Chief of Staff of Puerto Rico

Chief of Staff of Puerto Rico
Incumbent
Noelia Garcia
Secretariat of Governance
AppointerGovernor of Puerto Rico
Term lengthAt the governor's pleasure
FormationExecutive order proclaimed in virtue of Act No. 104 of 1956
Salary$168,000 USD[1]

The Chief of Staff of Puerto Rico (Spanish: Secretario de la Gobernación de Puerto Rico) is the highest-ranking officer in the executive branch of the government of Puerto Rico after the governor and the secretary of state. The Chief of Staff leads the Secretariat of Governance and is charged with managing and overseeing almost all executive agencies while assisting and advising the governor.

Duties and responsibilities

The duties of the chief of staff vary greatly from one administration to another, and in fact, there is no legal requirement that the governor even fill or create the position. Nevertheless, one of the first acts undertaken by a new governor once he is sworn in, is to issue an executive order proclaiming a new chief of staff. This order also establishes the chief of staff's duties and responsibilities as the governor sees fit. This proclamation is done by virtue of the executive powers vested upon the governor by Article IV of the Constitution and Law No. 104 of 1956, which include the faculty to appoint officers and to delegate functions.[2][3][4]

The duties and responsibilities are both managerial and advisory and typically include the following:

Agencies overseen

Both the Constitution of Puerto Rico and Puerto Rican law usually ascribe all executive offices to either the Governor or the Office of the Governor. The Governor then issues an executive order proclaiming the delegation of the management and oversight of such executive offices onto the chief of staff. This proclamation is done in virtue of the executive powers vested upon the Governor by Law No. 104 of 1956 which include the faculty to delegate functions.

The agencies overseen by the Chief of Staff include all the executive departments of the government of Puerto Rico and almost all executive offices created either through an executive order or by law. The Office of Management and Budget and the Planning Board are the only executives offices not ascribed to the Secretariat—both report directly to the Governor.[why?]

In view of the fact that the Department of State is led by the Secretary of State, who is of a higher constitutional hierarchy than the Chief of Staff as well as Acting Governor on numerous occasions, as a matter of courtesy Chiefs of Staffs usually do not exercise oversight regarding that Department as they exert over others.

The agencies overseen by the Chief of Staff include the following:

Chiefs of Staff

  PPD    PNP
# Portrait Name Date took office Date left office Political party Appointed by Affiliation
1 Sila M. Calderón Sila M. Calderón 1986 1987 PPD Rafael Hernández Colón Democrat
2 Álvaro C. Cifuentes 1993 2001 PNP Pedro Rosselló Democrat
3 César Miranda 2001 2005 PPD Sila María Calderón Democrat
Aníbal José Torres 2005 2006 PPD Aníbal Acevedo Vilá Democrat
4 Jorge Silva Puras 2006 2009 PPD Aníbal Acevedo Vilá Democrat
5 Juan Carlos Blanco Urrutia 2009 2009 PNP Luis Fortuño Republican
6 Marcos Rodriguez Ema 2009 2012 PNP Luis Fortuño Republican
7 Miguel Romero Miguel Romero 2012 2013 PNP Luis Fortuño Republican
8 pic Ingrid Vila Biaggi 2013 2014 unaffiliated Alejandro García Padilla
9 pic Víctor Suárez 2014 2015 PPD Alejandro García Padilla Democrat
10 pic Grace Santana Balado 2015 2017 PPD Alejandro García Padilla Democrat
11 pic William Villafañe 2017 2018 PNP Ricky Rosselló
12 pic Raúl Maldonado 2018 2019 PNP Ricky Rosselló
13 pic Antonio Pabòn 2019 2020 PNP Wanda Vazquez
14 pic Noelia Garcia 2021 2024 PNP Pedro Pierluisi

References

  1. ^ "Table" (PDF) (in Spanish). Pr.gov. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-03-04. Retrieved 2015-05-04.
  2. ^ "Orden Ejecutiva" (PDF) (in Spanish). Presupestogobierno.pr. Retrieved 2015-05-04.
  3. ^ "Orden Ejecutiva" (PDF) (in Spanish). App.estado.gobierno.pr. Retrieved 2015-05-04.
  4. ^ "Delegacion del Gobernador de Ciertas Funciones y Deberes" (PDF) (in Spanish). Pr.gov. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2017-02-16. Retrieved 2015-05-04.