29th House of Representatives of Puerto Rico
# 29th House of Representatives of Puerto Rico

The 29th House of Representatives of Puerto Rico is the lower house of the 17th Legislative Assembly of Puerto Rico and will meet from January 14, 2013, to January 8, 2017. All members were elected in the General Elections of 2012. The House has a majority of members from the Popular Democratic Party (PPD).

The body is counterparted by the 25th Senate of Puerto Rico in the upper house.

## Composition

### Leadership

PPD    PNP :

| Office | Representative | District | Party |
| - | - | - | - |
| Speaker | Jaime Perelló | At-large | PPD |
| Speaker pro tem | Roberto Rivera Ruíz | District 39 | PPD |
| Majority Leader | Charlie Hernández | At-large | PPD |
| Majority Whip | Carlos Bianchi Angleró | At-large | PPD |
| Minority Leader | Jenniffer González | At-large | PNP |
| Minority Whip | Johnny Méndez | District 36 | PNP |

### Non-officers

| Post | Name |
| - | - |
| Secretary | Aileen Figueroa |
| Sergeant-at-Arms | Norberto Olmeda |

### Members

PPD    PNP :

| District | Name | Political party |
| - | - | - |
| At-large | Brenda López de Arrarás | PPD |
| At-large | Charlie Hernández | PPD |
| At-large | Jaime Perelló | PPD |
| At-large | Luis Vega Ramos | PPD |
| At-large | Luisa "Piti" Gándara | PPD |
| At-large | Manuel Natal | PPD |
| District 2 | Luis Raúl Torres | PPD |
| District 3 | Sonia Pacheco | PPD |
| District 4 | José Luis Báez | PPD |
| District 11 | Rafael "Tatito" Hernández | PPD |
| District 15 | César Hernández | PPD |
| District 16 | José "Tony" Rodríguez | PPD |
| District 17 | Armando Franco | PPD |
| District 19 | Efraín de Jesús | PPD |
| District 20 | Carlos Bianchi Angleró | PPD |
| District 21 | Lydia Méndez Silva | PPD |
| District 23 | Nelson Torres Yordán | PPD |
| District 25 | Víctor "Cacho" Vassallo | PPD |
| District 27 | José "Pito" Torres | PPD |
| District 29 | José Aníbal Díaz | PPD |
| District 30 | Luis "Narmito" Ortíz | PPD |
| District 31 | Jesús Santa Rodríguez | PPD |
| District 32 | José "Conny" Varela | PPD |
| District 34 | Ramón Luis Cruz | PPD |
| District 35 | Narden Jaime Espinosa | PPD |
| District 38 | Javier Aponte Dalmau | PPD |
| District 39 | Roberto Rivera Ruíz | PPD |
| District 40 | Ángel Matos García | PPD |
| At-large | Jenniffer González | PNP |
| At-large | José Aponte Hernández | PNP |
| At-large | José "Kikito" Meléndez | PNP |
| At-large | Lourdes Ramos | PNP |
| At-large | María Milagros Charbonier | PNP |
| District 1 | José "Nuno" López | PNP |
| District 5 | Jorge Navarro Suárez | PNP |
| District 6 | Antonio "Tony" Soto | PNP |
| District 7 | Luis Pérez Ortíz | PNP |
| District 8 | Yashira Lebrón Rodríguez | PNP |
| District 9 | Ángel "Gary" Rodríguez | PNP |
| District 10 | Pedro Julio Santiago | PNP |
| District 12 | Héctor Torres Calderón | PNP |
| District 13 | Gabriel Rodríguez Aguiló | PNP |
| District 14 | Ricardo Llerandi | PNP |
| District 18 | Ángel Muñoz | PNP |
| District 22 | Waldemar Quiles Rodríguez | PNP |
| District 24 | Luis "Tato" León | PNP |
| District 26 | Urayoán Hernández | PNP |
| District 28 | Rafael "June" Rivera | PNP |
| District 33 | Ángel Peña | PNP |
| District 36 | Carlos "Johnny" Méndez | PNP |
| District 37 | Ángel Bulerín | PNP |

### Changes in membership

* January 31, 2013: Jorge Colberg Toro resigns from his position as representative at-large in order to become Secretary of Public Affairs at the Office of the Governor.
* March 21, 2013: Piti Gándara fills the vacancy left by Jorge Colberg Toro.
* July 16, 2013: Eduardo Ferrer resigns from his position as representative at-large while the House is adjourned citing, "situations that cannot be delegated that I cannot leave unattended". This effectively left both his seat and the Majority Whip —position Ferrer held— vacant for about a month as the House had to wait to begin its ordinary session to replace him since no extraordinary session was invoked in between by neither the governor nor the speaker.
* August 19, 2013: Manuel Natal fills the vacancy left by Eduardo Ferrer as representative at-large for the Popular Democratic Party while Carlos Bianchi Angleró is elected as Majority Whip.
* October 23, 2014: Yashira Lebrón Rodríguez fills the vacancy left by Antonio "Toñito" Silva as representative for District 8 for the New Progressive Party (PNP) after Silva resigns from his position.

## Commissions

### Standing commissions

| Name | President | Vice President | Secretary |
| - | - | - | - |
| Agriculture, Natural Resources, and Environmental Affairs | César Hernández Alfonzo | Tony Rodriguez Quiles | Lydia Méndez Silva |
| Calendars and Special Rules of Debate | Charlie Hernández | N/A | N/A |
| Consumer Affairs and Anti-Monopolistic Practices | Nelson Torres Yordán | Ángel Matos García | Piti Gándara |
| Cooperatives and Nonprofit Organizations | Sonia Pacheco | José Luis Báez | Carlos Vargas Ferrer |
| Development of the Metropolitan Region | Luis Raúl Torres Cruz | Sonia Pacheco | José Luis Báez |
| Development of the Tourism Industry | Ángel Matos García | Efraín de Jesús | Carlos Bianchi Angleró |
| Education for the Promotion of Arts and Culture | Brenda López de Arrarás | Sonia Pacheco | Piti Gándara |
| Ethics | Nelson Torres Yordán | N/A | César Hernández Alfonzo |
| Federal and International Affairs and Veterans' Affairs | vacant | Ángel Matos García | Rafael Hernández Montañez |
| Government | Conny Varela | José Luis Báez | Nelson Torres Yordán |
| Health | Lydia Méndez Silva | Piti Gándara | Narden Jaime Espinosa |
| Housing and Urban Development | Carlos Vargas Ferrer | Armando Franco | Luis Ortíz Lugo |
| Integrated Development of the Eastern Region | Narden Jaime Espinosa | Ramón Luis Cruz | Javier Aponte Dalmau |
| Integrated Development of the Northern Region | Armando Franco | César Hernández Alfonzo | Tony Rodríguez Quiles |
| Integrated Development of the South Center Region | Luis Raúl Torres | Carlos Vargas Ferrer | Jesús Santa Rodríguez |
| Integrated Development of the Southern Region | Cacho Vassallo | Nelson Torres Yordán | Lydia Méndez Silva |
| Integrated Development of the Western Region | Efraín de Jesús | Carlos Bianchi Angleró | Tony Rodríguez Quiles |
| Internal Affairs | Pito Torres | Conny Varela | Luis Raúl Torres Cruz |
| Judiciary | Luis Vega Ramos | Nelson Torres Yordán | Efraín de Jesús |
| Labor and Public Service Retirement Systems | Jesús Santa Rodríguez | Rafael Hernández Montañez | Luis Raúl Torres Cruz |
| Municipal Affairs and Regionalization | Tony Rodríguez Quiles | Narden Jaime Espinosa | Carlos Vargas Ferrer |
| Public Safety and for the Development of Initiatives Against Crime and Corruption | José Luis Báez | Tony Rodríguez Quiles | Nelson Torres Yordán |
| Small and Medium Businesses, Commerce, Industry, and Telecommunications | Javier Aponte Dalmau | Luis Raúl Torres | César Hernández Alfonzo |
| Social Welfare and for the Eradication of Poverty | Piti Gándara | Lydia Méndez Silva | Brenda López de Arrarás |
| Socioeconomic Development and Planning | Luis Raúl Torres | Javier Aponte Dalmau | Sonia Pacheco |
| Transportation and Infrastructure | Carlos Bianchi Angleró | Jesús Santa Rodríguez | Ramón Luis Cruz |
| Treasury and Budget | Tatito Hernández | César Hernández Alfonzo | Conny Varela |
| Women's Affairs and Equality | Brenda López de Arrarás | Sonia Pacheco | Lydia Méndez Silva |
| Youth Affairs, Recreation and Sports | Ramón Luis Cruz | Narmito Ortíz | Armando Franco |

### Joint commissions

| Name | President | Vice President | Secretary |
| - | - | - | - |
| Córdova Fernós Program of Congressional Internships | Jaime Perelló | Charlie Hernández | vacant |
| Jorge Alberto Ramos Comas Legislative Internship Program | Jaime Perelló | Charlie Hernández | Ramón Luis Cruz |
| Legislative Donations | Tatito Hernández | César Hernández Alfonzo | Piti Gándara |
| Legislative Internship Program | Jaime Perelló | N/A | N/A |
| Pilar Barbosa Internship Program in Education | Jaime Perelló | Charlie Hernández | Brenda López de Arrarás |
| Public-Private Partnerships of Puerto Rico | Jesús Santa Rodríguez | Efraín de Jesús | Carlos Bianchi Angleró |
| Special Reports from the Comptroller | Nelson Torres Yordán | César Hernández Alfonzo | Carlos Vargas Ferrer |

## Notable legislations

* Catch Up Act
* Commonwealth of Puerto Rico Employees Association Act of 2013
* Jobs Now Act
