How the Trump executive orders are impacting the US territories
In the first 90 days of President Trump's administration, he signed 130 executive orders, marking the highest first-year count since President Harry Truman. Despite a lack of representation in the United States Senate or votes in the House, the US territories have...
#TBT: May 1, 2025
On May 17, 1921, Rear Admiral Summer E.W. Kitelle, the third governor under the Naval Department, issued an executive order creating a US Virgin Islands flag. He approached Percival Wilson Sparks, a cartoonist, and asked for suggestions for a flag design.
Google Trends in the US territories: March 2025
Welcome back to our monthly series examining the top Google Trends in Puerto Rico, Guam, the United States Virgin Islands, American Samoa, and the Northern Mariana Islands. Trends data is an unbiased sample of Google search data. It’s anonymized (no one is...
Puerto Rico faces renewable energy crossroads
Puerto Rico Governor Jenniffer González-Colón (NPP, R) has recently backed a polarizing bill, leading to a contentious hearing on the future of renewable energy on the islands. The proposed action would extend the operation of Puerto Rico’s coal-fired plant, which has...
Governor Palacios attends inaugural Saipan–Rota flight ceremony
Governor Arnold I. Palacios (R) joined community leaders and airline officials on April 21, 2025, at an inaugural flight ceremony for Micronesian Air Connection Services (MACS), marking the launch of a new Saipan–Rota–Saipan air route. Palacios said the new service...
#TBT: April 24, 2025
On April 23, 1898, Maria Cristina, in the name of her son, King Alfonso XIII, and as Queen Regent of the Kingdom as Queen Regent of the Kingdom of Spain, declared war on the United States. The war resulted in Spain's loss of Puerto Rico, Guam, and the Philippines as...
US Virgin Islands exempted from proposed maritime fees on Chinese-built vessels
The Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) has issued a final determination exempting the US Virgin Islands from proposed federal maritime fees that would have significantly raised shipping costs for Chinese-built vessels operating in American ports....
Applications open for CENTRO’s 2025–2026 community microgrant program
The Center for Puerto Rican Studies (CENTRO) at Hunter College has opened applications for its 2025–2026 Rooted + Relational Community Microgrant Program. The initiative will award up to 12 microgrants of up to $5,000 each to individuals and grassroots groups working...
Pete Hegseth’s Guam visit met with mixed reception
As part of his Indo-Pacific tour, United States Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth recently visited Guam on March 27. He met with several civilian and military leaders, most notably Guam Governor Lou Leon Guerrero (D) and Northern Mariana Islands Governor Arnold...
American Samoa Medicaid summit focuses on healthcare access and equity
Leaders from government, healthcare, and the community convened in American Samoa from March 24 to 26 for the territory’s annual Medicaid Health Summit. Organized by the American Samoa Medicaid State Agency, the event focused on expanding access to care and...
