15th Legislative Assembly of Puerto Rico
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The 15th Legislative Assembly of Puerto Rico meets from January 2, 2005, to January 1, 2009. All members of the House of Representatives and the Senate were elected in the General Elections of 2004. The House and the Senate both have a majority of members from the New Progressive Party. It was the second time in Puerto Rican history in which the majority of the Assembly was from a different party than of the Governor of Puerto Rico.
Contents
Major legislation
- Tax Justice Act (Ley de Justicia Contributiva), also known as the Puerto Rico tax reform.
- Government Fiscal Reform Act (Ley de Reforma Fiscal Gubernamental)
Senate leadership
| Office | Senator | Party | District |
|---|---|---|---|
| President | Kenneth McClintock | NPP | Elected as a Senator At-Large |
| Vice President | Orlando Parga | NPP | Elected as a Senator At-Large |
| Rules Committee Chair | Margarita Nolasco | NPP | District VI (House Districts 26-30) Guayama |
| Majority Leader | Margarita Nolasco | NPP | District VI (House Districts 26-30) Guayama |
| Minority Leader | Jose Luis Dalmau | PDP | District VII (House Districts 31-35) Humacao |
| Minority Leader | Maria de Lourdes Santiago | PIP | Elected as a Senator At-Large |
| Majority Whip | Carlos Pagán | NPP | District IV (House Districts 16-20) Mayagüez |
| Minority Whip | Sila Mari González Calderón | PDP | Elected as a Senator At-Large |
House leadership
| Office | Representative | Party | District |
|---|---|---|---|
| Speaker of the House | Jose Aponte | NPP | Elected as a Representative At-Large |
| Speaker Pro Tem | Epifanio Jiménez, Jr. | NPP | District 40 Carolina |
| Majority Leader | Iris Miriam Ruiz | NPP | Elected as a Representative At-Large |
| Minority Leader | Hector Ferrer | PDP | Elected as a Representative At-Large |
| Minority Leader | Víctor García San Inocencio | PIP | Elected as a Representative At-Large |
Members
Members of the 15th Legislative Assembly as of June 2005:
Senate
There are 17 NPP, 9 PDP, and 1 PIP in the higher chamber of the 15th Legislative Assembly
| Senator | Party | District |
|---|---|---|
| Modesto Agosto Alicea | PDP | District Num. V (District 21-25) Ponce |
| Lucy Arce | NPP | Senator At-Large |
| Roberto Arango | NPP | District Num. I (District 1-5) San Juan |
| Eudaldo Baez Galib | PDP | Senator At-Large |
| Norma Burgos | NPP | Senator At-Large |
| Jose Luis Dalmau | PDP | District Num. VII (District 31-35) Humacao |
| Jorge de Castro Font | NPP | Senator At-Large |
| Carlos Díaz | NPP | District Num. I (District 1-5) San Juan |
| Antonio Fas Alzamora | PDP | Senator At-Large |
| Jose Garriga Pico | NPP | Senator At-Large |
| Sila Mari González Calderón | PDP | Senator At-Large |
| Jose Emilio Gonzalez Velazquez | NPP | District Num. III (District 11-15) Arecibo |
| Juan Hernandez Mayoral | PDP | Senator At-Large |
| Sixto Hernandez Serrano (resigned in 2006 upon confirmation as appeals judge) | PDP | District Num. VII (District 31-35) Humacao |
| Víctor David Loubriel (resigned during 2nd day in office) | NPP | District Num. II (District 11-15) Arecibo |
| Hector Martinez | NPP | District Num. VII (District 36-40) Carolina |
| Kenneth McClintock | NPP | Senator At-Large |
| Luis Daniel Muñiz | NPP | District Num. IV (District 16-20) Mayaguez |
| Margarita Nolasco | NPP | District Num. VI (District 26-30) Guayama |
| Carlos Pagan | NPP | District Num. IV (District 16-20) Mayaguez |
| Orlando Parga | NPP | Senator At-Large |
| Migdalia Padilla | NPP | District Num. II (District 6-10) Bayamón |
| Bruno Ramos | PDP | District Num. V (District 21-25) Ponce |
| Carmelo Ríos | NPP | District Num. II (District 6-10) Bayamón |
| Pedro Rosselló (Sworn in Feb. 13, 2005; selected to fill Sen. Loubriel's vacancy) | NPP | District Num. II (District 11-15) Arecibo |
| Maria de Lourdes Santiago | PIP | Senator At-Large |
| Lornna Soto | NPP | District Num. VII (District 36-40) Carolina |
| Jorge Suárez Cáceres (selected 2006 to fill Sen. Hernández Serrano's vacancy) | PDP | District Num. VII (District 31-35) Humacao |
| Cirilo Tirado | PDP | District Num. VI (District 26-30) Guayama |
House of Representatives (incomplete)
| Representative | Party | District |
|---|---|---|
| Francisco González | PNP | District Num. 1 San Juan |
| Luis Raúl Torres | PPD | District Num. 2 San Juan |
| Albita Rivera | PNP | District Num. 3 San Juan |
| Liza Fernandez | PNP | District Num. 4 San Juan |
| Jorge Navarro Suárez | PNP | District Num. 5 San Juan |
| Angel Pérez Otero | PNP | District Num. 6 |
| Luis Pérez Ortíz | PNP | District Num. 7 |
| Antonio Silva | PNP | District Num. 8 |
| Nelson Del Valle | PNP | District Num. 9 |
| Bernardo Márquez | PNP | District Num. 10 |
| Jose Javier Garcia | PPD | District Num. 11 |
| Hector A. Torres | PNP | District Num. 12 |
| Gabriel Rodríguez Aguiló | PNP | District Num. 13 |
| Carlos Molina | PNP | District Num. 14 |
| Jose E. Concepción | PNP | District Num. 15 |
| Sergio Ortiz | PPD | District Num. 16 |
| José L. Rivera | PNP | District Num. 17 |
| Julio C. Roman | PNP | District Num. 18 |
| Carlos M. Hernandez | PPD | District Num. 19 |
| Norman Ramírez | PNP | District Num. 20 |
| Lydia Méndez | PPD | District Num. 21 |
| Javier A. Rivera | PNP | District Num. 22 |
| Rafael A. Garcia | PPD | District Num. 23 |
| Roberto Cruz | PPD | District Num. 24 |
| Ramon A. Reyes | PPD | District Num. 25 |
| Jose L. Jimenez | PNP | District Num. 26 |
| Carmen I. Gonzalez | PPD | District Num. 27 |
| Rafael Rivera Ortega | PNP | District Num. 28 |
| Pedro I. Cintron | PNP | District Num. 29 |
| Jorge L. Ramos | PNP | District Num. 30 |
| Sylvia Rodríguez | PPD | District Num. 31 |
| José "Conny" Varela | PNP | District Num. 32 |
| Angel R. Peña | PNP | District Num. 33 |
| Cristóbal Colón Ruiz | PNP | District Num. 34 |
| Joel Rosario | PPD | District Num. 35 |
| Carlos Mendez | PNP | District Num. 36 |
| Angel Bulerín | PNP | District Num. 37 |
| Pedro A. Rodríguez | PPD | District Num. 38 |
| Roberto Rivera Ruiz | PPD | District Num. 39 |
| Epifanio Jiménez | PNP | District Num. 40 |
| Jose F. Aponte | PNP | Representative At-Large |
| Iris Miriam Ruiz | PNP | Representative At-Large |
| María de Lourdes Ramos | PNP | Representative At-Large |
| Jenniffer González | PNP | Representative At-Large |
| José Chico Vega | PNP | Representative At-Large |
| Rolando Crespo | PNP | Representative At-Large |
| Héctor Ferrer | PPD | Representative At-Large |
| Carlos Vizcarrondo | PPD | Representative At-Large |
| Ferdinand Pérez | PPD | Representative At-Large |
| Jorge Colberg Toro | PPD | Representative At-Large |
| Víctor García San Inocencio | PIP | Representative At-Large |
Changes in membership
Senate
| District |
Former senator | Reason for change | Successor | Date of successor's installation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| III - Arecibo |
Víctor David Loubriel | Resigned January 4, 2005 (2 days after being sworn in) | Pedro Rosselló | February 13, 2005 |
| VII - Humacao |
Sixto Hernández Serrano | Resigned August 16, 2006 after being confirmed as an appeals judge. | Jorge Suárez Cáceres | August 31, 2006 |
Changes in leadership
- June 6, 2005: Margarita Nolasco substitutes Jorge de Castro Font as Majority Leader of the Senate. De Castro retains most powers as Rules Committee Chair.
- June 6, 2005: Carlos Pagán substitutes Margarita Nolasco as Majority Whip of the Senate.
- March 11, 2008: Jorge de Castro Font substitutes Margarita Nolasco as Majority Leader of the Senate.
- March 11, 2008: Margarita Nolasco replaces Carlos Pagán as Majority Whip of the Senate.
- August 24, 2008: Jorge de Castro Font announces he is stepping down as Majority Leader after his office and apartment are searched by the FBI the day before.
- August 27, 2008: Senate President Kenneth McClintock recognizes Margarita Nolasco as Majority Leader of the Senate.
- September, 2008, Carlos Pagán replaces Margarita Nolasco as Majority Whip
Notes
This is not the first time that the majority of the Legislature has been of a party different from the governor. In 1969-1972, the NPP controlled the House, the PDP controlled the Senate and the Governor was the late Luis A. Ferré (NPP). Between 1981 and 1984 the Governor was Carlos Romero Barceló (NPP) and the Senate from 1981 to 1984, and the House from 1982 to 1984, were controlled by the PDP.
