Five territories, five sets of rules
Puerto Rico, Guam, the Virgin Islands, the Northern Mariana Islands and American Samoa each live under their own federal law. What they share, and how citizenship differs.
Por qué Washington, D.C., vota por el Presidente y Puerto Rico no
Los residentes de Washington, D.C., votan por el Presidente desde 1964. Los residentes de Puerto Rico, más de cuatro veces esa población, no. Ambos son ciudadanos estadounidenses y ninguno vive en un estado, de modo que la diferencia no es la ciudadanía. Es una enmienda constitucional.
Why Washington, D.C., votes for President and Puerto Rico does not
The District of Columbia has cast three electoral votes since 1964 because of the Twenty-third Amendment. Puerto Rico, with four times the population, has none.
The Northwest Ordinance and the promise of equal footing
In 1787 the United States set out three stages from territory to statehood and promised new states equal footing. Puerto Rico has met every stage but the last.
Puerto Rico’s earned income credit and the federal match since 2021
Since 2021, federal law matches Puerto Rico’s earned income credit up to three times a base amount. How the formula works, and why it differs from the rule in the states.
Section 936: the federal tax break that ended in 2006
Enacted in 1976 and repealed in 1996 with a ten-year phase-out, Section 936 shaped Puerto Rico’s industrial base. What the record shows about its end.
Sánchez Valle and the source of Puerto Rico’s authority
In 2016 the Supreme Court held that Puerto Rico and the United States cannot both prosecute the same conduct, because Puerto Rico’s power ultimately comes from Congress.
The Aurelius case: why the Oversight Board was appointed without Senate confirmation
The First Circuit found the appointments unconstitutional; the Supreme Court reversed in 2020. What the ruling settled about the Board, and what it left to Congress.
Puerto Rico v. Franklin: why Puerto Rico could not restructure its own debts
In 2016 the Supreme Court struck down Puerto Rico’s debt recovery law, and Congress enacted PROMESA seventeen days later. How a 1984 definition decided the island’s options.
Cuatro escaños y seis votos electorales: lo que dice el Censo de 2020 sobre un estado 51
¿Cuántos miembros del Congreso tendría un Estado de Puerto Rico? Dos senadores, como todos los estados. El número de escaños en la Cámara depende de la población y de la fórmula que usa el Congreso para repartir 435 escaños entre los estados.
El Plan Tennessee: cuando los territorios eligieron senadores antes de su admisión
Los territorios no siempre han esperado en silencio por el Congreso. Varios eligieron a sus propios senadores antes de ser admitidos y los enviaron a Washington a pedir la estadidad. Este método se conoce como el Plan Tennessee, por el primer territorio que lo utilizó.
Four seats and six electoral votes: the 2020 Census and a 51st state
NAPREC applied the House apportionment formula to the official 2020 Census figures. Puerto Rico would have had four representatives and six electoral votes.
The Tennessee Plan: when territories elected senators before admission
From Tennessee in 1796 to Alaska in 1956, territories elected delegations and sent them to Washington to ask for statehood. What the plan can and cannot do.
La Ley Foraker de 1900: el inicio del gobierno civil, sin ciudadanía ni voto
El gobierno militar en Puerto Rico terminó el 1 de mayo de 1900, cuando entró en vigor la Ley Foraker. El presidente William McKinley había firmado la ley el 12 de abril de 1900. La ley creó el primer gobierno civil de Puerto Rico bajo la soberanía estadounidense.
The Foraker Act of 1900: civil government without citizenship or a vote
The 1900 law created Puerto Rico’s first civil government under U.S. sovereignty and the office of Resident Commissioner. What it established, and the two features that remain today.
The Treaty of Paris, 1898: the clause that still shapes Puerto Rico’s status
Article IX left the civil rights and political status of Puerto Rico’s people to Congress. Why that sentence from 1898 still decides where the status question must be answered.
The 1952 Constitution: what it changed and what it did not
Puerto Rico’s constitution, approved by its voters and by Congress, was a real step in self-government. Why it did not change the territorial relationship or provide federal representation.
Federal justice in Puerto Rico and life tenure since 1966
Public Law 89-571 gave Puerto Rico’s federal judges the life tenure of Article III. What changed in 1966, what did not, and why the island still has no senators to confirm its judges.
Puerto Rico and its diaspora in the latest Census estimates
3,184,835 people live in Puerto Rico; about 5.96 million people of Puerto Rican origin live in the states. Where the diaspora lives, and why one family can have two sets of rights.
What Puerto Rico already pays in federal taxes
The IRS collected $5.54 billion in gross federal taxes from Puerto Rico in fiscal year 2025. What residents pay, what they generally do not, and how statehood would change the rule.