H.R. 2499 or the "Puerto Rico Democracy Act" is a bill that if passed, will ask PR residents to vote if they wish for their country to become the 51st US State. However, Puerto Rico has voted no to similar bills at least 3 times since the late 60's, so it is not immediately clear why the Administration has put this bill up for vote. If Puerto Rico does become a state, it does more harm than good. It has few benefits for the the Puerto Ricans; they would have to pay taxes, and lose some independence as well. It is also bad for the US; it would add an almost entirely Spanish-speaking State which will raise many language barriers ,and it would give Puerto Rico seats in the House (and they would have more seats than those of 22 current US states). Furthermore, the culture of both countries is very different, and will likely not blend well so rapidly. So I ask "Why does the Administration want Puerto Rico to become the 51st State in the United States of America?"
Here is a link to a full text version of the bill : http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/D?c111:2:./temp/~c111lQ1Azy::
