JEFFREY BROWN: That's because the bill treats Puerto Rico in some ways as a foreign entity, 6 00:00:18,733 --> 00:00:23,733 not a territory of the U.S. Specifically, it includes a higher tax rate on corporate 7 00:00:24,600 --> 00:00:26,700 from intellectual property. 8 00:00:26,700 --> 00:00:30,866 Local officials warn that could drive out drugmakers and other manufacturers. 9 00:00:30,866 --> 00:00:35,166 It comes as a third of Puerto Rico is still without power and in a week when the government 10 00:00:35,166 --> 00:00:40,166 announced it will review all deaths in the aftermath of the hurricane, that after several 11 00:00:42,166 --> 00:00:45,266 independent investigations found the number of deaths was much higher than officially 12 00:00:45,266 --> 00:00:47,266 reported. 13 00:00:47,266 --> 00:00:51,333 Carlos Mercader is a representative on the mainland for governor Ricardo Rossello. 14 00:00:51,966 --> 00:00:52,666 He joins me now. 15 00:00:52,666 --> 00:00:54,200 Welcome to you. 16 00:00:54,200 --> 00:00:55,400 CARLOS MERCADER, Spokesman for Puerto Rico Governor: Thank you. 17 00:00:55,400 --> 00:00:56,666 JEFFREY BROWN: So, start with the tax bill. 18 00:00:56,666 --> 00:00:57,500 Why do you think it would be such a blow? 19 00:00:57,500 --> 00:00:59,000 What are implications? 20 00:00:59,000 --> 00:01:01,966 CARLOS MERCADER: Yes, Puerto Rico, it's a U.S. jurisdiction. 21 00:01:01,966 --> 00:01:06,966 And we were asking Congress to treat Puerto Rico under the current tax bill as a U.S. 22 00:01:07,766 --> 00:01:10,233 jurisdiction. 23 00:01:10,233 --> 00:01:13,766 The fact is that, basically, they are penalizing Puerto Rico with the taxes that they are imposing 24 00:01:14,966 --> 00:01:18,300 on foreign corporations or foreign territories. 25 00:01:18,300 --> 00:01:23,300 What we were saying is that every job in Puerto Rico is a U.S. job. 26 00:01:24,033 --> 00:01:26,133 It's an American job. 27 00:01:26,133 --> 00:01:29,600 And if the tax bill wanted to protect American jobs, they would have had included Puerto 28 00:01:31,566 --> 00:01:36,533 Rico as a U.S. jurisdiction, and they wouldn't be penalizing those jobs in the island with 29 00:01:37,400 --> 00:01:39,400 the taxes that they just passed. 30 00:01:39,400 --> 00:01:43,300 JEFFREY BROWN: So far, we haven't seen any companies threaten to leave. 31 00:01:43,300 --> 00:01:45,866 CARLOS MERCADER: Well, everyone is saying that they are going to be looking at how is 32 00:01:45,866 --> 00:01:50,866 the implementation of this tax bill, and, obviously, remember, we're going to be competing 33 00:01:51,766 --> 00:01:53,000 against foreign jurisdictions. 34 00:01:53,000 --> 00:01:55,133 We're not competing within the U.S. 35 00:01:55,133 --> 00:02:00,166 We're competing against other foreign countries which basically don't have the same set of 36 00:02:02,133 --> 00:02:04,700 rules, the seam set of laws, the same set of regulations that Puerto Rico has. 37 00:02:04,700 --> 00:02:08,400 JEFFREY BROWN: But have any companies told you quietly that they will leave? 38 00:02:08,400 --> 00:02:10,400 They may change -- yes? 39 00:02:10,400 --> 00:02:12,466 CARLOS MERCADER: They mentioned that they're analyzing their situation. 40 00:02:12,466 --> 00:02:16,933 JEFFREY BROWN: Separately, there is this disaster aid idea going through Congress right now, 41 00:02:18,933 --> 00:02:23,500 a lot of money for all the recent disasters, with some of it earmarked for Puerto Rico, 42 00:02:24,733 --> 00:02:27,400 but not nearly as much as you have asked for. 43 00:02:27,400 --> 00:02:28,400 CARLOS MERCADER: No. 44 00:02:28,400 --> 00:02:30,433 Well, yes. 45 00:02:30,433 --> 00:02:34,400 And while we appreciate that Congress right now, it has basically raised the amount of 46 00:02:36,366 --> 00:02:39,866 moneys that are going to be included in that aid package, we're still saying that we need 47 00:02:39,866 --> 00:02:43,333 to tackle the Medicaid cliff that we're facing. 48 00:02:43,333 --> 00:02:48,333 Basically, it's that Puerto Rico, after February of 2018, will have no federal money to run 49 00:02:50,133 --> 00:02:53,000 its Medicaid program. 50 00:02:53,000 --> 00:02:58,000 And we need to basically find the moneys in this supplemental aid package to cover that 51 00:03:00,566 --> 00:03:02,833 cliff that we are going to be facing in February. 52 00:03:02,833 --> 00:03:05,000 JEFFREY BROWN: But those were the kind of problems that were pre-hurricane. 53 00:03:05,000 --> 00:03:07,400 Right? 54 00:03:07,400 --> 00:03:11,000 CARLOS MERCADER: Yes, but obviously those are heightened by the situation of the hurricane. 55 00:03:13,000 --> 00:03:16,300 And what we're asking is the same thing that happened in New Orleans after Katrina, in 56 00:03:16,300 --> 00:03:21,300 which the federal government covered for 24 months the federal and the state share on 57 00:03:22,033 --> 00:03:24,066 the Medicaid front. 58 00:03:24,066 --> 00:03:25,433 JEFFREY BROWN: Let me move to the question of the death count, because that just came 59 00:03:25,433 --> 00:03:27,466 up this week. 60 00:03:27,466 --> 00:03:30,233 The governor, your governor acknowledged this week that the death toll may be higher than 61 00:03:30,233 --> 00:03:32,766 it has been acknowledged so far. 62 00:03:32,766 --> 00:03:36,466 This was after he kind of stuck to that number for a long time. 63 00:03:36,466 --> 00:03:40,833 What has changed, and why did the government stick to the number for so long? 64 00:03:40,833 --> 00:03:45,833 CARLOS MERCADER: Well, the government basically has a process of analyzing, and very fine, 65 00:03:48,666 --> 00:03:53,666 that all of the deaths that happened after a storm directly are indirectly related to 66 00:03:55,133 --> 00:03:57,200 the storm. 67 00:03:57,200 --> 00:04:01,400 So, in a process of seeking transparency, what he has basically asked is that -- one 68 00:04:05,400 --> 00:04:10,333 thing, that they investigate each and every death that occurred after the storm. 69 00:04:10,333 --> 00:04:15,333 And then he commissioned an expert panel, so that they go back and see that process 70 00:04:17,266 --> 00:04:21,100 that the government had when the storm happened to make sure that that's the best process 71 00:04:23,100 --> 00:04:27,733 to really identify the real cause of death of a person that died after the storm. 72 00:04:28,600 --> 00:04:30,566 And this is very important. 73 00:04:30,566 --> 00:04:34,066 Life, it's much more important than numbers. 74 00:04:34,066 --> 00:04:39,066 So, here, every death that happened after the storm needs to have the real information, 75 00:04:40,566 --> 00:04:42,633 what really happened. 76 00:04:42,633 --> 00:04:46,100 JEFFREY BROWN: But, very briefly, I mean, those numbers could be off by hundreds, right? 77 00:04:46,100 --> 00:04:51,100 Will be there -- do you have the efficiency, the funding for a real count now? 78 00:04:51,966 --> 00:04:54,000 CARLOS MERCADER: Yes, yes. 79 00:04:54,000 --> 00:04:58,266 And, actually, the process has always been open, meaning that the governor has always 80 00:05:00,266 --> 00:05:04,500 recognized that, since this was such a big catastrophe, obviously, the number of deaths 81 00:05:05,900 --> 00:05:07,900 could be high, and higher than the number that we have. 82 00:05:07,900 --> 00:05:11,233 The thing is that, with the numbers that are out there right now, that's why he has asked 83 00:05:11,233 --> 00:05:15,866 for each and every death to be investigated - - re-investigated again, calling in doctors, 84 00:05:15,866 --> 00:05:20,866 and just making sure that really the cause of death was really a natural cause of death 85 00:05:22,800 --> 00:05:26,433 or related to the storm, and then, obviously, calling in these experts, so that they can 86 00:05:27,533 --> 00:05:29,033 chip into that government process. 87 00:05:29,033 --> 00:05:29,966 JEFFREY BROWN: All right, Carlos Mercader, thank you very much. 88 00:05:29,966 --> 00:05:30,100 CARLOS MERCADER: Thank you.