San Juan- The Financial Oversight and Management Board (FOMB) formally notified Governor Jenniffer González Colón on May 31, 2026, that the Puerto Rico Highways and Transportation Authority’s (HTA) proposed fiscal year 2027 budget does not comply with the agency’s Certified 2025 Fiscal Plan, invoking Section 202(c)(1)(B) of PROMESA.
The letter, signed by Executive Director Robert F. Mujica Jr., flags more than $180 million in questioned budget items and gives HTA until June 8, 2026 to submit a revised budget.
Among the key findings: HTA proposes withdrawing approximately $54.9 million from the P3 Capital Investment Fund — known as the “P3 Surplus” — some $18.8 million above the approved revenue forecast. More striking, HTA’s own internal documents reflect a different assumption of $48.7 million, creating an unexplained $6.2 million discrepancy between the official proposal and the agency’s own budget model.
The Oversight Board also rejects $68.5 million in Commonwealth capital funds tied to interagency agreements (MOUs) — including landslide projects, DTOP transfers, and Calle Loíza-related accounts — for lack of sufficient documentation. On top of that, it flags $80.6 million in non-federal construction costs as inflated relative to HTA’s own historical execution, which did not exceed approximately $52 million annually in FY2025 and FY2026.
The backdrop matters. HTA completed its Title III debt restructuring under PROMESA in December 2022, shedding roughly $3 billion in obligations. It has since operated under a P3 framework with Metropistas — a 40-year, $2.85 billion contract to operate four toll highways — which generates the very P3 Surplus funds now under dispute.
The Oversight Board’s core concern is structural: HTA continues to rely on non-recurring sources to sustain spending levels its recurring revenue base cannot support. “P3 Surplus funds are being used as a mechanism to preserve incremental expenditure authority and budgetary flexibility rather than to fund clearly defined, prioritized, and executable capital investment needs,” the letter states.
The notice comes amid a broader budget standoff. The Oversight Board has issued non-compliance warnings to multiple agencies this year and warned in May that the FY2027 central government budget could threaten essential services in health, education, and public safety.
The deadline is Monday, June 8.
