The Council of Secretaries of Puerto Rico ( es, Consejo de Secretarios) is the group composed by the heads of the

executive departments of the government of Puerto Rico The executive branch of the government of Puerto Rico is responsible for executing the laws of Puerto Rico, as well as causing them to be executed. Article IV of the Constitution of Puerto Rico vests the executive power on the Governor—w ...

. The Council is charged with leading the different sectors of

public administration Public Administration (a form of governance) or Public Policy and Administration (an academic discipline) is the implementation of public policy, administration of government establishment (public governance), management of non-profit establ ...

within the government and does not constitute an agency by itself. The Council, together with the Cabinet-level officers, compose the

Cabinet of Puerto Rico The executive branch of the government of Puerto Rico is responsible for executing the laws of Puerto Rico, as well as causing them to be executed. Article IV of the Constitution of Puerto Rico vests the executive power on the Governor— ...

Background

The establishment of the Council is proclaimed by

Article IV Article Four may refer to the 4th article of any regulatory document, such as: * Article 4 of the European Convention on Human Rights * Article Four (political party), political party in Sicily, Italy * Article Four of the United States Constitu ...

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 a ...

which establishes that the Governor shall be assisted by

Secretaries A secretary, administrative professional, administrative assistant, executive assistant, administrative officer, administrative support specialist, clerk, military assistant, management assistant, office secretary, or personal assistant is a wh ...

whom shall collectively constitute the Governor's advisory council and be designated as the ''Council of Secretaries''. Each Secretary is nominated by the

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

and then presented to 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 ...

for

advice and consent Advice and consent is an English phrase frequently used in enacting formulae of bills and in other legal or constitutional contexts. It describes either of two situations: where a weak executive branch of a government enacts something prev ...

by a simple majorityexcept for the Secretary of State who requires the advice and consent of both the Senate and the

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entitles. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often c ...

. If the Secretaries are confirmed they are sworn in and begin their duties immediately afterwards. However, Secretaries appointed during a legislative recess may begin serving immediately under a recess appointment until the end of the following regular session of the Legislative Assembly, or rejected by the Senate, whichever occurs first, should they not be confirmed. The

established eight Secretaries, namely: the Secretary of Agriculture and Commerce,

Education Education is a purposeful activity directed at achieving certain aims, such as transmitting knowledge or fostering skills and character traits. These aims may include the development of understanding, rationality, kindness, and honesty. Va ...

Health Health, according to the World Health Organization, is "a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease and infirmity".World Health Organization. (2006)''Constitution of the World Health Organiza ...

Justice Justice, in its broadest sense, is the principle that people receive that which they deserve, with the interpretation of what then constitutes "deserving" being impacted upon by numerous fields, with many differing viewpoints and perspective ...

, Labor, Public Works,

State State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States * ''Our S ...

, and

Treasury A treasury is either *A government department related to finance and taxation, a finance ministry. *A place or location where treasure, such as currency or precious items are kept. These can be state or royal property, church treasure or i ...

. The Secretary of Agriculture and Commerce evolved into two different posts: the Secretary of Agriculture and the Secretary of Economic Development and Commerce, while the Secretary of Labor evolved into the Secretary of Labor and Human Resources, and the Secretary of Public Works into the Secretary of Transportation and Public Works. The creation of more executive departments by

Puerto Rican law The legal system of Puerto Rico is a mix of the civil law and the common law systems. Language Puerto Rico is the only current U.S. jurisdiction whose legal system operates primarily in a language other than American English: namely, Spanish. Be ...

established more Secretaries, namely: the Secretary of Consumer Affairs, Corrections and Rehabilitation,

Family Affairs ''Family Affairs'' is a British soap opera that aired on Channel 5. It debuted on 30 March 1997, the day of the launch of said channel and was the first programme broadcast on the channel. It was screened as five thirty-minute episodes per w ...

Housing Housing, or more generally, living spaces, refers to the construction and assigned usage of houses or buildings individually or collectively, for the purpose of shelter. Housing ensures that members of society have a place to live, whether i ...

, Natural and Environmental Resources, and Sports and Recreation.

Current posts

References

{{reflist, 2, refs= {{cite constitution , article=IV , section=5 , url=http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Constitution_of_the_Commonwealth_of_Puerto_Rico#ARTICLE_IV_THE_EXECUTIVE , country=Puerto Rico , ratified=July 25, 1952 , accessdate=December 28, 2012 {{cite constitution , article=IV , section=6 , url=http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Constitution_of_the_Commonwealth_of_Puerto_Rico#ARTICLE_IV_THE_EXECUTIVE , country=Puerto Rico , ratified=July 25, 1952 , accessdate=December 28, 2012 {{cite act , url=http://www.presupuesto.gobierno.pr/PresupuestosAnteriores/af2009_2010/Tomo_II/suppdocs/baselegal/055/ley60.pdf , number=60 , date=1940 , language=Spanish , accessdate=December 29, 2012 , title=Department of Agriculture Act {{citation, url=http://www2.pr.gov/agencias/ddec/concealdepartamento/Documents/LeyOrgnanica.pdf, title=Reorganization Plan No. 4 of 1994 , language=Spanish , accessdate=December 29, 2012 {{cite act , url=http://www2.pr.gov/presupuestos/presupuesto2012-2013/PresupuestoRecomendado2013/suppdocs/baselegal/067/067b.pdf , number=100 , date=1977 , language=Spanish , accessdate=December 29, 2012 {{citation, url=http://www.presupuesto.gobierno.pr/PresupuestosAnteriores/af2009_2010/Tomo_II/suppdocs/baselegal/049/049-plan.pdf, title=Reorganization Plan No. 6 of1971 , language=Spanish , accessdate=December 29, 2012 {{cite act , url=http://www.presupuesto.gobierno.pr/PresupuestosAnteriores/AF99/BASLEGAL/069/Ley5.htm , number=5 , date=1973 , language=Spanish , accessdate=December 29, 2012 , title=Department of Consumer Affairs Organic Law {{citation, url=http://www.presupuesto.gobierno.pr/PresupuestosAnteriores/af2008_2009/Tomo_II/suppdocs/baselegal/137/137.pdf, title=Reorganization Plan No. 3 of 1993 , language=Spanish , accessdate=December 29, 2012 {{cite act , url=http://www2.pr.gov/agencias/secretariado/Documents/Base%20Legal/Ley171DepartamentoFamilia.pdf , number=171 , date=1968 , language=Spanish , accessdate=December 29, 2012 , title=Department of Family Affairs Organic Law {{cite act , url=http://www.presupuesto.gobierno.pr/PresupuestosAnteriores/af2003/baseLegal/BASE%20LEGAL/078/Ley97.htm , number=10 , date=1972 , language=Spanish , accessdate=December 29, 2012 , title=Department of Housing Organic Law {{cite act , url=http://www.presupuesto.gobierno.pr/PresupuestosAnteriores/af2009_2010/Tomo_II/suppdocs/baselegal/050/050.pdf , number=23 , date=1972 , language=Spanish , accessdate=December 29, 2012 , title=Department of Natural and Environmental Resources Organic Law {{cite act , url=http://www.presupuesto.gobierno.pr/PresupuestosAnteriores/af2008_2009/Tomo_II/suppdocs/baselegal/087/087.pdf , number=8 , date=2004 , language=Spanish , accessdate=December 29, 2012 , title=Department of Sports and Recreation Organic Law Members of the Cabinet of Puerto Rico