1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Puerto Rico Self-Determination Act of 2020 . 2. Findings Congress finds as follows: (1) In 1898, the United States defeated the Spanish Kingdom in the Spanish-American War and acquired by conquest Puerto Rico, Guam, and the Philippines pursuant to the Treaty of Paris. (2) In 1900, Congress established a civilian government on the island through the Foraker Act. Among other points, that Act established an executive council consisting of various department heads and a presidentially appointed civilian governor. (3) The Foraker Act also established the Resident Commissioner position to represent island interests in Congress. These duties came to include nonvoting service in the House of Representatives. (4) In 1901, the Supreme Court’s decisions in Downes v. Bidwell and its progeny held that for purposes of the Constitution’s Uniformity Clause, Puerto Rico was not part of the United States. Justice White, in concurrence, opined that Congress has discretion to decide whether and when to incorporate a territory into the United States. (5) Congress recognized Puerto Rico’s authority over matters of internal governance in 1950 with the passage of the Puerto Rico Federal Relations Act of 1950, Public Law 81–600 , providing for a constitutional government for the island which was adopted by Congress as a compact for the people of Puerto Rico and the subsequent ratification of the island’s constitution in July 1952. (6) On November 18, 1953, the United Nations recognized Puerto Rico as a self-governing political entity under the United Nations General Assembly Resolution 748. (7) The United States has a legal duty to comply with Article 1 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which establishes that all peoples have the right to self-determination and by virtue of that right they freely determine their political status and freely pursue their economic, social and cultural development . (8) The status convention provides a deliberative, comprehensive, and