HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

The President of the House of Representatives of Puerto Rico —commonly called the Speaker of the House ( es, Presidente de la Cámara de Representantes)— is the highest-ranking officer and the presiding officer of the
House of Representatives of Puerto Rico The House of Representatives of Puerto Rico ( es, Cámara de Representantes de Puerto Rico) is the lower house of the Legislative Assembly of Puerto Rico, the bicameral territorial legislature of Puerto Rico. The House, together with the Se ...
. The Speaker has voting powers as it is elected amongst the own members of the House as established by Article III of the
Constitution of Puerto Rico The Constitution of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, Constitución del Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico) is the controlling government document of Puerto Rico. It is composed of nine articles detailing the structure of the government ...
. The Constitution, however, does not establish its functions and since the House is the only body authorized by the Constitution to regulate its own internal affairs, the functions of the Speaker vary from session to session—save being called "Speaker" as the Constitution establishes. The Speaker is typically elected during the House inaugural session.R. de la C. 126 del 2013
"Reglamento de la Cámara de Representantes del Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico"
(in Spanish)
House of Representatives of Puerto Rico The House of Representatives of Puerto Rico ( es, Cámara de Representantes de Puerto Rico) is the lower house of the Legislative Assembly of Puerto Rico, the bicameral territorial legislature of Puerto Rico. The House, together with the Se ...
(January 15, 2013). Retrieved on August 9, 2013.
When absent, the Speaker is substituted by the
Speaker pro tempore A president pro tempore or speaker pro tempore is a constitutionally recognized officer of a legislative body who presides over the chamber in the absence of the normal presiding officer. The phrase ''pro tempore'' is Latin "for the time being". ...
. Its counterpart in the
Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...
is the
President of the Senate President of the Senate is a title often given to the presiding officer of a senate. It corresponds to the speaker in some other assemblies. The senate president often ranks high in a jurisdiction's succession for its top executive office: for ex ...
. The current Speaker is Tatito Hernandez, representative
at-large At large (''before a noun'': at-large) is a description for members of a governing body who are elected or appointed to represent a whole membership or population (notably a city, county, state, province, nation, club or association), rather than ...
from the Popular Democratic Party


Background

The Speaker traces its history back to more than years ago when the
Foraker Act The Foraker Act, , officially known as the Organic Act of 1900, is a United States federal law that established civilian (albeit limited popular) government on the island of Puerto Rico, which had recently become a possession of the United State ...
formally established the post on April 12, 1900. Several laws eventually superseded said act, and the post was eventually established by the
Constitution of Puerto Rico The Constitution of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, Constitución del Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico) is the controlling government document of Puerto Rico. It is composed of nine articles detailing the structure of the government ...
, specifically Article III, which establishes that, " ..he House of Representatives hall electa Speaker from among tsmembers." The Constitution, however, does not establish what a "Speaker" is nor what its function should be. Internal rules adopted by the House through a simple resolution establish its definition, functions, responsibilities, and legal scope.


Functions

Typically the Speaker is responsible for the observance and compliance of the House internal rules. He also typically:


Speakers


Speakers ''pro tempore''

The Vice President of the House of Representatives of Puerto Rico (commonly called the Speaker ''pro tempore'') is the second highest-ranking officer of the
House of Representatives of Puerto Rico The House of Representatives of Puerto Rico ( es, Cámara de Representantes de Puerto Rico) is the lower house of the Legislative Assembly of Puerto Rico, the bicameral territorial legislature of Puerto Rico. The House, together with the Se ...
. The Speaker ''pro tempore'' substitutes the Speaker of the House in his absence. The Speaker pro tempore has a counterpart in the
Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...
by the President ''pro tempore'' of the Senate.


References

{{Officers of the House of Representatives of Puerto Rico Officers of the House of Representatives of Puerto Rico