Puerto Rico Gov. Alejandro García Padilla nominated a new leader for the Puerto Rico Highways and Transportation Authority, a public corporation with substantial debt and tenuous finances.
García Padilla said Saturday the current executive director Javier Ramos Hernández had submitted his resignation effective Jan. 20. In his place the governor nominated Carmen Villar Prados.
As of July, the PRHTA had $6.8 billion of debt, including $2 billion owed to the Government Development Bank of Puerto Rico. The authority is among the public corporations that got the right to restructure debts under a law that passed in June.
The authority's board recommended Villar Prados, who has been Lieutenant Governor since 2013 in the area of Infrastructure, Engineering and Planning, to replace Ramos Hernández. In this role she has worked in the governor's office of Fortaleza. Among other things she has monitored the PRHTA.
Villar Prados has a bachelor of science in civil engineering. Before entering the government she worked for Gilbane Building Company, overseeing several major construction projects.
"The engineer Carmen Villar is a highly qualified to lead the Highways and Transportation Authority, especially while it faces economic difficulties," García Padilla. "While at Fortaleza, she offered her advice on important issues for the country, such as infrastructure and the environment. I have no doubt that under her leadership the Highways Authority will stay afloat."
The governor is preparing a bill to support the PRHTA through an oil tax hike, according to a source close to the governor.
The legislature passed a hike in early December but the governor did not sign it due to concerns he had with the restrictions in the bill. He is hoping to submit an improved bill this week.
