Puerto Rico’s Senate is set to vote Thursday, November 12, on a measure demanding that Governor Jenniffer González remove Suzanne Roig Fuertes as secretary of the Family Department. It is the last day to pass new legislation in the fourth ordinary session of the four-year term. Senate Joint Resolution 23 was authored by Puerto Rican Independence Party (PIP) senators María de Lourdes Santiago and Adrián González, with Luis Javier Hernández, Popular Democratic Party (PPD) spokesman, as co-author.
It has a favorable report from the Internal Affairs Committee, led by Senate President Thomas Rivera Schatz. The resolution says there is a general demand from the people for Roig Fuertes to step down and that insisting otherwise "borders on abuse of power." It cites her failure to tell the Senate about a 2021 referral to the Justice Department tied to a $60,000-a-month contract for the care of a single patient at the Health Department, where she was on detail.
It also cites the controversy since September 2026 after the firing of former Family Socioeconomic Development Administration (ADSEF) head Blanca Medina, who alleged Roig Fuertes pressured and harassed her to grant a $38 million TANF-funded contract to NOLA Education; the contract was later canceled. It followed a trip to New Orleans by Roig Fuertes and six Family employees.
The Senate, Justice, federal authorities and the Office of the Inspector General are investigating. The Senate also referred a trip to the SAMU Foundation in Seville, Spain, which received a $355,646 contract. The Senate unanimously gave her 48 hours on October 22 to turn over documents or face civil contempt. The measure would also go to the House.