Legislative Assembly of Puerto Rico Asamblea Legislativa de Puerto Rico |
|
---|---|
17th Legislative Assembly of Puerto Rico | |
Type | |
Type | |
Houses |
Senate House of Representatives |
Leadership | |
Structure | |
Seats | 30 Senators 51 Representatives |
Senate political groups
|
PNP (21) PPD (7) PIP (1) Independent (1) |
House of Representatives political groups
|
PNP (34) PPD (16) PIP (1) |
Elections | |
Senate voting system
|
plurality-at-large for 16 electoral districts seats and single non-transferable vote for 11 at-large seats |
House of Representatives voting system
|
first-past-the-post for 40 electoral districts seats and single non-transferable vote for 11 at-large seats |
Senate last election
|
November 6, 2012 |
House of Representatives last election
|
November 6, 2012 |
Meeting place | |
Capitol of Puerto Rico, San Juan |
The Legislative Assembly of Puerto Rico (Spanish: Asamblea Legislativa de Puerto Rico) is the territorial legislature of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, responsible for the legislative branch of the government of Puerto Rico. The Assembly is a bicameral legislature consisting of an upper house, the Senate (Spanish: Senado) normally composed by 27 senators, and the lower house, the House of Representatives (Spanish: Cámara de Representantes) normally composed by 51 representatives. Eleven members of each house are elected at-large rather than from a specific legislative district with all members being elected for a four-year term without term limits.
The structure and responsibilities of the Legislative Assembly are defined in Article III of the Constitution of Puerto Rico which vests all legislative power in the Legislative Assembly. Every bill must be passed by both houses and signed by the Governor of Puerto Rico to become law. Each house has its unique powers. The constitution also states that each house shall be the unique judge on the legal capacity of its members. The constitution also grants parliamentary immunity to all elected members of the Legislative Assembly.
The assembly currently in session is the 18th Legislative Assembly of Puerto Rico, composed by the 26th Senate and the 30th House of Representatives—with each house composed by a two-thirds majority of members from the New Progressive Party (PNP).