Puerto rico
Bethany
English IV College Readiness
11 Dec 2013
Puerto Rico becoming a State Puerto Rico has been a U.S. territory for 115 years, yet Puerto Ricans remain second-class citizens. If it becomes a state, Puerto Ricans will no longer be exempt from Federal income tax and even more people will be forced on to the public’s benefits paid by the government. There are some positive truths to look at also, as journalist Catherine Lozada points out: “Puerto Rico costs the U.S. over $22 billion a year. However, as a state it will contribute nearly $2 billion to the U.S. treasury each year.” There will always be that one question which longs to be answered, and that is: What’s keeping Puerto Rico in Political limbo?
Puerto Rico is currently a commonwealth of the United States. The Office of Insular Affairs defines a commonwealth as, “an organized United States insular area, which has established with the Federal Government, a more highly developed relationship, usually embodied in a written mutual agreement” (Akiboh).
National Journal’s Marina Koren researched, Lawmakers from the island have yet to figure out what to ask Puerto Ricans what they want for the island on a ballot:
The first question on the ballot asked voters if they favored U.S. territory status; 54 percent said they didn't. The second asked voters to choose from three options: statehood, independence, or sovereign free association—a status that would give Puerto Rico more autonomy than it currently has. Sixty-one percent chose statehood, but 26 percent of voters left the ballot blank. Puerto Rico Gov. Alejandro Garcia Padilla believes this shrank support for statehood to 44 percent.
English IV College Readiness
11 Dec 2013
Puerto Rico becoming a State Puerto Rico has been a U.S. territory for 115 years, yet Puerto Ricans remain second-class citizens. If it becomes a state, Puerto Ricans will no longer be exempt from Federal income tax and even more people will be forced on to the public’s benefits paid by the government. There are some positive truths to look at also, as journalist Catherine Lozada points out: “Puerto Rico costs the U.S. over $22 billion a year. However, as a state it will contribute nearly $2 billion to the U.S. treasury each year.” There will always be that one question which longs to be answered, and that is: What’s keeping Puerto Rico in Political limbo?
Puerto Rico is currently a commonwealth of the United States. The Office of Insular Affairs defines a commonwealth as, “an organized United States insular area, which has established with the Federal Government, a more highly developed relationship, usually embodied in a written mutual agreement” (Akiboh).
National Journal’s Marina Koren researched, Lawmakers from the island have yet to figure out what to ask Puerto Ricans what they want for the island on a ballot:
The first question on the ballot asked voters if they favored U.S. territory status; 54 percent said they didn't. The second asked voters to choose from three options: statehood, independence, or sovereign free association—a status that would give Puerto Rico more autonomy than it currently has. Sixty-one percent chose statehood, but 26 percent of voters left the ballot blank. Puerto Rico Gov. Alejandro Garcia Padilla believes this shrank support for statehood to 44 percent.