Rep. Cory Mills (R-Fla.) signed on to the Puerto Rico Status Act this week, The Hill has learned, becoming the 100th sponsor of the bill.
The legislation would authorize a federally sponsored plebiscite for Puerto Ricans to resolve its political status, with a choice of independence, statehood or sovereignty in free association with the United States. Companion legislation in the Senate has support from 27 senators.
Mills’s addition to the legislation comes as the island territory has been thrust into the center of controversy in the height of election season after comedian Tony Hinchcliffe called Puerto Rico a “floating island of garbage” at former President Trump’s Madison Square Garden rally on Sunday.
But Mills’s office said his decision to join the bill was unrelated to the recent controversy and that he was considering joining before the comedian’s comments.
“I am honored to support the Puerto Rico Status Act as the 100th co-sponsor of HR 2757, which upholds the right of U.S. citizens in Puerto Rico to participate in a self-determination process,” Mills told The Hill in a statement. “This legislation is a significant step forward, authorizing a federally sponsored plebiscite that gives Puerto Ricans the choice between independence, sovereignty in free association with the United States, or statehood.”
A version of the legislation in the last Congress had 63 cosponsors and passed the House in 2022, but it stalled in the Senate. Only 16 Republicans voted in support of the bill that year.
Mills is the 15th House Republican to sign on to the 118th Congress’s version, though three of the GOP members who support the bill are delegates rather than full voting representatives.
“I am committed to this bill and look forward to supporting the choice of the Puerto Rican people,” Mills said. “There has been a strong historic bond between Puerto Rico and the United States. The bottom line is that Puerto Ricans serve in the U.S. military, they deserve at least the option of statehood.”
Puerto Ricans will hold a nonbinding referendum on Puerto Rico’s status Nov. 5 on statehood, independence or independence with free association.
A YouGov survey conducted Oct. 28 found that 59 percent of U.S. adults supported making Puerto Rico a U.S. state if its residents voted in favor of it.
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