During its New York City meeting, the Financial Oversight and Management Board of Puerto Rico accepted a revised fiscal plan from the island's Governor. The board rejected an earlier version of the plan last week.

Eric LeCompte is the Executive Director of the religious development group Jubilee USA. He testified to the oversight board and to Congress on the island's debt crisis. LeCompte releases the following statement:

"A deep cut in Puerto Rico's debt is now needed as the oversight board previously noted. Without enough debt relief to bring the debt back to sustainable levels, no fiscal plan can be enough for economic recovery.

"As any fiscal plans are implemented, special attention must be paid to protecting vulnerable communities.

"In the coming weeks if negotiations fail to achieve the needed debt reduction, the oversight board should move forward the official bankruptcy process as outlined by Congress."

Read more about the fiscal plan

The Financial Oversight and Management Board of Puerto Rico rejected Governor Ricardo Rosselló's fiscal plan. Governor Rosselló has until March 11th to submit a revised plan for board approval.

Eric LeCompte is the Executive Director of the religious development group Jubilee USA and he testified to Congress and the oversight board on the island's financial crisis. LeCompte releases the following statement:

"The crisis in Puerto Rico is worsening and we need to protect vulnerable populations.

"The island needs significant debt relief and an economic plan that supports economic growth."

Read the board's rejection

Read the governor's fiscal plan

Read more about the fiscal plan

Eric LeCompte, Executive Director of Jubilee USA was recently featured in Financial Advisor speaking on tax and transparency. Read excerpt below and follow link to full article.

Treasury Eyes Money Laundering In Luxury Real Estate

By: Thomas Kostigen

"The reason title insurance companies are being drawn into regulations is because cash transactions of real estate aren’t monitored. Banks and mortgage companies, however, do have controls for detecting money laundering activities.    

'Luxury real estate transactions can be used to launder money,' affirmed Eric LeCompte, executive director of Jubilee USA, a nonprofit that lobbies for financial reforms, in a prepared statement. Further, such purchases can support tax evasion and drive up real estate prices, he said."

Read more here. 

Eric LeCompte, Executive Director of Jubilee USA was recently featured in The Guardian speaking on tax and transparency. Read excerpt below and follow link to full article.

Donald Trump Lifts Anti-Corruption Rules in 'Gift to the American Oil Lobby'

"Eric LeCompte, executive director of the religious development organization Jubilee USA, said: 'In the short term, we lost a tool that can help track the billions of dollars lost to corruption and tax evasion in the developing world. Now we need to be sure that the new rule that the Securities and Exchange Commission writes will be a rule that can still stop corruption.'

Jubilee USA, which represents over 650 faith groups, fought for the passage of the Cardin-Luger rules in 2010 as a way of tackling bribery and corruption in developing countries that it argues exacerbate conflict and poverty. 'Improving financial transparency and ending global poverty are two sides of the same coin,' said LeCompte."

Read more here. 

Eric LeCompte, Executive Director of Jubilee USA was recently featured in The Guardian speaking on transparency. Read excerpt below and follow link to full article.

Campaigners Fear Trump Resolution Could Hit Coffers of Poor Countries

By: Ben Quinn

“'It really was in many ways a new model for being able to monitor illicit financial flows and why so much revenue was being lost in resource-rich countries in the developing world,' said Eric LeCompte, executive director of the religious development group Jubilee USA and one of the original drafters of the provision.

“'Equatorial Guinea is a place where you can really see the impact of this and why Cardin-Lugar is needed. It’s actually one of the most resource-rich countries in the world. It should be like Singapore in terms of how they have dealt with their resources, yet three-quarters of their population live in poverty.'"

Read more here.

Eric LeCompte, Executive Director of Jubilee USA was recently featured in National Catholic Reporter speaking on transparency. Read excerpt below and follow link to full article.

Trump's 'Forgotten Man' Turns Out to be Goldman Sachs

By: Michael Sean Winters

"'This deeply saddens me and our national religious partners," LeCompte continued. "Our interfaith religious community continues to influence a bipartisan agenda. Unfortunately, I fear‎ we are all facing more obstacles in the short term. The financial issues we work on impact our lives almost as much as the very oxygen we breathe. JubileeUSA's religious leaders have been successful in bridging all political divides we face. Ultimately, I know in the long-term, we will again be successful in overcoming the special-interest groups who are trying to divide us. But I am disappointed by this current setback because we failed by two votes to protect some of the most vulnerable people on our planet. I know we will win, but it will take several more years of focused and consistent work.'"

Read more here. 

Eric LeCompte, Executive Director of Jubilee USA was recently featured in Public Finance International speaking on transparency. Read excerpt below and follow link to full article.

Dodd-Frank Reform Could Increase Corruption in Developing Nations, NGOs Fear

By: Emma Rumney

"Section 1504 enabled citizens and civil society to track whether companies were paying their taxes, paying their workforces properly or paying bribes, said Eric LeCompte, of the Jubilee USA Network, which advocates for a fairer financial system to benefit the world’s poorest.

It had become a 'critical revenue building measure' he told PFI. He added that, while it was still in the early stages of existence, its potential benefits were clear from the success of similar legislation such as the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act."

Read more here.

Eric LeCompte, Executive Director of Jubilee USA was recently featured in Quartz speaking on transparency. Read excerpt below and follow link to full article.

Republicans Want US Oil Companies to Keep their Payments to Corrupt Governments Secret

By: Tim Fernholz

“'Americans are demanding greater transparency in public and private institutions,' Eric LeCompte, director of the faith-based NGO JubileeUSA, wrote in a letter to Congress. 'Now is not the time to roll back measures that fight corruption and promote transparency and good governance.'"

Read more here.

Eric LeCompte, Executive Director of Jubilee USA recently wrote an editorial that was published in The Hill and featured in Millennial Journal speaking on transparency. Read excerpt below and follow link to full article.

Repealing Transparency Measure Hurts the Poor

By: Eric LeCompte

"On behalf of the hundreds of faith communities who supported Section 1504 or the “Cardin-Lugar amendment” to the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform Act, I’d encourage all Members of Congress to consider how weakening 1504 could impact vulnerable populations. Now is the time to hold hearings for Congress, not for hasty actions that prevent members from understanding why a post financial crisis world needs more accountability, not less."

Read more here. 

Eric LeCompte, Executive Director of Jubilee USA was recently featured in teleSUR speaking on Puerto Rico. Read excerpt below and follow link to full article.

Puerto Rico: Colonial Oversight Board Meets as Crisis Deepens

By: Staff

"'The board recognizes that Puerto Rico needs significant debt relief to rebuild its economy,' said Eric LeCompte, executive director of the development organization Jubilee USA, during testimony before the board in November. 'If negotiations with creditors fail to achieve a significant debt reduction, the board needs to authorize the court arbitrated bankruptcy process.'" 

Read more here.

Eric LeCompte, Executive Director of Jubilee USA was recently featured in IPS speaking on tax. Read excerpt below and follow link to full article.

Ecuador Revives Campaign for UN Tax Body

By: Thalif Deen

"Asked about the feasibility of the proposal against Western opposition, Eric LeCompte, Executive Director of the Jubilee USA Network, one of NGOs backing the proposal, told IPS: 'In just a few years we’ve seen almost universal acknowledgment of the problems of tax avoidance, tax evasion and corruption.'

'At the same time we do see clear opposition from many wealthy countries on the idea of a global tax body as part of a solution'.

For this to be successful, he pointed out, there needs to be some re-envisioning of the proposal from the Addis Ababa conference. He said the G77 could also engage in bilateral agreements to move this forward.

'While the United Nations tries to operate by consensus, we could also see countries force a vote at the United Nations. While a vote would likely be successful under this method, without some re-envisioning of the concept, we’d likely see many wealthy countries refuse to participate in the process,' he warned.

Asked if Ecuador will be able to pull it off?, LeCompte told IPS: 'Ecuador seems to be operating out of a G77 consensus on these issues. Since the Financing for Development meetings in Addis Ababa, we’ve seen G77 countries like Ecuador strengthen their support for these efforts.'"

Read more here.

Eric LeCompte, Executive Director of Jubilee USA was recently featured in Devex speaking on the Trans-Pacific Partnership. Read excerpt below and follow link to full article.

Could US Withdrawal from TPP have a Silver Lining for Developing Countries?

By: Lisa Cornish

"European ties may also encourage the TPP to tackle concerns flagged by NGOs during negotiations. Eric LeCompte, executive director of Jubilee USA, told Devex the rising cost of pharmaceuticals under the TPP would negatively impact health care to developing countries, for example."

Read more here.