Puerto Rico Referendum 2012: Governor Submits Status Proposal

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico -- The governor of Puerto Rico submitted legislation Wednesday that calls for creating a two-part referendum to decide whether the U.S. territory should seek to change its political status.

It was unclear when legislators would start debating the 24-page proposal, which was introduced by 38 members of the territorial House of Representatives.

Gov. Luis Fortuno's pro-statehood New Progressive Party has an overwhelming majority in both the territory's House and Senate. The opposition Popular Democratic Party, which supports the current commonwealth status, said it would oppose holding a referendum.

Puerto Rico has long debated its political status, with no majority for any particular status emerging in referendums held in 1967, 1993 and 1998. Any change would require approval by the U.S. Congress and president.

The proposal that Fortuno announced Tuesday calls for a referendum to be held Aug. 12, 2012, asking voters if they want a change in status or prefer to remain a U.S. commonwealth.

If a majority approved seeking a change, a second referendum would be held during the November 2012 general elections. Voters would then choose from three options: statehood, independence or sovereign free association.

The proposal states that the island's Electoral Commission would use a lottery system to decide the order of the questions for both referendums.

Fortuno said he would set aside $3.5 million for the referendum process, with $750,000 slated for education campaigns.

A poll of 1,000 adults conducted by the Ipsos firm and local TV station WAPA said 39 percent of Puerto Ricans would vote to keep the current commonwealth status, followed by 34 percent supporting statehood. A margin of error was not provided when WAPA aired the results Wednesday, but a survey of that size often has an error margin of plus or minus three percentage points.

Comments

[PedroAnimala]

10:39 AM on 10/17/2011

a race that embraces enslavement... where is that Carib blood

[notetojoshua]

11:26 PM on 10/12/2011

(continued from previous post) "chuletas" who want to provide a free place to stay while I'm there, I'd be happy to bring a plastic spear, shake my bonbons and live the "vida bien linda" at Palmas del Mar with you. :)

[notetojoshua]

11:22 PM on 10/12/2011

Dear Mira_Chancleta,
Lol. I love your post, but, as a Nuyorican I've never owned a plastic spear--though, in hindsight, I wish I had thought of owning one so I can smack my annoying little brother around when I was a kid. And everyone in San Juan knows that Ponce is the real capital of Puerto Rico, just ask the people in Mayaguez that hang out in Culebra. I believe (now I may be wrong) J-Lo's bottom is an island unto itself, insured, and struggling with the same status issue as Puerto Rico--currently it's independent (sorry, Marc, no disrespect). West Side Story is a classic--thank you, Rita Moreno. Tainos conquered Central Park decades ago, and, apparently, Tainos are still running around in Puerto Rico, according to DNA testing done by a university professor in Mayaguez a few years ago. And we Nuyoricans don't call the Bronx, "Duh Bronx"; we call it "Boogie Down Bronx", duh. I feel badly about your experience, but many South Americans have complemented my Americanness, which I reciprocate by taking them to our favorite coffee spot, Starbucks. And,finally, I heal from the "COLOSSAL damage" done to my international "Puerto Rican Persona" by vacationing in Puerto Rico every year. So if there are any "chuletas

[notetojoshua]

10:36 PM on 10/12/2011

I wanted to thank everyone, Puerto Rican, Nuyorican and everyone else, for posting such lively and engaging comments about the status of Puerto Rico. Peace, love and fun. La lucha continua!

[Robert Medina]

03:44 PM on 10/10/2011

I thought the free speech was a right, but every time I write any comment about the C
*hur8ch in Puerto Rico, it is redacteed, that,s one, the other I protested the highest p*relate on the island prancing around with a candidate during an election for Governer. I protested against this and got arrested for vocieing my opposition to this action.
So is my right to free expression not OK if I oppose the church?

[forkuu]

12:38 AM on 10/10/2011

i was going to continue answering the many buffoons who have posted misinformation on this blog but i realized that puerto rico needs to focus on educating the rest of its fellow american citizens .
clearly the bigoted and feeding off nonsense and their own prejudice and old stereo types .
this must be done before any further talk of statehood is done.. these ignoramuses have no idea of puerto ricos contribution to the nation in terms of proffessionals in every field , its high rate of productivity and college grads and its proud history of military service.
most of these posters family have only been american for 50 years yet they dare condemn people who have been americans for nearly a hundred. they think its about money but dont realize how much money us corp are making off the island.. education is badly needed so this image is changed... or else the bigots will continue with their nonsense

[notetojoshua]

08:56 PM on 10/10/2011

I agree with your spirit, Forkuu, but disagree with your emphasis. We don't have to educate fellow American citizens; we must, rather, get our own house in order. 1) We must control and define our collective image. 2) We must control and define our collective finances. 3) We must act with power as one interest group around a small, specific set of collective demands. 4) We must set and maintain a cultural standard of excellence, which our children are expected to follow, by which we can all live and enjoy. Then, it will be very hard for anyone outside of the community to make transparently racist or derogatory remarks about us. Think about it. Does anyone readily criticize German engineering? French food? Italian art? English literature? Japanese technology? Cuban medicine? Chinese industry? You may not like some or all of these things, but its universally accepted as models of excellence. We need to do the same. We are beautiful, intelligent, industrious people--with many examples of successful, individual Puerto Ricans--so it's entirely within our reach.

[mira chancleta]

11:24 PM on 10/10/2011

Joshua, Arecibo,

Now MY opionion...having been raised on the Island as a child, educated in the States and having worked in Europe, Latin America and Middle East, I have a VERY informed perspective on what others think of us and let me tell you, it is at best ignorant, and at the least insufferable.

In Europe, many will know that we are the "last Spanish colony" and the ancestral home of J-Lo's ass. "West Side Story" connects the rest of the dots of their "sketchy" profile.

In Latin America there is a VISCERAL dislike for us, by virtue of our "Americanic-ness". They critiicize our cultural schizophrenia rather than see our cultural duality as a plus. Envidia, mijo.

In the Middle East, they virtually know little more than Ricky Martin and livin' la vida loca and shaking his bonbon.

If you want to blame any group, point your plastic Taino spears at the garbage that 60 years of ghetto living has left us with in the form of "nuyoricans", who honestly believe the capitol of Puerto Rico is "Duh Bronx and that the Taino nation will rise again in Central Park.

And while I don't expect we will ever live down THAT social "pila", it is incumbent that Islanders make it a point to never forget the COLOSSAL damage that has been done to the international "Puerto Rican" persona, instead of living "vidas bien linda" at Palmas del Mar and closing out the rest of the world.

[skyhawk66r]

03:37 PM on 10/19/2011

Based on your assessment of their contributions it seems that Ireland should also be a candidate for statehood. Why they extended quasi citizenship back in 1922 is beyond me. I guess they were pandering back then.

[forkuu]

07:40 PM on 10/09/2011

*Puerto Rico ranks 6th in the world when it comes to college graduate
Amri Hernandez-Pellerano is an electronics engineer and scientist who designs, builds and tests the electronics that will regulate the solar array power in order to charge the spacecraft battery and distribute power to the different loads or users inside various spacecraft at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center.
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Dr.. Orlando Figueroa is a mechanical engineer, Aero-Space Technologist and the former Director of Solar System Exploration Division and Mars Exploration at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center. . He is currently the Director, Applied Engineering & Technology at the NASA, Goddard Space Flight Center
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Olga D. González-Sanabria is a scientist and inventor. She is the highest ranking Hispanic at NASA Glenn Research Center, and a member of the Ohio Women's Hall of Fame. As Director of the Engineering and Technical Services, she is responsible for planning and directing a full range of integrated services including engineering, fabrication, testing, facility management and aircraft services for the Glenn Research Center.

Dr.. Miriam Rodon-Naveira, is a scientist and the first Hispanic woman to hold the Deputy Directorship for the Environmental Sciences Division within the National Exposure Research Laboratory.
Otilia I. Rodriguez-Alvarez is an electrical engineer, Aero-Space Technologist and Solar B Mission Manager/Geospace Instrument Systems Manager at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center. she is the Solar B Mission Manager and the Geospace Instrument Systems Manager in the Sun Earth Connection Office




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[JLTorres]

02:33 PM on 10/08/2011

Let's clarify one major point here: Puerto Ricans pay income tax. They do not pay federal taxes. However, the tax rates are really high so that you sometimes end up paying more than you would in the states. I now live in NY and have seen a tax return with a higher salary than in PR, where I had to pay every year with a lower income. The tax burden on the middle class in PR is outrageously high and you get very little for your tax dollar.

[notetojoshua]

07:48 PM on 10/07/2011

I believe that most people want Commonwealth status, but sense the urgency of leveraging the political and economic relations more to our favor. A "new" New Deal will achieve this.

[notetojoshua]

07:34 PM on 10/07/2011

I agree with Victor_Rodriguez and Jibaro_del_Centro. I recall that the ultimate goal of Commonwealth status was to progressively lead Puerto Rico towards political, economic and social independence, under U.S. "tutalage", as articulated by Munos Marin and, even further back, when Puerto Rico was under Spain's control. What has happened, I believe, is that Puerto Rico has developed as far as it can go without further changes to the economic and political relationships between the United States and Puerto Rico. Although the New Deal policies of Luis Munos Marin did, in fact, help the majority of the people on the island (discounting the displacement of farmers and small, rural agriculture), Puerto Rico needs a "new" New Deal, granting a bit more autonomy economically and politically, which may generate new revenues that are not available under the current constraints. As of now, corporate interests continue to benefit from these outdated New Deal arrangements. This why no alternative economic policy or practice has developed. The industrial sector has disappeared or shrank, both in the U.S. And Puerto Rico, resulting in the dependency on the public dole--not because people do not want to work, but because the traditional jobs market does not exist. This is the case in the United States as well.

[JLTorres]

02:20 PM on 10/08/2011

You're exactly right. ELA is outdated and has surpassed its usefulness. Puerto Ricans really need to understand that they must make a decision towards the only two alternatives that will PERMANENTLY resolve this issue. The present situation has created obstacles to economic and social growth. The US needs to step up to its responsibility and develop a long term plan which would support whichever one of those options chosen by Puerto Ricans.

[Robert Medina]

03:26 PM on 10/10/2011

Puerto Ricos is in the situation it finds itself in because of the obfuscation by the right to maintian "La Cultura."

[Victor Rodriguez]

11:00 AM on 10/07/2011

There is a grave factual mistake in this article, in the three referenda held on the future political status of Puerto Rico there were significant majorities for each one of them. In 1967, the present status "Commonwealth" received 60.45 of the vote, statehood received 39% of the vote, pro independence supporters boycotted the referendum. In 1993, Commonwealth won again by a smaller margin, 48.6% against 46.3 by statehood supporters. Independence (with some groups boycotting) 4.4%. In 1998, 50.3% of the voters upset with the partisan definition of the status categories voted "none of the above" with 46.5% voting for statehood. All these polls were ignored by the United States and did not lead to any significant changes as the voters wanted in 1967 and 1993. Many voters want a referendum that will be followed up by action in Washington DC, this has yet to happen.

[Jibaro del Centro]

09:23 AM on 10/07/2011

Puerto Rico is becoming more and more like a mall, USA mega stores everywhere, selling imported junk to the masses.... And most American corporations want to keep that way... so is neither Puerto Ricans nor Congress that have the last word. It is Walgreens, Walmart, Cosco, JP, etc.etc.etc.

[Joshua Helix Guzman]

05:01 AM on 10/07/2011

I'm Puerto Rican and I don't want P.R to become a state. In fact, the vast majority of the people don't want it at all. I have family that has owned land there for generations. If P.R becomes a state, they will be subject to property taxes, which my family cannot afford, thus they'll get kicked off and forced off the land they've owned for decades. Really nice subtle way to rid the poor of the little wealth they have left.

[TomMartin]

05:28 AM on 10/07/2011

The voters can decide what taxes to have, there is no requirement for states to have property taxes. If all states have property taxes, it is just an old tradition. For example in New Hampshire the voters have decided to have no state income tax, maybe even sales tax if I remember correctly. So if PR voters decide to have no property tax but income tax instead, they can do that.

[Jibaro del Centro]

09:15 AM on 10/07/2011

Puerto Rico has property taxes.

[JLTorres]

02:23 PM on 10/08/2011

Puerto Ricans pay property taxes. In San Juan I believe the total property tax is around 8%. If your family is not paying them, you should not declare it publicly. Second, when close to half of the electorate votes for statehood, how can you say that "the vast majority of the people don't want it at all." Let's get our facts straight when discussing this issue. let's be realistic and objective we will never resolve it.

[syllcurie]

03:42 AM on 10/07/2011

Puerto Rico should be given its independence. It is too demographically dissimiliar to the United States not to do that.

[arecibo48]

08:13 AM on 10/07/2011

What about Alaska and Hawaii?

[syllcurie]

03:13 PM on 10/07/2011

Haven't you heard? They're already in the club.

[Robert Medina]

03:30 PM on 10/10/2011

They speak english, Puerto Rico does not.

[mira chancleta]

10:02 AM on 10/07/2011

funny but that thinking didn't stop the European immigrants from taking the land from the Native Americans who were, to say the least, "dissimilar" from them.

[syllcurie]

03:18 PM on 10/07/2011

. . .but the robber barons actually wanted that land.

[quixmar]

03:42 AM on 10/07/2011

Puerto Rico will not become a state. It is a commonwealth, so the residents do not pay federal income taxes, and in return, they cannot vote for president. Do you really think that they want to vote for Democrats so much that they would be willing to pay income tax for it? I doubt it very much, especially since amost 45% of the residents have a government job, and the rest are on one form or anothe of public assistance.

(These figures were told to me by someone who is Puerto Rican at work, so yell at him if you are offended.)

[arecibo48]

08:14 AM on 10/07/2011

I'm going to yell at him and at you.

[Jibaro del Centro]

09:17 AM on 10/07/2011

Puerto Rican pay the highest amount of taxes, including the much maligned cabotaje, of any state or territory in the USA.

[quixmar]

03:09 PM on 10/07/2011

True, but those are PR taxes and do not help fund the mainland. Will you be able to afford another 28% tax on top of what you pay?

[notetojoshua]

10:21 PM on 10/07/2011

What's the cabotaje?