The Puerto Rico-Connecticut Trade Commission is spearheading an effort to mobilize technical and financial resources from that state, where the 8% of the population is Puerto Rican (over 300,000 residents), to the island.
The initiative arose in response to the drinking water crisis caused, in part, by the extreme drought affecting the island and the deterioration of infrastructure. Reservoir levels in Puerto Rico continue to drop due to the lack of rain, and customers served by the Carraízo reservoir are currently under a water rationing plan that began on August 7.
The plan calls for coordinating the involvement of engineers specializing in water systems, providing equipment, and securing financial support through a nonprofit organization based in Connecticut. However, the amount of the aid has not yet been determined, nor has it been determined when the funds might reach Puerto Rico.
“We are ready to help in any way we can from Connecticut and offer that service to our fellow Puerto Ricans on the island,” Christopher Rosario, a Puerto Rican state representative for the Bridgeport district and chairman of the committee, told El Nuevo Día.
According to the Democratic lawmaker, the initiative has garnered the interest of Aquarion Water Authority (AWA) and the Regional Water Authority (RWA), two entities that, by the end of the year, will operate under a single structure after the latter completed its acquisition of Aquarion in June for $2.4 billion.
Although the committee began talks with Aquarion, the company put the lawmakers in touch with RWA’s management after the acquisition was finalized.
“Essentially, we started out working with two companies, but eventually it will be one large company,” Rosario explained.
The talks aim to have the company make a financial contribution to a nonprofit organization that would provide aid in Puerto Rico, while also making its technical expertise available to the island.“We have experts here who specialize in fixing these kinds of problems, and we’d like to send them to Puerto Rico to see what they can do, assess the situation, and perhaps help in ways that aren’t currently possible there,” Rosario said.
The representative added that the Metropolitan District Commission (MDC), which manages water and sewer services in the Hartford area—the state capital, where 44% of the residents are Puerto Rican—is also considering joining the effort.
The outreach to that organization was carried out with the assistance of the Puerto Rican state representative James “Jimmy” Sánchez. Details will be announced at a press conference scheduled for September 2, prior to the second official meeting of the Puerto Rico-Connecticut Trade Commission.
Rosario announced that the governor of Connecticut, Democrat Ned Lamont; representatives from Aquarion, RWA, and MDC; and officials from the Connecticut Department of Military Affairs—the agency that administers the National Guard, the Air National Guard, and the state militia—would be participating.
Also expected to attend is Luke Bronin, former mayor of Hartford and Democratic candidate for Congress for Connecticut’s 1st District. Bronin defeated Representative John Larson in the August 11 primary.
“Before he left on vacation, after elementary school, he called me and asked what he could do to help. He hasn’t even been elected to Congress yet, and he’s already fighting for Puerto Rico,” said Rosario.
Rosario acknowledged that the amount of the financial contribution, which equipment would be available, and how the deployment of specialists would be coordinated have yet to be determined. Any technical intervention would also require the approval and cooperation of the government of Puerto Rico and the entities responsible for the water system.
In that regard, since the commission’s creation, the legislator from the New Progressive Party (PNP) Eddie Charbonier Chinea told El Nuevo Día that he was working closely with representatives in Connecticut.
Rosario, for his part, said he had discussed the situation with Lamont, who supported Connecticut making resources available to the island.
“Every time I talk to him, he not only asks me what’s going on in my district in Connecticut, but also what he can do to help Puerto Rico,” he said.
It is worth noting that the mother of Lamont, the governor of Connecticut, was born in Puerto Rico. About 12 seats in the Legislature are held by Puerto Ricans.
Previously, committee members and lawmakers from the Connecticut Puerto Rican and Latino Caucus, chaired by Representative Guillerma “Minnie” González, asked the state government to evaluate the possibility of deploying National Guard engineers to Puerto Rico.
Rosario noted, however, that subsequent discussions indicated that the situation requires more than just assistance with water distribution, due to structural and operational problems with the system operated by Aqueduct and Sewer Authority (AAA).
Rosario stated that the local water emergency temporarily sidelined other work being carried out by the Commercial Commission. “Everything else has taken a back seat,” he acknowledged.
“We have received many calls from residents—not only here in Connecticut, but also from people on the island, family members, and others affected by the water shortage,” the official noted.
He even said that some people have temporarily traveled from Puerto Rico to Connecticut in search of stability while service returns to normal.
“This is the time to lead, and whatever we can do as a diaspora to help, we will do,” he said.
The Puerto Rico-Connecticut Trade Commission was established by Lamont through legislation signed on June 5, 2025, with the aim of strengthening economic, trade, educational, and cultural ties between the two jurisdictions.
Connecticut is home to the largest Puerto Rican community in the United States relative to its total population, which is 3.7 million people. A study estimated that Puerto Ricans contribute about $11,000 millones to the state’s economy.
The commission members divided their work into subcommittees on Economy and Labor, Tourism, Housing, Education, and Health. A proposal was also made to create a group on Energy, taking into account opportunities for collaboration with Puerto Rico.
