The House has passed legislation that would let voters in Puerto Rico determine the island territory’s future relationship with the United States, including whether to become a state.
The measure has no apparent path to passage in the Senate, however, before Congress adjourns later this month.
“Today for the first time in our nation’s history, the United States will acknowledge its role as a colonizing force, and Puerto Rico’s status as an extended colony,” Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., said on the House floor before the vote Thursday. “Never before have terms for independence and free association been so clearly defined, including ramifications for citizenship. This bill excludes the current, unsustainable colonial status.”
Ocasio-Cortez, one of the members of Puerto Rican heritage to speak in support of the bill, also noted the measure’s broad support among parties in Puerto Rico.
The House passed the legislation 233-191, with 16 Republicans supporting it. Ocasio-Cortez was in the presiding officer’s chair when the roll call ended and announced the vote.
“It is going to be a historic day because this is going to set a precedent that we have not had until now,” Puerto Rico Gov. Pedro Pierluisi said in a statement ahead of the vote. “In this case, the House of Representatives of the United States is going to be endorsing a plebiscite which is not going to include the current status, and, at the request of the House of Representatives, we are going to have three non-territorial, non-colonial options that are statehood, independence and free association.”
The bill proposes three choices for a plebiscite, and it would direct the president to take action to help implement whatever option secures a majority vote in support, either during a regular election or a runoff. In effect, Puerto Rico could become a state or move toward independence without further action by Congress if the measure became law.
“As a non-Puerto Rican, I cannot claim the experience of Puerto Ricans who have fought for equality and autonomy for their island for so many years. However, as somebody of Mexican descent and indigenous ancestry, I feel a sense of, a sense of solidarity with the people of Puerto Rico and that enduring struggle,” Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva of Arizona, who chairs the Natural Resources Committee, said on the House floor.
House Majority Leader Steny H. Hoyer, D-Md., said the third option for a compact of free association would require mutual action between Puerto Rico and the United States.
“This has been a long and tortuous path, because the disagreements about how we get to where we want to get are so difficult,” Hoyer said. “Chairman Grijalva, you deserve great praise from all of us for your patience, for your knowledge, for your wisdom, for your role that you have played in trying to bring this to a head.”
Resident Commissioner Jenniffer Gonzalez-Colon, a Republican, has championed the legislation despite more general opposition from GOP colleagues on the mainland.
“I represent 3.2 million American citizens on the island that are always asking not to be treated as second-class citizens, but as Americans,” she said when the Rules Committee took up the measure Wednesday night. “This bill is to allow the people of Puerto Rico to express themselves with non-territorial, non-colonial options.”
President Joe Biden’s administration expressed support for the bill ahead of the vote, although the Office of Management and Budget offered a qualification about the bill language needing additional work.
“H.R. 8393 would take a historic step towards righting this wrong by establishing a process to ascertain the will of the voters of Puerto Rico regarding three constitutional options for non-territorial status: Statehood, Independence, and Sovereignty in Free Association with the United States,” said the statement of administration policy. “The Administration looks forward to working with Congress throughout the legislative process to ensure that this bill comports with our Nation’s democratic principles.”
Republicans withholding their support for the measure have cited complications with transferring military bases back to the United States should the island become sovereign or independent, and the potential burden on taxpayers to pay back relief funds given to the island during natural disasters. They have also taken issue with the lack of a fiscal impact score from the Congressional Budget Office.
“The bill fails to talk about and address U.S. sovereignty, U.S. elections, government benefits, taxation, immigration and a myriad of other important issues,” said Rep. Cliff Bentz, R-Ore. “And this is not to suggest that Puerto Rico at some point shouldn’t be a state. The question is how do we go about doing it, because if we’re going to add two more senators and a number of other representatives, if we’re going to upset the structure of our nation with this addition, why aren’t we doing the proper study to get it right?”
Nine Republicans returning for the next Congress were among the 16 voting in favor of the bill, including Reps. Don Bacon of Nebraska, Brian Fitzpatrick and Lloyd K. Smucker of Pennsylvania, Andrew Garbarino of New York, Bill Huizenga of Michigan, David Joyce of Ohio, Dan Newhouse of Washington, and Bill Posey and Maria Elvira Salazar of Florida.
K. Sophie Will contributed to this report.
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