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House Youth Affairs panel circulates three youth-focused bills; final votes postponed after lack of quorum
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Summary
The Commission on Youth Affairs of Puerto Rico’s House of Representatives opened a final-consideration session June 17 to review three bills on youth development, student community service (including blood donation) and government internships, but adjourned without final votes because a quorum was not present; a referendum will be circulated to record members' votes.
The Commission on Youth Affairs of the House of Representatives opened a public final-consideration session on June 17, 2024, to consider three House bills — Proyecto de la Cámara No. 1197, No. 1771 and No. 1862 — but adjourned without taking final votes because the required quorum was not present.
Commission President Héctor Ferger Santiago called the meeting to order in Hearing Room Two at 2:01 p.m. and asked that the circulated measures be placed on the record. "Vamos a petición que se den por ley las medidas circuladas, no habiendo objeción, así se acuerda," he said, after which Director Jaime Márquez Frank confirmed the bills and accompanying electronic drafts had been circulated to all members on June 14, 2024.
Why it matters: the three measures would reshape parts of youth policy in Puerto Rico. Proyecto de la Cámara No. 1197 proposes broad amendments to Ley 171 (2014) to create a youth development program within the Department of Economic Development and Commerce and to consolidate duties and programs currently spread across multiple youth-related statutes. Proyecto de la Cámara No. 1771 would amend Article 4 of Ley 26 (2009) on student community service to allow students to participate in blood or platelet donation activities, either at organized events or voluntarily at authorized donation centers. Proyecto de la Cámara No. 1862 seeks to establish a government internship law to create paid or credited internships across government agencies for university students to gain work experience.
Procedure and next steps: the president asked if any additional amendments had been received; Director Márquez Frank reported none. "No habiendo recibido enmiendas, pasaremos a la votación final," the president said, but the director later reported the commission lacked the quorum required to proceed. Acknowledging an online connection from Representative Yasira LeBron, the director stated explicitly that the quorum was not met: "señor, no contamos con el quórum requerido para proceder con la votación final sobre las medidas." As a result, President Ferger Santiago ordered that a referendum be circulated as soon as possible so members may record their votes on the circulated measures, and he adjourned the commission at 2:07 p.m.
Quotes from the record are limited to the procedural remarks and the bills' descriptions made on the floor; there was no substantive debate recorded during this session. The measures remain pending; the referendum will determine final votes once circulated to commission members.
Authorities and documents cited in the session include multiple Puerto Rico laws referenced during the explanation of PC 1197 and explicit references to Rule 12.7 and Rule 12.21 of the House rules for final consideration sessions. The commission's director and legal adviser were present for the record, and at least two members participated remotely.
