31st House of Representatives of Puerto Rico
# 31st House of Representatives of Puerto Rico

The 31st House of Representatives of Puerto Rico is the lower house of the 19th Legislative Assembly of Puerto Rico and will meet from January 2, 2021 to January 1, 2025. All members were elected in the 2020 elections. The House had a majority of elected members from the Popular Democratic Party (PPD), but since 4 May 2022 the PPD only enjoys a plurality.

The body is counterparted by the 27th Senate of Puerto Rico in the upper house.

## Composition

### Leadership

PPD  PNP  PIP  MVC  PD :

| Office | Representative | District | Party |
| - | - | - | - |
| Speaker | Tatito Hernández Montañez | District 11 | PPD |
| Speaker pro tem | Conny Varela | District 32 | PPD |
| Majority Leader | Angel Matos García | District 40 | PPD |
| Majority Whip | Roberto Rivera Ruiz de Porras | District 39 | PPD |
| Minority Leader | Johnny Méndez | District 36 | PNP |
| Minority Whip | Gabriel Rodríguez Aguiló | District 13 | PNP |
| Minority Leader | Mariana Nogales Molinelli | At-large | MVC |
| Minority Whip | José Bernardo Márquez | At-large | MVC |
| Minority Leader | Denis Márquez Lebrón | At-large | PIP |
| Minority Leader | Lisie Burgos Muñiz | At-large | PD |

### Non-officers

| Post | Name |
| - | - |
| Secretary | Javier Gómez Cruz |
| Sergeant-at-Arms | Miguel Arvelo Kuilán |

### Members

The following is a list of current members of the House of Representatives. Néstor A. Alonso Vega resigned from his position after being charged for corruption by federal prosecutors days after the general election, and a special election was held on 21 March 2021 to select his successor from within the New Progressive Party. In addition, while Luis Raúl Torres Cruz was elected under the PPD banner, due to differences with decisions of the party's delegation leadership on policy areas under his purview, on 4 May 2022 Torres Cruz distanced himself from the party, became an independent, and said this move was "final and irrevocable".

PPD  PNP  PIP  MVC  PD :

| District | Name | Political party |
| - | - | - |
| District 1 | Eddie Charbonier Chinea | PNP |
| District 2 | Luis Raúl Torres Cruz | Ind. |
| District 3 | Juan O. Morales Rodríguez | PNP |
| District 4 | Víctor L. Parés Otero | PNP |
| District 5 | Jorge «Georgie» Navarro Suárez | PNP |
| District 6 | Ángel Morey Noble | PNP |
| District 7 | Luis Pérez Ortiz | PNP |
| District 8 | Yashira Lebrón Rodríguez | PNP |
| District 9 | Er Yazzer Morales Díaz | PNP |
| District 10 | Deborah Soto Arroyo | PPD |
| District 11 | Rafael «Tatito» Hernández | PPD |
| District 12 | Edgardo Feliciano Sánchez | PPD |
| District 13 | Gabriel Rodríguez Aguiló | PNP |
| District 14 | José O. González Mercado | PNP |
| District 15 | Joel I. Franqui Atiles | PNP |
| District 16 | Eladio J. Cardona Quiles | PPD |
| District 17 | Wilson Román López | PNP |
| District 18 | Jessie Cortés Ramos | PPD |
| District 19 | Jocelyne Rodríguez Negrón | PPD |
| District 20 | Kebin Maldonado Martínez | PPD |
| District 21 | Lydia Méndez Silva | PPD |
| District 22 | Jorge Alfredo Rivera Segarra | PPD |
| District 23 | José H. Rivera Madera | PPD |
| District 24 | Ángel A. Fourquet Cordero | PPD |
| District 25 | Domingo J. Torres García | PPD |
| District 26 | Orlando Aponte Rosario | PPD |
| District 27 | Estrella Martínez Soto | PPD |
| District 28 | Juan J. Santiago Nieves | PPD |
| District 29 | Gretchen Hau | PPD |
| District 30 | Luis «Narmito» Ortiz Lugo | PPD |
| District 31 | Jesús Santa Rodríguez | PPD |
| District 32 | José Manuel «Conny» Varela Fernández | PPD |
| District 33 | Ángel Peña Ramírez | PNP |
| District 34 | Ramón Luis Cruz Burgos | PPD |
| District 35 | Sol Y. Higgins Cuadrado | PPD |
| District 36 | Carlos "Johnny" Méndez | PNP |
| District 37 | Ángel Bulerín | PNP |
| District 38 | Javier Aponte Dalmau | PPD |
| District 39 | Roberto Rivera Ruíz | PPD |
| District 40 | Angel Matos García | PPD |
| At-large | Héctor E. Ferrer Santiago | PPD |
| At-large | Jesús Manuel Ortiz González | PPD |
| At-large | José Aponte Hernández | PNP |
| At-large | José Pichy Torres Zamora | PNP |
| At-large | José "Quiquito" Meléndez | PNP |
| At-large | «Che» Pérez Cordero | PNP |
| At-large | María de Lourdes Ramos Rivera | PNP |
| At-large | José Bernardo Márquez | MVC |
| At-large | Mariana Nogales Molinelli | MVC |
| At-large | Denis Márquez Lebrón | PIP |
| At-large | Lisie J. Burgos Muñiz | PD |

### Changes in membership

* 21 March 2021: José Pérez Cordero is sworn in substitution of fellow New Progressive Néstor A. Alonso Vega, after securing victory a special closed party election.
* 4 May 2022: Luis Raúl Torres Cruz switches from being a Popular Democratic Party representative to Independent due to differences with party leadership.

## Commissions

### Standing commissions

| Standing Commission Name | President | Vice President | Secretary |
| - | - | - | - |
| Calendars and Special Rules of Debate | Ángel Matos García | Roberto Rivera Ruiz de Porras | José Conny Varela Fernández |
| Agriculture | Jorge Alfredo Rivera Segarra | Eladio Cardona Quiles | José Rivera Madera |
| Anti-corruption and Public Integrity | Héctor E. Ferrer Santiago | Deborah Soto Arroyo | Ángel A. Fourquet Cordero |
| Women's Affairs | Jocelyne M. Rodríguez Negrón | Estrella Martínez Soto | Sol Y. Higgins Cuadrado |
| Youth Affairs | Héctor Ferrer Santiago | Jocelyne M. Rodríguez Negrón | Juan J. Santiago Nieves |
| Internal Affairs of the House of Representatives | Roberto Rivera Ruiz de Porras | Luis Raúl Torres Cruz | Deborah Soto Arroyo |
| Labor Affairs and Pension Reforms | Domingo J. Torres García | José H. Rivera Madera | Deborah Soto Arroyo |
| Municipal Autonomy, Decentralization, and Regionalization | Juan José Santiago Nieves | Jessie Cortés Ramos | Jocelyn Rodríguez Negrón |
| Social Welfare, Persons with Disabilities and the Elderly | Lisie J. Burgos Muñiz | Edgardo Feliciano Sánchez | Deborah Soto Arroyo |
| Economic Development, Planning, Telecommunications, Public-Private Partnerships and Energy | Luis Raúl Torres Cruz | Jesús Santa Rodríguez | Orlando Aponte Rosario |
| Education, Art and Culture | Deborah Soto Arroyo | Kebin A. Maldonado Martiz | Sol Y. Higgins Cuadrado |
| Ethics | Ángel Matos García | Ángel A. Fourquet Cordero | Deborah Soto Arroyo |
| Oversight of Public Funds | Ángel A. Fourquet Cordero | Ramón Luis Cruz Burgos | Juan J. Santiago Nieves |
| Government | Jesús Manuel Ortiz González | Luis «Narmito» Ortiz Lugo | Luis Raúl Torres Cruz |
| Finance and Budget | Jesús Santa Rodríguez | Luis Raúl Torres Cruz | Luis «Narmito» Ortiz Lugo |
| Community Impact | Lydia Méndez Silva | Sol Y. Higgins Cuadrado | Jocelyne M. Rodríguez Negrón |
| Judiciary | Rafael "Tatito" Hernández Montañez (interim) | Ángel Fourquet Cordero | Jesús Manuel Ortiz González |
| Small and Medium Enterprises and Permits | Jessie Cortés Ramos | José H. Rivera Madera | Domingo J. Torres García |
| Sports and Recreation | Eladio J. Cardona Sánchez | Jocelyne M. Rodríguez Negrón | Estrella Martínez Soto |
| Natural Resources, Environmental Affairs, and Recycling | Edgardo Feliciano Sánchez | Kebin A. Maldonado Martiz | Héctor E. Ferrer Santiago |
| Federal, International, Status, and Veterans Relations | Kebin A. Maldonado Martiz | Juan J. Santiago Nieves | Jesús Santa Rodríguez |
| Health | Sol Y. Higgins Cuadrado | Luis Raúl Torres Cruz | Kebin A. Maldonado Martiz |
| Public Security, Science and Technology | Luis «Narmito» Ortiz Lugo | José A. Díaz Collazo | Jesús M. Ortiz González |
| Transportation, Infrastructure, and Public Works | José A. Díaz Collazo | Luis «Narmito» Ortiz Lugo | Jesús Santa Rodríguez |
| Cooperatives and Tourism | José H. Rivera Madera | Héctor E. Ferrer Santiago | Edgardo Feliciano Sánchez |
| Housing and Urban Development | Ángel Fourquet Cordero | Domingo Torres García | José H. Rivera Madera |
| Development and Oversight of Public Funds for the Capital City, Aguas Buenas, Bayamón, Cataño and Guaynabo | Luis Raúl Torres Cruz | Héctor E. Ferrer Santiago | Jesús M. Ortiz González |
| Oversight of Development Funds for the East Region | Angel R. Peña Ramírez | Sol Y. Higgins Cuadrado | Luis «Narmito» Ortiz Lugo |
| Oversight of Development Funds for the Northeast Region | Ángel Matos García | Sol Y. Higgins Cuadrado | Héctor E. Ferrer Santiago |
| Oversight of Development Funds for the Northwest Region | José O. González Mercado | Jessie Cortés Ramos | Eladio J. Cardona Sánchez |
| Oversight of Development Funds for the North Region | Edgardo Feliciano Sánchez | Deborah Soto Arroyo | Juan J. Santiago Nieves |
| Oversight of Development Funds for the West Region | Jocelyn Rodríguez Negrón | Kebin A. Maldonado Martiz | Jessie Cortés Ramos |
| Oversight of Development Funds for the South Central Region | Estrella Martínez Soto | Jorge A. Rivera Segarra | Orlando Aponte Rosario |
| Oversight of Development Funds for the Southeast Region | Luis «Narmito» Ortiz Lugo | José A. Díaz Collazo | Ramón Luis Cruz Burgos |
| Oversight of Development Funds for the Southwest Region | Ángel A. Fourquet Lamb | José H. Rivera Madera | Kebin A. Maldonado Martiz |
| Constitutional Amendments and Electoral Law | José «Conny» Varela Fernández | Jesús M. Ortiz González | Orlando Aponte Rosario |
| Emergency Preparedness, Reconstruction and Reorganization | Luis «Narmito» Ortiz Lugo | José A. Díaz Collazo | Ramón Luis Cruz Burgos |
| Consumer Rights, Banking Services and Insurance Industry | Estrella Martínez Soto | Orlando Aponte Rosario | José H. Rivera Madera |

### Joint commissions

| Name | President | Vice President | Secretary |
| - | - | - | - |
| Review and Implementation of Administrative Regulations | Tatito Hernández Montañez | Jesús Santa Rodríguez | José «Conny» Varela Fernández |
| Continuous Revision of the Penal Code and for the Reform of Criminal Laws | Orlando Aponte Rosario | Ángel A. Fourquet Cordero | Jesús M. Ortiz González |
| Revision and Reform of the Civil Code | Orlando Aponte Rosario | Ángel A. Fourquet Cordero | Jesús M. Ortiz González |
| Mitigation, Adaptation and Resilience to Climate Change | Edgardo Feliciano Sánchez | Kebin Maldonado Martiz | Héctor Ferrer Santiago |
| Legislative Funding for Community Impact | Jesús Santa Rodríguez | Ángel A. Fourquet Cordero | Juan J. Santiago Nieves |
| Public-Private Partnerships of Puerto Rico | Luis Raúl Torres Cruz | Jesús Santa Rodríguez | Orlando Aponte Rosario |
| Special Reports from the Comptroller | Tatito Hernández Montañez | Roberto Rivera Ruiz de Porras | Domingo J. Torres García |
| Córdova y Fernós Program of Congressional Internships | Héctor Ferrer Santiago | Deborah Soto Arroyo | Ángel A. Fourquet Cordero |
| Pilar Barbosa Program of Education Internships | Deborah Soto Arroyo | Kebin A. Maldonado Martiz | Lydia Méndez Silva |
| Jorge A. Ramos Comas Legislative Internship Program | Héctor Ferrer Santiago | Angel Matos García | Lisie J. Burgos Muñiz |

### Changes in leadership

* 15 November 2022: Orlando Aponte Rosario is removed from the Presidency of the Judiciary Committee by Speaker Rafael "Tatito" Hernández Montañez. Hernández Montañez will be interim president of the committee.
