Jesús F. Méndez
Encyclopedia
Jesús F. Méndez-Rodríguez serves as the current Secretary of the Treasury of Puerto Rico. Nominated by Governor
Luis Fortuño
to a recess appointment in January, 2011, when his predecessor, Juan Carlos Puig
, was appointed to become the first Inspector General of Puerto Rico
, he was subsequently confirmed by the Senate of Puerto Rico
and sworn in by Secretary of State
Kenneth McClintock
. Within three days of his swearing in, he began a rare two-day term as Acting Governor when Gov. Fortuño, as well as the next two officers that precede the Secretary of the Treasury in the line of gubernatorial succession, McClintock and Attorney General
Guillermo Somoza
, were simultaneously in Washington DC.
Méndez, a Certified Public Accountant
and a University of Puerto Rico
graduate, previously served as Executive Vice President of the Government Development Bank of Puerto Rico, as well as Executive Director
of the Public Buildings Authority of Puerto Rico, a public corporation that builds, maintains and leases public buildings and many school facilities in Puerto Rico.
The new Treasury Secretary's agenda includes the implementation of the tax reform incorporated in Puerto Rico's new Internal Revenue Code (Law 1 of 2011) and rolling out IVU Lotto, a new free lottery designed to increase sales tax revenues by at least 50%.
Governor
A governor is a governing official, usually the executive of a non-sovereign level of government, ranking under the head of state...
Luis Fortuño
Luis Fortuño
Luis Guillermo Fortuño Burset is the governor of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, a territory of the United States of America. Fortuño is also the president of the New Progressive Party of Puerto Rico , a member of the Republican National Committee, and will be president of the Council of State...
to a recess appointment in January, 2011, when his predecessor, Juan Carlos Puig
Juan Carlos Puig
Juan Carlos Puig was Governor Luis Fortuño's first Secretary of the Treasury of Puerto Rico, sworn in on January 2, 2009 by Secretary of State Kenneth McClintock. As such, Puig was second-in-line of succession of the governorship, should Fortuño, McClintock and the Attorney General not be...
, was appointed to become the first Inspector General of Puerto Rico
Inspector General of Puerto Rico
The Inspector General of Puerto Rico is a new institution created by law during the administration of Governor Luis Fortuño to provide an additional level of accountability in the use of Puerto Rico's public funds....
, he was subsequently confirmed by the Senate of Puerto Rico
Senate of Puerto Rico
The Senate of Puerto Rico is the upper house of the Legislative Assembly of Puerto Rico, the territorial legislature of Puerto Rico. The Senate is composed of 27 senators, representing eight constituent senatorial districts across the commonwealth, with two senators elected per district; an...
and sworn in by Secretary of State
Secretary of State
Secretary of State or State Secretary is a commonly used title for a senior or mid-level post in governments around the world. The role varies between countries, and in some cases there are multiple Secretaries of State in the Government....
Kenneth McClintock
Kenneth McClintock
Kenneth D. McClintock-Hernández is the current Secretary of State of Puerto Rico. Mr. McClintock served as co-chair of Hillary Clinton presidential campaign's National Hispanic Leadership Council in 2008, co-chaired Clinton's successful Puerto Rico primary campaign that year and served as the...
. Within three days of his swearing in, he began a rare two-day term as Acting Governor when Gov. Fortuño, as well as the next two officers that precede the Secretary of the Treasury in the line of gubernatorial succession, McClintock and Attorney General
Attorney General
In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general, or attorney-general, is the main legal advisor to the government, and in some jurisdictions he or she may also have executive responsibility for law enforcement or responsibility for public prosecutions.The term is used to refer to any person...
Guillermo Somoza
Guillermo Somoza
Guillermo Somoza currently serves as Puerto Rico's Attorney General, having been appointed by Governor Luis Fortuño after the resignation of Antonio Sagardía and confirmed by the Puerto Rico Senate in May, 2010. As such, he serves as Acting Governor when both Gov. Fortuño and Secretary of State...
, were simultaneously in Washington DC.
Méndez, a Certified Public Accountant
Certified Public Accountant
Certified Public Accountant is the statutory title of qualified accountants in the United States who have passed the Uniform Certified Public Accountant Examination and have met additional state education and experience requirements for certification as a CPA...
and a University of Puerto Rico
University of Puerto Rico
The University of Puerto Rico is the state university system of Puerto Rico. The system consists of 11 campuses and has approximately 64,511 students and 5,300 faculty members...
graduate, previously served as Executive Vice President of the Government Development Bank of Puerto Rico, as well as Executive Director
Executive director
Executive director is a term sometimes applied to the chief executive officer or managing director of an organization, company, or corporation. It is widely used in North American non-profit organizations, though in recent decades many U.S. nonprofits have adopted the title "President/CEO"...
of the Public Buildings Authority of Puerto Rico, a public corporation that builds, maintains and leases public buildings and many school facilities in Puerto Rico.
The new Treasury Secretary's agenda includes the implementation of the tax reform incorporated in Puerto Rico's new Internal Revenue Code (Law 1 of 2011) and rolling out IVU Lotto, a new free lottery designed to increase sales tax revenues by at least 50%.