For example, Puerto Rico is more economically
others, which face such constraints as
-~-geographic isolation from
mainland United States;
major
world
developed
markets
and
than
the
--~small land areas and populations;
--limited natural resources,
especially petroleum;
--infrastructure and facilities inadequate to support the
expansion of local industry and to attract siqnificant
outside investment;
'
--limited skilled labor
preneurial skills; and
forces
and
managerial
--large public sectors,
which
tend
to
needed for private sector development. |
drain
and
entre-
resources
In addition to these largely indigenous constraints, territory. officials also cite a number of federal constraints to
development,
primarily caused
by
inconsistent
and sometimes
insensitive treatment in formulating and applying federal policies,
laws,
and programs.
PROBLEMS WITH FEDERAL POLICIES
The
economic
United States has no overall strategy for encouraging
development or promoting in a comprehensive and con-
sistent fashion the private sectors in most of its territories.
With the possible exception of an economic program in Puerto
Rico in the late 1940s, known as Operation Bootstrap, no longterm development efforts
were pursued
for
the
territories.
Instead, the federal government has tended to pursue remedies to
individual development problems outside the context of any concerted policy or plan.
Interior officials believe the federal
government ought
not dictate
such
strategy,
but
allow
the
territories to determine their own individual strategies.
Many territorial officials believe the
tinues to pursue a generally inconsistent,
United States conuncoordinated, and
sometimes insensitive policy to the territories.
governor of Guam, in a December 1980 presentation
incoming Reagan Administration, noted that:
lAppendix
IX
provides
a
listing
of
GAO
and
other
The former
before the
reports
and
studies which detail many of the development constraints facing
each territory.
25
9000232