Puerto Rico Democracy Act of 2007
Latest action · Apr 22, 2008 Placed on the Union Calendar, Calendar No. 370.
Progress
Where this bill reached, and when. A stage with no date was not reached; one that failed a vote and later carried shows the date it carried.
- IntroducedFeb 7, 2007
- Passed HouseNot reached
- Passed SenateNot reached
- To the PresidentNot reached
- Became lawNot reached
Summary
Puerto Rico Democracy Act of 2007 - Directs the Puerto Rico State Elections Commission to conduct a plebiscite in Puerto Rico no later than December 31, 2009, giving voters the option to vote to continue Puerto Rico's present territorial status and relationship with the United States or to pursue a constitutionally-viable permanent non-territorial status.
Recognizes the authority of the people of Puerto Rico, if a majority of the ballots favor pursuing a non-territorial status, to: (1) call a Constitutional Convention for the purpose of proposing to the people of Puerto Rico a self-determination option which, if approved in a referendum, would be presented to Congress; or (2) conduct a plebiscite administered by the Commission to consider a self-determination option, with the results presented to Congress.
Prescribes the eligibility requirements for voting in the plebiscite. Requires the Commission to certify plebiscite results to the President and Congress.
Authorizes the Secretary of the Treasury to allocate certain funds for the self-determination process.
Cosponsors 129
Members who signed on, in the order they did. Signatures ran from Feb 7, 2007 to Sep 20, 2007; 82 are original cosponsors, there from the day it was introduced.
| Seat | Cosponsor | Signed on | |
|---|---|---|---|
| R-FL | Adam H. Putnam | Original | Feb 7, 2007 |
| D-WA | Adam Smith | Original | Feb 7, 2007 |
| D-WV | Alan B. Mollohan | Original | Feb 7, 2007 |
| D-MD | Albert Russell Wynn | Original | Feb 7, 2007 |
| D-MS | Bennie G. Thompson | Original | Feb 7, 2007 |
| D-WA | Brian Baird | Original | Feb 7, 2007 |
| R-MI | Candice S. Miller | Original | Feb 7, 2007 |
| D-NY | Carolyn B. Maloney | Original | Feb 7, 2007 |
| D-MI | Carolyn C. Kilpatrick | Original | Feb 7, 2007 |
| D-PA | Chaka Fattah | Original | Feb 7, 2007 |
| R-LA | Charles W. Boustany, Jr. | Original | Feb 7, 2007 |
| R-PA | Charles W. Dent | Original | Feb 7, 2007 |
| R-NJ | Christopher H. Smith | Original | Feb 7, 2007 |
| D-TX | Ciro D. Rodriguez | Original | Feb 7, 2007 |
| D-MN | Collin C. Peterson | Original | Feb 7, 2007 |
Committees 1
Where it was sent and what each committee and subcommittee did with it, in order.
| Chamber | Committee | What it did |
|---|---|---|
| House | Natural Resources Committee | Referred Feb 7, 2007Markup Oct 23, 2007Reported Apr 22, 2008 |
| Fisheries, Wildlife, Oceans, and Insular Affairs Subcommittee | Referred Feb 13, 2007Hearings Apr 25, 2007Discharged Oct 23, 2007 |
Actions 10
Everything that happened, newest first.
- Apr 22, 2008Reported (Amended) by the Committee on Natural Resources. H. Rept. 110-597.
- Apr 22, 2008Placed on the Union Calendar, Calendar No. 370.
- Oct 23, 2007Subcommittee on Insular Affairs Discharged.
- Oct 23, 2007Committee Consideration and Mark-up Session Held.
- Oct 23, 2007Ordered to be Reported (Amended) by Voice Vote.
- Apr 25, 2007Subcommittee Hearings Held.
- Mar 22, 2007Subcommittee Hearings Held.
- Feb 13, 2007Referred to the Subcommittee on Insular Affairs.
- Feb 7, 2007Introduced in House
- Feb 7, 2007Referred to the House Committee on Natural Resources.
In the Congressional Record 1
Days the Record’s own index lists this bill, newest first, with the pages and the members it names. Pages starting H are the House, S the Senate, E Extensions of Remarks.
| Where | In the Record | Members | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Extensions | Debate and remarks E445 | Luis G. Fortuno R-PR | Mar 1, 2007 |
Research
What has been written about this bill: committee reports, cost estimates, the sponsor’s authority statement, printed hearings and the Congressional Research Service’s work.
Committee report
Congressional Budget Office cost estimates 2
- Nov 1, 2007H.R. 900, Puerto Rico Democracy Act of 2007<p>Cost estimate for the bill as ordered reported by the House Committee on Natural Resources on October 23, 2007</p>
- Nov 1, 2007H.R. 900, Puerto Rico Democracy Act of 2007Cost estimate for the bill as ordered reported by the House Committee on Natural Resources on October 23, 2007
Printed hearings 2
Hearings whose printed record names this bill, newest first: hearings on it, and wider hearings where it came up.
| Number | Hearing | Committee | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Serial No. 110-73 | CENSUS DATA: SPECIAL ISSUES RELATED TO U.S. TERRITORIES105 pages | Oversight and Government Reform Committee | May 21, 2008 |
| Serial No. 110-8 | H.R. 900, PUERTO RICO DEMOCRACY ACT OF 2007; AND H.R. 1230, PUERTO RICO SELF-DETERMINATION ACT OF 2007242 pages | Natural Resources Committee | Mar 22, 2007–Apr 25, 2007 |
CRS reports 2
Congressional Research Service work that CRS links to this bill or the law it became, newest first.
Cite it 2
Products on other subjects that cite it, usually among other measures.
| Product | Title | Kind | Published |
|---|---|---|---|
| R42765 | Puerto Rico’s Political Status and the 2012 Plebiscite: Background and Key Questions Archived | Report | Jun 25, 2013 |
| R41113 | Puerto Rican Statehood: Effects on House Apportionment Archived | Report | Mar 16, 2011 |
Related bills 1
Companion bills and other measures the record links to this one.
| Bill | Title | Relationship | Latest action |
|---|---|---|---|
| S 1936 | Puerto Rico Democracy Act of 2007 | Related bill | Aug 2, 2007 |
Titles 3
Every title it has carried, official and short, at each stage.
- Official Title as Introduced
- To provide for a federally sanctioned self-determination process for the people of Puerto Rico.
- Short Titles as Introduced
- Puerto Rico Democracy Act of 2007
- Short Titles as Reported to House
- Puerto Rico Democracy Act of 2007
Subjects
Assigned by the Library of Congress. Policy area: Government Operations and Politics.
- Absentee voting
- Ballots
- Caribbean area
- Congress
- Congressional reporting requirements
- Economics and Public Finance
- Federal-territorial relations
- Government Operations and Politics
- Grants-in-aid
- International Affairs
- National self-determination
- Puerto Rico
- Referendum
- Sovereignty
- Statehood (American politics)
Text 2
Each version as it was printed, newest first.
- Apr 22, 2008Reported in House
- Feb 7, 2007Introduced in House
Everything here is as published by Congress: the summary is the Congressional Research Service's, the action wording is the clerks', and the subjects are the Library of Congress's. How far it got is read from the actions themselves, taking the most recent one of each kind, so a bill that failed a vote and later passed is shown as having passed. Records come from this bill on Congress.gov and govinfo.gov; cost estimates are the Congressional Budget Office's, and the hearings are the printed hearings GovInfo publishes, which can appear months after the hearing.
