The Council of Secretaries of Puerto Rico () is the group composed by the heads of the executive departments of the government of Puerto Rico. The Council is charged with leading the different sectors of

public administration Public administration, or public policy and administration refers to "the management of public programs", or the "translation of politics into the reality that citizens see every day",Kettl, Donald and James Fessler. 2009. ''The Politics of the ...

within the government and does not constitute an agency by itself. The Council, together with the Cabinet-level officers, compose the Cabinet of Puerto Rico.

Background

The establishment of the Council is proclaimed by Article IV of the

Constitution of Puerto Rico The Constitution of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico () is the primary organizing law for the unincorporated U.S. territory of Puerto Rico, describing the duties, powers, structures and functions of the government of Puerto Rico in nine art ...

which establishes that the Governor shall be assisted by

Secretaries A secretary, administrative assistant, executive assistant, Personal assistant, personal secretary, or other similar titles is an individual whose work consists of supporting management, including executives, using a variety of project manageme ...

whom shall collectively constitute the Governor's advisory council and be designated as the ''Council of Secretaries''. Each Secretary is nominated by the

Governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

and then presented to the

Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

for

advice and consent Advice and consent is an English phrase frequently used in List of enacting formulae, enacting formulae of bill (proposed law), bills and in other legal or constitutional contexts. It describes either of two situations: where a weak executive ...

by a simple majorityexcept for the Secretary of State who requires the advice and consent of both the Senate and the

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entities. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often ...

. If the Secretaries are confirmed they are sworn in and begin their duties immediately afterwards. However, Secretaries appointed during a legislative recess may begin serving immediately under a recess appointment until the end of the following regular session of the Legislative Assembly, or rejected by the Senate, whichever occurs first, should they not be confirmed. The

established eight Secretaries, namely: the Secretary of Agriculture and Commerce,

Education Education is the transmission of knowledge and skills and the development of character traits. Formal education occurs within a structured institutional framework, such as public schools, following a curriculum. Non-formal education als ...

Health Health has a variety of definitions, which have been used for different purposes over time. In general, it refers to physical and emotional well-being, especially that associated with normal functioning of the human body, absent of disease, p ...

Justice In its broadest sense, justice is the idea that individuals should be treated fairly. According to the ''Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy'', the most plausible candidate for a core definition comes from the ''Institutes (Justinian), Inst ...

, Labor, Public Works,

State State most commonly refers to: * State (polity), a centralized political organization that regulates law and society within a territory **Sovereign state, a sovereign polity in international law, commonly referred to as a country **Nation state, a ...

, and

Treasury A treasury is either *A government department related to finance and taxation, a finance ministry; in a business context, corporate treasury. *A place or location where treasure, such as currency or precious items are kept. These can be ...

. The Secretary of Agriculture and Commerce evolved into two different posts: the

Secretary of Agriculture The United States secretary of agriculture is the head of the United States Department of Agriculture. The position carries similar responsibilities to those of agriculture ministers in other governments The department includes several organiz ...

and the Secretary of Economic Development and Commerce, while the Secretary of Labor evolved into the Secretary of Labor and Human Resources, and the Secretary of Public Works into the Secretary of Transportation and Public Works. The creation of more executive departments by Puerto Rican law established more Secretaries, namely: the Secretary of Consumer Affairs, Corrections and Rehabilitation,

Family Affairs ''Family Affairs'' is a British soap opera that aired on Channel 5. It debuted on 30 March 1997, the day of the launch of said channel and was the first programme broadcast on the channel. It was screened as five thirty-minute episodes per w ...

Housing Housing refers to a property containing one or more Shelter (building), shelter as a living space. Housing spaces are inhabited either by individuals or a collective group of people. Housing is also referred to as a human need and right to ...

, Natural and Environmental Resources, and Sports and Recreation.

Current posts

References

{{reflist, 2, refs= {{cite constitution , article=IV , section=5 , url=http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Constitution_of_the_Commonwealth_of_Puerto_Rico#ARTICLE_IV_THE_EXECUTIVE , country=Puerto Rico , ratified=July 25, 1952 , accessdate=December 28, 2012 {{cite constitution , article=IV , section=6 , url=http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Constitution_of_the_Commonwealth_of_Puerto_Rico#ARTICLE_IV_THE_EXECUTIVE , country=Puerto Rico , ratified=July 25, 1952 , accessdate=December 28, 2012 {{cite act , url=http://www.presupuesto.gobierno.pr/PresupuestosAnteriores/af2009_2010/Tomo_II/suppdocs/baselegal/055/ley60.pdf , number=60 , date=1940 , language=Spanish , accessdate=December 29, 2012 , title=Department of Agriculture Act {{citation, url=http://www2.pr.gov/agencias/ddec/concealdepartamento/Documents/LeyOrgnanica.pdf, title=Reorganization Plan No. 4 of 1994 , language=Spanish , accessdate=December 29, 2012 {{cite act , url=http://www2.pr.gov/presupuestos/presupuesto2012-2013/PresupuestoRecomendado2013/suppdocs/baselegal/067/067b.pdf , number=100 , date=1977 , language=Spanish , accessdate=December 29, 2012 {{citation, url=http://www.presupuesto.gobierno.pr/PresupuestosAnteriores/af2009_2010/Tomo_II/suppdocs/baselegal/049/049-plan.pdf, title=Reorganization Plan No. 6 of1971 , language=Spanish , accessdate=December 29, 2012 {{cite act , url=http://www.presupuesto.gobierno.pr/PresupuestosAnteriores/AF99/BASLEGAL/069/Ley5.htm , number=5 , date=1973 , language=Spanish , accessdate=December 29, 2012 , title=Department of Consumer Affairs Organic Law {{citation, url=http://www.presupuesto.gobierno.pr/PresupuestosAnteriores/af2008_2009/Tomo_II/suppdocs/baselegal/137/137.pdf, title=Reorganization Plan No. 3 of 1993 , language=Spanish , accessdate=December 29, 2012 {{cite act , url=http://www2.pr.gov/agencias/secretariado/Documents/Base%20Legal/Ley171DepartamentoFamilia.pdf , number=171 , date=1968 , language=Spanish , accessdate=December 29, 2012 , title=Department of Family Affairs Organic Law {{cite act , url=http://www.presupuesto.gobierno.pr/PresupuestosAnteriores/af2003/baseLegal/BASE%20LEGAL/078/Ley97.htm , number=10 , date=1972 , language=Spanish , accessdate=December 29, 2012 , title=Department of Housing Organic Law {{cite act , url=http://www.presupuesto.gobierno.pr/PresupuestosAnteriores/af2009_2010/Tomo_II/suppdocs/baselegal/050/050.pdf , number=23 , date=1972 , language=Spanish , accessdate=December 29, 2012 , title=Department of Natural and Environmental Resources Organic Law {{cite act , url=http://www.presupuesto.gobierno.pr/PresupuestosAnteriores/af2008_2009/Tomo_II/suppdocs/baselegal/087/087.pdf , number=8 , date=2004 , language=Spanish , accessdate=December 29, 2012 , title=Department of Sports and Recreation Organic Law Members of the Cabinet of Puerto Rico