Team AOC - Puerto Rico Status Act: Explained!

Thursday was a historic day, Robert: the Puerto Rico Status Act passed the House.

For the first time in U.S. history, the House of Representatives has acknowledged that the United States is a colonizing force and that Puerto Rico is, in fact, an extended colony. 

In this email, we’ll walk you through some of the bill’s contents. While the bill does not address all critical issues for Puerto Ricans, it plants seeds for the path ahead in the process of decolonization for Puerto Rico.

Decolonization does not happen with one vote — it is a profound and wide-reaching political, cultural, economic, and psychological endeavor. Alexandria and our team would like to recognize the people of Hawaii, the U.S. Virgin Islands, American Samoa, Guam, and the Northern Mariana Islands, and all indigenous people and descendants of the enslaved. 

We stand together 

Team AOC 

Explainer: Puerto Rico Status Act

Puerto Rico’s current status as an unincorporated territory of the U.S. limits the island’s full political, economic, and social development. 

First, a little background…

The U.S. has controlled Puerto Rico since 1898, after defeating Spain in the Spanish-American War, but Puerto Ricans did not become American citizens until 1917. 

They can be drafted into the military, pay payroll taxes, and help fund programs like Medicaid and SNAP, but Puerto Ricans are unable to vote for president, do not have a voting representative in Congress, and have almost no access to federal safety net programs, even though more than 40% of the island lives in poverty. 

While many Puerto Ricans agree that they would like more say over the status of the island’s relationship to the U.S., the reality is that which kind of status – whether that’s statehood, independence, or sovereignty in free association with the U.S. – is a controversial topic amongst its residents.

That’s where the Puerto Rico Status Act comes in… 

Alexandria has prioritized developing a transparent, inclusive process for Puerto Ricans to choose how to move forward with their relationship to the U.S., which is why she was proud to co-sponsor the Puerto Rico Self-Determination Act alongside Rep. Nydia Velazquez in March 2021. Key elements of that bill were incorporated into the Puerto Rico Status Act, including:

 A binding plebiscite. Puerto Ricans have voted for changes in status in the past, but all were non-binding resolutions, and saw no real changes to the island’s relationship to the U.S. The PR Status Act would ensure implementation of the status voted on by the majority (51%) of Puerto Rico’s population.

 Federally funded, objective educational materials about ALL THREE status options will be shared in advance of the vote in both Spanish and English, so that Puerto Ricans can fully assess their options for the future.

 Ends the option to continue the island’s current territorial status. For the first time, Puerto Ricans will choose between three non-territorial status options: statehood, independence, and sovereignty with free association to the U.S. 

Other key victories in the bill include protections for Puerto Ricans from being stripped of their U.S. citizenship – no matter the outcome of the vote – and 10 years of financial assistance to the island if it chooses independence. 

But this bill is just a first step.

While the Puerto Rico Status Act does not address other key factors impacting Puerto Ricans' quality of life — including problems with the energy grid, PROMESA, and Act 20 — it does represent a giant step forward for bringing justice to the colonized people of Puerto Rico. 

We will stand with the organizers in Puerto Rico as they continue to demand improvements for their community. Pa’lante!