Rhode Island Senators Cosponsor Puerto Rico Statehood Bill
Rhode Island Senators Jack Reed (D) and Sheldon Whitehouse (D) have both signed on as cosponsors of the Puerto Rico Statehood Admissions Act (S. 780).
Following the November 2020 vote in favor of statehood for Puerto Rico, S. 780 recognizes the results and calls for Puerto Rico’s admission to the Union as a State once certain requirements are met: “Subject to the provisions of this Act, and upon issuance of the proclamation required by section 7(c), the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico is hereby declared to be a State of the United States of America, and as such shall be declared admitted into the Union on an equal footing with the other States in all respects.”
It further calls for a ratification vote, allowing the people of Puerto Rico to vote on acceptance of Congress’s offer of statehood after the bill passes in Congress and is signed by the president. This was the same process followed by Alaska and Hawaii.
The bill states that the laws, government, and borders of Puerto Rico will be unchanged, except that any laws contrary to statehood will automatically be repealed.
Read more: https://www.puertoricoreport.com/rhode-island-senators-cosponsor-puerto-rico-statehood-bill/