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            Rep. Young is the Ranking Member on the House Natural Resources Committee.

Rep. Young’s Statement

Madame Chairwoman, thank you for holding this hearing today and for a balanced line-up of witnesses.

First off, let me say I’m a proud cosponsor of H.R. 900, a bill authored by my good friend, Mr. Fortuño, the Ranking Republican of this Subcommittee, and Congressman Serrano (D-NY).  Many in the room today are familiar with my experience dealing with this issue.  In the 105^th Congress, I sponsored a bill, H.R. 856, to resolve the political status of Puerto Rico.  My principle aim was to consider the status question in a manner that complied with the Constitution and that bore in mind the aspirations of the people of Puerto Rico to determine their future.  After three Committee hearings, including two in Puerto Rico, the Committee passed the bill, and so did the House.

While H.R. 900 is somewhat different from the bill I sponsored in 1997, it conforms to my basic goal, which is to enable the people of Puerto Rico to determine their status in a manner that is democratic and consistent with historic, legal, and constitutional precedents.  This is not really a “statehood bill,” or an “independence bill,” or a “status quo” bill per se.  This is a procedural bill, one that allows for a transparent, democratic process to resolve the status question.

I recognize and respect the aims of those who support H.R. 1230.  But I have some fundamental problems with the bill.  First, it contemplates an outcome which may be unconstitutional.  It would give Puerto Rico a chance to have a “new Commonwealth” status that gives it all the benefits of statehood but without the same application of federal law as all other states must bear.  And aside from the constitutional problem, I don’t believe the House would pass a bill allowing for this arrangement.  Another problem is that the bill seems to avoid the open, democratic process set forth under H.R. 900.  This may tend to create confusion among residents of Puerto Rico who want to settle the status question in a directly democratic fashion.

I applaud Chairwoman Christensen (D-VI) for holding a hearing to focus on some of these academic and constitutional questions surrounding these bills.  I would urge my colleagues to carefully consider what process to use and focus first and foremost on which bill conforms most closely to the Constitution.

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