Earlier today, in United States v. Vaello-Madero, an 8-1 Supreme Court ruled that Congress can exclude residents of Puerto Rico and other federal territories from SSI benefits extended to residents of the fifty states. The ruling is consistent with precedent under which, among other things, Congress also exempts residents of Puerto Rico from most federal income, estate, and excise taxes. But Justice Neil Gorsuch took the opportunity to author a concurring opinion urging the Supreme Court to reverse the Insular Cases - longstanding precedents under which residents of Puerto Rico and other "unincorporated" territories are excluded from the protection of many of the constitutional rights that apply to residents of the states and conventional federally administered territories (including Washington DC).
