U.S. Supreme Court to decide on access to SSI benefits for U.S. citizens living in Puerto Rico

On Tuesday, the U.S. Supreme Court will hear arguments in U.S. v Vaello-Madero, ultimately determining the constitutionality of denying Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits to aging and disabled U.S. citizens living in Puerto Rico, an unincorporated United States territory.

In June, the federal government filed a brief to the U.S. Supreme Court arguing that Congress has the authority to withhold SSI benefits from U.S. citizens depending on their place of residence.

In the 57-page filing, the Justice Department urged the nation’s top court to reverse a U.S. Court of Appeals ruling that ensured Puerto Ricans could access SSI benefits, most of which are meant to assist elderly, blind and disabled people suffering from financial hardships.

“It is to Congress that the Constitution has entrusted the power to govern territories and to spend money for the general welfare,” the Justice Department said.

According to Hermann Ferre, the attorney arguing on behalf of the respondent in United States v. Vaello-Madero, an estimated 700,000 Puerto Ricans would qualify for such benefits.

Since the program's founding in 1972, SSI benefits have only been made available to U.S. citizens living in the 50 states, the District of Columbia and the Northern Mariana Islands.

The genesis of the potentially landmark case dates back to 2013 when Jose Luis Vaello-Madero moved from New York to Puerto Rico to care for his family. In 2016, the federal government informed Vaello-Madero that he was no longer eligible for SSI benefits based on his new residency and sued him to recover the benefits he had already received.

While Puerto Rico currently has a parallel supplemental benefits program in place called Aid to the Aged, Blind and Disabled, the program is certainly flawed and difficult to access.

Individuals must make less than $65 per month to qualify, compared with $750 monthly for the SSI benefits program. “The average benefit received under Puerto Rico’s program is $77 a month, compared with $533 with the Social Security program,” the AP reported.

A choir of advocates for a Puerto Rico-friendly reform includes voices from the American Bar Association, the Hispanic Federation, LatinoJustice PRLDEF and even the Biden administration, whose Justice Department is actually fighting against Vaello-Madero.

In an interview with NBC News, Puerto Rico Gov. Pedro Pierluisi said the way the Biden administration "went about this and the way that they are defending it is not right."

If the Supreme Court doesn't side with Puerto Ricans on the island, however, Pierluisi said, "I'm confident that Congress will."