The Office of the Comptroller of Puerto Rico issues a qualified opinion on the fiscal operations of the Mayagüez Ports Commission. A qualified opinion is issued when the noncompliances individually or together are significant but not pervasive.
The Report reveals that $138,000 was paid to the members of the Board of the Mayagüez Ports Commission in stipends or differentials not authorized by regulation. Our examination revealed that the Permanent Regulation approved in 2007 does not contemplate the payment of differentials or stipends to the members of the Board, for which it recommends that its president determine whether it is appropriate to recover the monies paid to the commissioners.
The one-finding audit comments that the Mayagüez Ports Commission maintains a claim against the company that administers and develops the Port for $191,050 before the Federal Bankruptcy Court. The dispute, which began in 2009 over the interpretation of the clause related to the lease canon, was resolved with the judgment of the Court of First Instance, which ruled that the contractor owed that amount to the Commission. After the contractor filed for bankruptcy in 2015, the Commission filed a proof of claim in the Court to make known the contractor's debt with the Commission.
The Commission maintains accumulated deficits in the Operational Fund of $74,581, $196,515, $103,343, and $6,818 for fiscal years 2013 to 2016 respectively. Operating with a deficit is harmful to the Commission and does not foster a policy of savings and expense reduction.
The Report covers the period from August 13, 2013 to June 30, 2016.
See Audit Report M-19-07.
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