Statistics Institute launches new version of its Internet portal

PRESS RELEASE
DR. MARIO MARAZZI‐SANTIAGO
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF THE INSTITUTE OF STATISTICS MEETS AND RESUMES PENDING WORK

The meeting took place after the San Juan Court of First Instance issued a dismissal
and desist from the Governor to stop political intervention in it

San Juan, PR, March 13, 2018 — The Board of Directors of the Institute of Statistics met today and resumed its pending work, after 7 months without being able to convene as a result of the
controversy arose as to its composition, after a series of dismissals and appointments made last July, which were declared null and void by the San Juan Court of First Instance last week.

The following issues were addressed during the meeting:

1. A series of minutes from past meetings that were pending were approved.
2. It was approved to hold an extraordinary meeting to address technical issues related to the statistics of deaths due to hurricanes Irma and María
3. Resolution No. 2018-01 was approved to interpret the scope of administrative and fiscal autonomy granted to the Institute of Statistics by its Organic Law, in the light of Law No. 8-2017, also known as the Single Employer Act.
4. Resolution No. 2018-02 was approved to interpret the scope of administrative and fiscal autonomy granted to the Institute of Statistics by its Organic Law, in the light of Law No. 2-2017, also known as the Financial Advisory Authority and Tax Agency Act.
5. It was approved as an institutional position to favor the approval of P. de la C. 1476, who proposes to amend the Statistics Institute Act to provide that no public official can be part of the Board, and to establish restrictions applicable to former officials who wish to be members of the Board. In addition, some additional technical recommendations to the project were approved.
6. Several extensions were approved that the agencies had requested for violating the Institute's Information Request Orders related to the Interagency Validation Portal Act for the Granting of Incentives for Economic Development.
7. The Institute's Implementation Plan and Operational Budget for fiscal year 2017-18 were approved.
8. It was agreed to request a meeting with the Governor of Puerto Rico in order to be able to discuss pending issues related to the future of the Institute and the best ways in which the Institute can collaborate with the management of the Government for the benefit of the public interest.

“We have been able to restart the quasi-legislative and quasi-judicial functions exercised by this Board of Directors in search of promoting changes to the Government's data collection and statistics systems so that they are complete, reliable and quickly and universally accessible. For example, we were able to close a complaint from last year that helped the Graduate School of Planning of the University of Puerto Rico to maintain its accreditation with the American Planning Association for non-compliance with an information request order from the Institute for Statistics of the Examination Board of Professional Planners,” said Dr. Mario Marazzi-Santiago, executive director of the Institute.

For his part, Dr. Antonio J. Fernós Sagebién, president of the Institute's Board of Directors, said: “We have major initiatives that are essential for Puerto Rico to recover and to have reliable and accessible statistics. To lift Puerto Rico up, we need to join forces; it can't be done any other way. Therefore, we have requested a meeting with the Governor to align our work agendas, putting the benefit of the public interest first.”

The meeting was attended by Dr. Antonio J. Fernós Sagebién, Dr. Ana L. Dávila, Dr. Sonia Balet, Dr. Marta Alvarez, Lcdo. Alex López Echegaray and Mr. Arnaldo Cruz.

The Puerto Rico Statistics Institute is an autonomous governmental entity responsible for coordinating the Government's statistical production service to ensure that the data collection and statistics systems, on which public policies are based, are complete, reliable, and have quick and universal access. The Institute has in its inventory, accessible through https://estadisticas.pr.gov, over 300 statistical products. In addition, it is a custodian and provides access to over 100 data sets or “data sets” through https://data.pr.gov and to over 40 tables and more than 6 thousand indicators through: https://indicadores.pr.

For more information you can visit our website: https://estadisticas.pr.gov. In addition, you can follow us on social networks through Facebook (estadisticas.pr), Twitter (@EstadisticasPR) and LinkedIn (Institute of Statistics of Puerto Rico) accounts.

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PRESS RELEASE June 26th, 2018
DR. MARIO MARAZZI-SANTIAGO
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

AUTHORIZED STATEMENTS BY THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF THE INSTITUTE OF STATISTICS REGARDING THE APPROVAL OF P. C. 1403 BY THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY OF PUERTO RICO

We are waiting to hear the results of the conference committees so that we can know what will be approved. However, we take the liberty of making some statements in general terms about our feelings.

We are struck by the lack of legislation to advance the transparency agenda in this session. Added to that is the possible approval of P. de la C. 1403 with which, far from promoting greater transparency, the Legislative Assembly would seem to take several steps backwards on that important agenda.

In recent days, we have seen how municipal governments, on their own, have begun to take steps towards greater transparency in the way they manage public funds. It leaves deafening silence the months and years that the central government has ignored the possibility of participating free of charge in the same Puerto Rico Financial Transparency System, which municipal governments are now beginning to adopt.

In the same way, even though there is a virtual global scientific consensus in favor of allowing the Institute of Statistics to continue to carry out its functions independently, the Government also seems to ignore it.

On this occasion, not only in Puerto Rico but in the world, they are observing the steps taken by the Legislative Assembly in the coming days with respect to P. de la C. 1403. With the recent experience of the incomplete count of deaths caused by Hurricane Maria, the Government's commitment to transparency will once again be called into question with the approval of P. de la C. 1403.

It's important for me to stress that:

1. This issue has nothing to do with this server but with the defense of the institution's independence. If the Governor were available for dialogue and to desist from his intention to amend the Institute's Organic Law, this servant would leave the Executive Directorate of the Institute immediately.
2. The Institute has 2 administrative jobs. There is no way to achieve savings by merging administrative aspects, when the Institute maintains such a small administrative workforce.
3. There is no political partisanship in the Institute. For years, the Board of Directors with members of different ideologies have been able to work together, just like the professionals they are. This year, for reasons beyond our control, an attempt was made for the first time to introduce partisan politics into the Institute, but so far the Institute has successfully rejected this attempt.
4. In these 10 years, the Institute has achieved significant improvements in Puerto Rico's statistics, despite the obstacles presented by the government apparatus and partisan politics. The reorganization of the Institute will take us back to the last century, and there will be little that the federal government can do to remedy the situation.
5. Thousands of people, 47 world-renowned scientific organizations, 16 congressmen, the Private Sector Coalition, the Transparency Network, the National Academy for the Advancement of the Sciences, the American Statistical Association, the Royal Statistical Society and the Fiscal Oversight Board, among many others, have recommended that the Institute be maintained as an autonomous entity of the Government of Puerto Rico and independent, free from political intervention.

The approval of P. de la C. 1403 is a serious mistake. The Legislative Assembly should not participate in eliminating what it once created to protect the same legislators from being manipulated with erroneous or incomplete information that the Executive Branch controls to ensure that the measures that the current Government wishes are approved. Legislators have the floor.

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Press Contact: Sandra Morales Blanes (787) 688-0401

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