Senate of Puerto Rico

Senate of Puerto Rico
25th Senate of Puerto Rico
Type
Type	Upper house of the Legislative Assembly of Puerto Rico
History
Founded	August 13, 1917 (1917-08-13)
Leadership
President	Eduardo Bhatia
Vice President	José Luis Dalmau
Majority Leader	Aníbal José Torres
Majority Whip	Rossana López León
Minority Leader	Larry Seilhamer
Minority Whip	Carmelo Ríos
Structure
Seats	27
Political groups	PDP PNP
Elections
Last election	2012 general election
Meeting place
Capitol of Puerto Rico, San Juan, Puerto Rico
Website
www.senadopr.us

The Senate of Puerto Rico (Spanish: Senado de Puerto Rico) is the upper house of the Legislative Assembly of Puerto Rico, the territorial legislature of Puerto Rico. The Senate is usually composed of 27 senators, representing eight constituent senatorial districts across the commonwealth, with two senators elected per district; an additional eleven senators are elected at-large. Whenever the minority party elects less than 9 senators, the Constitution of Puerto Rico provides for the enlargement of the body through the recognition of "add-on" senators, who become senators "at-large".

The Senate has exclusive power to try and to decide impeachment cases, and in meeting for such purposes, the Senators act in the name of the people of Puerto Rico. The Constitution also establishes that all Secretaries appointed by the Governor to the different executive departments, as well as all judges, require the advice and consent of the Senate. Justices of the Supreme Court can not assume office until after confirmation by the Senate.

The Senate is counterparted by the House of Representatives of Puerto Rico as its lower house.

The Senate, along with its members and staff, are housed in the eastern half of the Capitol Building, the Rafael Martínez Nadal Senate Annex Building, the Luis Muñoz Marín Office Building, the Antonio R. Barceló Building, the Luis A. Ferré Building, the Ramón Mellado Parsons Office Building and the Baltasar Corrada del Rio Office Building.

History

Further information: 1st Puerto Rican Senate

The Senate of Puerto Rico was established in 1917, after the signing of the Jones Act. Signed in March 2, 1917, the act made Puerto Ricans into U.S. citizens and empowered them to have a popularly-elected Senate. This came to amend and improve the Foraker Act, signed in 1900, which granted limited administrative and executive powers to Puerto Ricans.

From 1900 to 1917, Puerto Ricans made several attempts to convince the United States into amending the Foraker Act, so they could elect their own Senate. In February 1914, Resident Commissioner of Puerto Rico, Luis Muñoz Rivera presented legislation in Congress insisting in the creation of a Puerto Rican Senate with more powers. Finally, in January 1916, Representative William Jones presented the Jones Act for Puerto Rico and other territories. It was signed by Woodrow Wilson on March 2, 1917.

In August 13, 1917, the first Senate of Puerto Rico was sworn in. Antonio R. Barceló was chosen as its first President, with Eduardo Georgetti as his Pro tempore. Also, José Muñoz Rivera and Manuel Palacios Salazar were selected as Secretary and Sergeant at Arms respectively. In this first instance, the Senate was composed of 19 members, 14 of which were chosen from each of the seven senatorial districts, and five elected At-large.

Functions

The Senate, along with the House of Representatives, are in charge of the legislative power of the Government of Puerto Rico.

The Senate has exclusive power to try and to decide impeachment cases, and in meeting for such purposes, the Senators act in the name of the people of Puerto Rico. The Constitution also establishes that all Secretaries appointed by the Governor to the different executive departments, as well as all judges, require the advice and consent of the Senate. Justices of the Supreme Court can not assume office until after confirmation by the Senate.

Procedure

Commissions

Main articles: List of Commissions of the Senate of Puerto Rico and legislative commission (Puerto Rico)

• Agriculture
• Banking, Consumer Affairs, and Public Corporations
• Civil Legal
• Commerce and Cooperativism
• Criminal Justice
• Government
• Economic Development and Planning
• Education and Family Matters
• Federal Relations and Informatics
• Health
• Internal Affairs
• Labor, Veterans' Affairs, and Human Resources

• Mountain
• Municipal Matters
• Natural and Environmental Resources
• Public Safety and Judiciary Matters
• Recreation and Sports
• Rules and Calendar
• Social Welfare
• Tourism and Culture
• Treasury
• Urbanism and Infrastructure
• Western Development
• Women's Affairs

Membership

Qualifications

Article III of the Constitution of Puerto Rico states that no person can be a member of the Senate unless he or she:

• is capable of reading and writing in either Spanish or English;
• is a citizen of the United States;
• is a citizen of Puerto Rico;
• has resided in Puerto Rico for at least two years immediately prior to the date of his election or appointment; and,
• is over thirty years of age.

Elections

Elections to the Senate are held every four years, along with the elections for mayors, the House of Representatives, Governor and Resident Commissioner.

To elect the members of the Senate, Puerto Rico is divided into eight senatorial districts:

• San Juan
• Bayamón
• Arecibo
• Mayagüez-Aguadilla
• Ponce
• Guayama
• Humacao
• Carolina

For each one of these districts, the people of Puerto Rico elect two senators. In addition, the people are allowed to vote for one senator at-large of their preference. The eleven at-large Senate candidates with the majority of votes integrate the rest of the Senate.

Term

Senators serve terms of four years each. A member who has been elected, but not yet seated, is called a "senator-elect"; a member who has been appointed to a seat, but not yet seated, is called a "senator-designate". The Puerto Rico Constitution does not provide for term limits and, in fact, one current senator is completing his ninth four-year term as a senator and his tenth as a legislator.

Salary and benefits

As of 2009, the annual salary for full-time work of each senator is $73,775 annually. The President of the Senate receives $110,663 while the Vice-President, Party Leaders, and the presidents of the Government and Treasury Commission receive $84,841 each. Cost-of-living adjustments have been frozen since 2005. Senators are forbidden by law from having outside earned income or their legislative pay is otherwise docked.

Along with their salaries, senators qualify for the same retirement and health benefits of all other PR government employees. They also receive benefits like a car allowance for the official use of their private vehicle, and a per diem allowance for each day of attendance to Senate sessions or committee meetings.

Officers

President of the Senate

Main articles: President of the Senate of Puerto Rico and List of Presidents of the Senate of Puerto Rico

President pro tempore

Main articles: President pro tempore of the Senate of Puerto Rico and List of Presidents pro tempore of the Senate of Puerto Rico

Party leaders

Main articles: Party leaders of the Senate of Puerto Rico and Assistant party leaders of the Senate of Puerto Rico

The "Majority party" is the political party that has a majority of seats. The next-largest party is known as the minority party. The president pro tempore, committee chairs, and some other officials are generally from the majority party.

Whenever the elected members of the minority constitute less than nine members, the Constitution provides for the certification of additional "add-on" minority Senators, who will serve in an at-large capacity. Such was the case after the 2004 elections, when four defeated Popular Democratic Party (PPD) Senate candidates, one at-large, and three district candidates, were added on as at-large Senators, joining the five PPD Senators who had achieved election in their own right. This constitutional guarantee of a minimum legislative minority representation is unique to Puerto Rico among all legislatures under the American flag, incorporating an element of proportionality usually found only in proportional representation bodies.

Each party elects floor leaders denominated "Majority leader" or "Minority leader", accordingly, as well as a "Majority Whip" or a "Minority Whip". Floor leaders act as the party chief spokespeople. The current leaders are Majority Leader Larry Seilhamer, Majority Whip Lucy Arce, Minority Leader José Luis Dalmau and Minority Whip Eduardo Bhatia.

Non-member officers

Main articles: Secretary of the Senate of Puerto Rico and Sergeant-at-Arms of the Senate of Puerto Rico

The Senate is served by several officials who are not members.

The Senate's chief administrative officer is the Secretary of the Senate, who maintains public records, disburses salaries, monitors the acquisition of stationery and supplies, and oversees clerks.

Another official is the Sergeant-at-Arms who, as the Senate's chief law enforcement officer, maintains order and security on the Senate premises.

This officers are elected by the Senate, usually during its inaugural session, immediately after the election of the body's. The current Secretary is Manuel A. Torres while the current Sergeant-at-Arms is William Sánchez Tosado. Torres is the only Sergeant-at-Arms in history to have served under two Senate Presidents.

Current composition

Further information: 24th Senate of Puerto Rico and 25th Senate of Puerto Rico

Other organizations

The Office of Legislative Services was headed in early 2009 by Kevin Rivera, while Eliezer Velázquez currently serves as Superintendent of the Capitol, the first to serve during two four-year terms.

The Puerto Rico Legislative Assembly also receives support services from the Council of State Governments (CSG), CSG's Eastern Regional Conference, the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) and the National Hispanic Caucus of State Legislators (NHCSL).

External links

• The Puerto Rican Senate official site (Spanish)
• The Puerto Rican Senate official site (English)
• The Office of Legislative Services / Oficina de Servicios Legislativos (Spanish)
• The Office of Legislative Services / Oficina de Servicios Legislativos (English)