Former Senator Bennett Johnston (D-LA), a long term member of Congress who demonstrated strong leadership on Puerto Rico self-determination, died on March 25, 2025. He was 92 years old.
Johnston was also instrumental in shaping U.S. energy policy and served as top Democrat on the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee for many years.
Chair of Natural Resources
As the chair of the Senate Energy & Natural Resources Committee, which has jurisdiction over Puerto Rico’s political status, Johnston spent a lot of time working to establish feasible options for Puerto Rico voters in status plebiscites.
In a 1989 Senate hearing on the subject, which he chaired, he explained that “[t]he process we begin today is designed to give the people of Puerto Rico realistic options from which they can choose and expect that an option will be implemented.” He then described the three bills being considered in the hearing, recommending passage of the specific proposal (S. 712) that “would go into effect according to the terms of legislation at that time already enacted by Congress,” explaining that the bill “would thus avoid the need and the uncertainty of having to return to Congress after an initial referendum to negotiate further legislation on the details of implementation and transition.”
This was later the plan intended for the Puerto Rico Status Act, which passed in the House in 2022 but did not receive a vote in the Senate despite amassing a strong list of cosponsors.
Johnston emphasized that Puerto Rico’s political status is an important national issue, and he recognized its inclusion in President George H.W. Bush’s State of the Union address in 1989, Bush’s first State of the Union upon becoming President.
President Bush notably stated in his State of the Union message: “I’ve long believed that the people of Puerto Rico should have the right to determine their own political future. Personally, I strongly favor statehood. But I urge the Congress to take the necessary steps to allow the people to decide in a referendum.”
Johnston stood out for his insistence that Puerto Rico voters should have a clear understanding of the consequences of choices among the possible status options. For example, he fought to keep information about the tax changes that would come with statehood in the status bill he defended, ands he confirmed and publicized the findings by the Congressional Research Service that promises of continued U.S. citizenship under Puerto Rican independence were unfounded.
Read Sen. Bennett’s remarks at the June 1, 1989 congressional hearing.
Continued concerns
Johnston dealt with many issues in his work to help Puerto Rico reach a permanent political status: taxes, citizenship, economics, trade, the application of federal laws to Puerto Rico, and more. These issues continue to be discussed in the context of Puerto Rico’s political status.
In fact, many of the questions that Johnston was able to answer are still being asked, even though the answers have already been clearly given.
Senator Bennett Johnston is mourned by his wife, four children, and ten grandchildren, as well as his constituents and his colleagues in Congress.
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