PUERTO RICO · POLITICS
The Senate of Puerto Rico, a US territory, postponed a vote on Thursday 12 November 2026 on demanding the removal of Family Secretary Suzanne Roig Fuertes, El Nuevo Día, a San Juan daily, reported. The Family Secretary heads the Department of the Family, a cabinet post, and the postponement leaves the demand pending.
Puerto Rico has about 3.2 million residents, and its Family department spends Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), a US federal welfare block grant. Our 21 October report covered the Puerto Rico Justice Department’s preliminary investigation into whether Roig pressured staff on federally funded contracts.
Key Facts
- Vote The Senate postponed Senate Concurrent Resolution 23, a non-binding demand, on Thursday; the motion to wait passed 18-9.
- Demand The resolution would withdraw the Senate’s consent to Family Secretary Suzanne Roig and demand the governor remove her.
- Force A concurrent resolution has no force of law and does not bind the governor.
- Claims Sworn testimony cited in it alleges Roig pressed for a US$37.5 million to US$38 million federal contract.
- Unknown No new vote date is known, and the claims are allegations.
The Senate chose to wait for its own investigation before asking the governor to remove the Family Secretary.
What the Senate Did and Did Not Do
The Senate of Puerto Rico postponed Senate Concurrent Resolution 23 on Thursday, El Nuevo Día reported on 12 November. The text would withdraw the Senate’s advice and consent, the confirmation it gave when it approved Roig, and demand that Governor Jenniffer González Colón remove her immediately.
A concurrent resolution carries no force of law and does not bind the executive, El Nuevo Día reported. Metro Puerto Rico, a local news site, described the text as a formal demand of the body.
Luis Javier Hernández, a Popular Democratic Party (PPD) spokesman, said withdrawing consent from a nominee would be a first in history for the Senate, El Nuevo Día reported. The Senate did not take that step on Thursday.
In Plain English
A concurrent resolution is a formal statement by the Senate that does not become law. Advice and consent is the Senate’s confirmation of a cabinet nominee, here the consent it gave when it confirmed Roig.
TANF, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, is a US federal welfare block grant. ADSEF is the Family Socioeconomic Development Administration, an agency that Blanca Medina Díaz formerly headed.
The PNP is the governing New Progressive Party, and the PIP is the Independence Party. NOLA Education is the firm named in the contract at the centre of the claims.
What the Resolution Accuses Her Of
Independence Party (PIP) senators Adrián González Costa and María de Lourdes Santiago filed the resolution, and Hernández joined them. It had a positive report from the Internal Affairs committee chaired by Senate President Thomas Rivera Schatz, Metro Puerto Rico reported.
According to Metro Puerto Rico’s summary of the text, the resolution cites sworn testimony by Blanca Medina Díaz, former head of the Family Socioeconomic Development Administration (ADSEF). She said Roig pressured her to sign a contract of US$37.5 million to US$38 million in federal TANF funds with NOLA Education, a contractor.
The same summary says NOLA Education acknowledged paying US$13,525.05 for food, drink and transport for Roig’s group on a trip to Louisiana. It adds that Roig had testified under oath that the costs were paid in cash.
Hernández, the PPD’s spokesman, said Roig was away on vacation during the debate, Metro Puerto Rico reported. He called the crisis at the Family department unprecedented.
Why the Vote Was Put Off
Senator Ángel Toledo López, of the governing New Progressive Party (PNP), asked to postpone the vote until the Senate’s Family committee finishes its investigation. The motion passed 18-9, according to El Nuevo Día.
Telemundo Puerto Rico, a local TV news site, added that Toledo also asked to soften “demand” to “recommend” the removal. Senate President Thomas Rivera Schatz said the resolution has “merits” and that he favours Roig’s exit, but he voted to postpone, El Nuevo Día reported.
Metro Puerto Rico reported that Rivera Schatz argued approving the resolution would make the Senate’s own investigation academic. The inquiry in question is the one run by the Senate’s Family committee, which Toledo’s motion says must finish first.
Separately, Senator Juan Oscar Morales Rodríguez of the PNP filed new referrals on Thursday, among them to the Office of Government Ethics, the island’s ethics watchdog. Telemundo Puerto Rico reported that they cover a US$355,646.50 Family department contract with SAMU Foundation Corp., a contractor, and a September 2025 Spain trip approved at US$14,542.95.
What to Watch Next
At least two inquiries are now running: the Senate’s Family committee investigation and the Justice Department’s preliminary review. Toledo’s motion ties any new vote to the first of them.
Puerto Rico’s Justice Department opened its 90-day review on 20 October 2026, and Justice said at the time that the review does not mean a crime was committed. Counted from that date, the 90 days end about 18 January 2027, according to our earlier article.
What This Means for You
Residents who rely on the Family department for federal welfare money have a stake in how TANF contracts are overseen. The resolution’s claims concern US$37.5 million to US$38 million of that money, but they are claims, not findings.
Readers following the territory can find more in our Puerto Rico coverage and in our earlier report on the Senate’s summons to Deloitte, a consulting firm. Both add context to the Senate’s scrutiny of public contracts and payments.
What Is Not Known
As of 13 November neither inquiry has announced findings, and no date is known for a new vote on the resolution. The claims cited are allegations, not findings, and no charge had been filed as of our 21 October article.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can the Senate remove the Family Secretary?
Not through this resolution, which is a concurrent resolution with no force of law that does not bind the governor. It would only demand that Governor Jenniffer González Colón remove her.
Did the Senate vote on the resolution?
It voted 18-9 to postpone the resolution, not to approve it. The vote on the demand itself is still pending, and no new date is known.
What is TANF?
TANF stands for Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, a US federal welfare block grant. The resolution cites a US$37.5 million to US$38 million contract of TANF funds.
Sources: El Nuevo Día, 12 November 2026; Telemundo Puerto Rico, 12 November 2026; Metro Puerto Rico, 12 November 2026.
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