A bicycle owner rides in entrance of the U.S. Splendid Court docket construction in Washington, March 15, 2022.
Emily Elconin | Reuters
The U.S. Splendid Court docket dominated Thursday that Congress isn’t required to increase a federal incapacity advantages program to citizens of Puerto Rico.
The courtroom dominated 8-1 that as a result of Congress treats Puerto Rico citizens another way from the ones living within the states relating to tax regulations, it might probably do the similar relating to the Supplemental Source of revenue Safety, or SSI, advantages program.
Justice Sonia Sotomayor, one of the most courtroom’s 3 liberals whose circle of relatives stems from Puerto Rico, dissented.
SSI advantages are supposed to be offering common monetary help for disabled and aged folks in want. This system is to be had to folks residing within the 50 U.S. states, however to not the ones residing in some U.S. territories.
The query prior to the prime courtroom targeted on whether or not the Due Procedure clause of the 5th Modification to the U.S. Charter required Congress to increase SSI advantages to Puerto Rico.
A decrease appeals courtroom had dominated that the exclusion of SSI advantages to the territory was once unconstitutional. The Division of Justice argued prior to the Splendid Court docket final 12 months that that appellate ruling will have to be reversed.
Justice Brett Kavanaugh wrote within the majority opinion that “Congress has lengthy maintained federal tax and advantages methods for citizens of Puerto Rico and the opposite Territories that vary in some respects from the federal tax and advantages methods for citizens of the 50 States.”
Kavanaugh famous that Puerto Rico citizens are most commonly exempt from federal source of revenue, property and excise taxes, amongst others. They do pay different federal taxes, equivalent to Social Safety, Medicare and unemployment taxes, and they’re eligible for the advantages methods that the ones taxes fund.
“However simply as now not each and every federal tax extends to citizens of Puerto Rico, so too now not each and every federal advantages program extends to citizens of Puerto Rico,” Kavanaugh wrote.
That is breaking information. Please test again for updates.
