Housing Department Sends Technical Staff to Municipalities to Keep $1.5 Billion in Reconstruction Funds From Expiring Before 2029

Puerto Rico's Housing Department confirmed this week that it is placing technical staff inside municipalities to help them meet federal requirements tied to post-hurricane reconstruction funds, an effort to avoid a repeat of what happened in February, when 33 revitalization projects across 21 municipalities were canceled for lack of available money ¹³. Housing Secretary Luis Augusto Martinez Roman said on Tuesday that he has not identified any critical projects genuinely at risk of going unfinished right now, though he acknowledged one is under close watch ¹.

There is a hard number behind the warning: $12.3 billion in CDBG-DR funds expire on December 31, 2029, while another $8.2 billion in CDBG-MIT mitigation funds carry a May 2033 deadline ². Combined, those programs represent close to $20 billion in federal reconstruction assistance for Puerto Rico following Hurricanes Irma and Maria in 2017, of which 85% is already committed to active projects, according to figures the agency is working with ¹.

The backdrop: from February's cancellations to August's warning

In February, Housing confirmed the cancellation of 33 urban revitalization projects across 21 municipalities, including specialized schools, multi-use centers, theaters, parks and sidewalks, after construction and labor costs outpaced original budgets and federal bureaucratic processes ate up valuable months of available time ³. At that moment, the agency also warned that another 268 projects in development would be evaluated to determine which ones remained viable ³.

Those same 268 projects are exactly what Martinez Roman defended on August 28 during a mayors' convention in Ponce, where he insisted that the water crisis affecting communities like Rio Grande and Canovanas has not delayed reconstruction, and that the City-Rev program still holds $1.298 billion in active work aimed at revitalizing urban centers and community corridors across 78 hurricane-affected municipalities ². Mayors such as Angel Gonzalez Damudt and Julia Nazario Fuentes voiced frustration at that same convention, saying that without reliable water, electricity and roads in their towns, it is hard to justify new housing developments ². In July, thirteen mayors from the Popular Democratic Party traveled to Washington D.C. to raise the fund-expiration problem directly with FEMA, USDA Rural Development and HUD, along with inflation-driven cost increases ⁴.

The numbers you need to know

According to the September 2 announcement, 268 active projects represent over $1.5 billion in combined federal and municipal matching investment ¹. The December 31, 2029 deadline applies to all CDBG-DR funds, which includes the City-Rev program and its $1.298 billion allocation ¹². The most common complaints the agency hears from municipalities center on environmental permitting, extended bidding periods, and compliance with documentation requirements in finance, disbursement and reimbursement ¹. The secretary emphasized that municipalities run the bidding process themselves and get reimbursed by Housing afterward, so correct and timely paperwork is ultimately what protects the money ¹.

What this means for you

If your municipality has a revitalization, affordable housing, community center or infrastructure project funded with CDBG-DR or CDBG-MIT money, now is the time to ask your town hall directly about its status. Projects that have not yet completed the bidding process or are behind on documentation face a higher risk of ending up on a cancellation list, as happened with the 33 projects in February ¹³. This also applies if you work for a nonprofit or community organization administering any of these funds: the technical assistance Housing is offering is meant to help meet federal requirements before time runs out.

How to do it / Checklist

1. Call the CDBG-DR/MIT program line at 1-833-234-2324 or email [email protected] to ask about the status of a specific project in your municipality ¹.
2. Visit recuperacion.pr.gov and look for the City Revitalization Program (City-Rev) section to see the list of eligible municipalities and the breakdown of the $1.298 billion allocation ².
3. If you work for a municipality or subrecipient entity, formally request the technical assistance Housing announced on September 2 to speed up environmental permitting and bidding documentation ¹.
4. Ask your municipal housing or planning office for a written update on whether your community's project is among the 268 active ones or was among those evaluated for possible cancellation.
5. If your project was already canceled, ask directly whether alternate CDBG-MIT funds, valid through May 2033, could be used to revive it.
6. Mark December 31, 2029 on your calendar as the hard deadline for all CDBG-DR-funded work.

What's next

Martinez Roman said the agency maintains active communication with mayors to spot obstacles before they turn into cancellations, and that for now only one project remains under observation for possible non-completion ¹. With the mayors' July trip to Washington already on the table, additional lobbying is expected in the coming months to request flexibility or deadline extensions given rising construction costs, while the clock keeps running toward 2029 for the $12.3 billion in CDBG-DR funds ⁴².

Sources

1. NotiCel - Vivienda ofrece asistencia a los municipios para asegurar el uso de fondos asignados
2. El Nuevo Dia - Secretario de la Vivienda asegura que crisis de agua no ha retrasado la reconstruccion y destaca avances en proyectos municipales
3. El Nuevo Dia - Cancelan 33 proyectos clave de revitalizacion en 21 municipios
4. El Diario NY - Alcaldes de P.R. llevan a Washington problema de expiracion de fondos federales para reconstruccion y alza en costos por inflacion