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Thursday, June 23, 2011

Congressional Hispanic Caucus Officially Endorses Rothman-Pierluisi Bill on Vieques

WASHINGTON, DC- The Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC) today officially endorsed federal legislation to fund the construction of a specialty hospital and toxins research in Vieques, announced Resident Commissioner Pedro Pierluisi.

The bill, introduced in April by Congressman Steve Rothman (D-NJ), was formally endorsed at today’s CHC business meeting. Caucus endorsement came after the legislation obtained the cosponsorship of two-thirds of the Caucus’s 21 members and after Pierluisi gave a presentation on the bill’s merits and the positive impact it would have on the quality of life of Viequenses.

“I am proud that our Vieques Recovery and Development Act of 2011 has obtained the formal endorsement of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus. I commend Congressman Pierluisi for his work to build support for this bill as we move this important cause forward,” said Congressman Rothman.

In addition to funding construction of a hospital, the bill would fund the establishment of a toxins research center to study the existence, prevalence and impact of toxins in Vieques as a possible result of decades of Navy exercises.

Moreover, the legislation directs the federal government to develop and implement a “comprehensive federal interagency plan” for Vieques to ensure that residents benefit from improved access to federal programs, federal discretionary funding sources, and federal agency technical assistance.

Finally, the bill would establish a mechanism to compensate residents of Vieques who have filed claims against the federal government.

“The support of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus is instrumental in the process we have initiated in the U.S. House of Representatives in support of Vieques. I thanks my colleagues who have recognized the importance of attending to the health and other needs of my consituents from La Isla Neña,” said Pierluisi.

“The White House Task Force stated clearly in its report that better health care facilities are an urgent need for the people of Vieques. We have already begun to work to implement the Task Force’s recommendations in this regard,” added the Resident Commissioner.

Among the Hispanic members of Congress that have cosponsored the legislation are José Serrano (D-NY), Joe Baca (D-CA), Charles González (D-TX), Raúl Grijalva (D-AZ), Rubén Hinojosa (D-TX), Nydia Velázquez (D-NY), Ben Luján (D-NM), Grace Napolitano (D-CA), Silvestre Reyes (D-TX), Gregorio Sablán (D-CNMI), Luis Gutiérrez (D-Il), Linda Sánchez (D-CA) and Albio Sires (D-NJ).