To amend the Revised Organic Act of the Virgin Islands to provide for direct review by the United States Supreme Court of decisions of the Virgin Islands Supreme Court, and for other purposes.
Public Law 112-226 · H.R. 6116 · 112th Congress · began in the House
Signed by Barack Obama (D) on Dec 28, 2012 · Law
Sponsor: Rep. Donna Christensen (D-VI)
Cosponsors (33): Rep. Eni Faleomavaega, Rep. Madeleine Bordallo,
Passage votes
- HouseVoice vote
- SenateUnanimous consent
Data notes
The final version of the law, as each chamber passed it. A chamber that passed it by voice vote or unanimous consent has no count. “Method not stated” means the record does not say how the chamber voted. Where the record has a member-by-member vote, the “Who voted for it” section shows who voted yea.
Summary
The Congressional Research Service’s plain-language summary of what the law does.
Amends the Revised Organic Act of the Virgin Islands, with respect to the judicial procedure for appealing from the decisions of courts of the Virgin Islands to courts of the United States, to remove the temporary jurisdiction of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit to review by a writ of certiorari the final decisions of the highest court of the Virgin Islands.
Authorizes final judgments or decrees rendered by the Supreme Court of the Virgin Islands to be reviewed by the U.S. Supreme Court by writ of certiorari where the validity of a treaty or statute of the United States is drawn in question or where the validity of a statute of the Virgin Islands is drawn in question on the ground of its being repugnant to the Constitution, treaties, or laws of the United States, or where any title, right, privilege, or immunity is specially set up or claimed under the Constitution or the treaties or statutes of, or any commission held or authority exercised under, the United States.
Applies such U.S. Supreme Court reviewing authority to cases commenced on or after enactment of this Act.
Committees
The committees the bill was sent to, and what each did with it.
Judiciary Committee · House · referred toSubcommittee: Courts, Intellectual Property, Artificial Intelligence, and the Internet Subcommittee
Data notes
A committee links to its page only where it exists in the current Congress; older and renamed committees are named without a link.
Related bills
The record lists no related bills.
Data notes
Related bills are identified by the Congressional Research Service, the House and the Senate: companion and identical bills, bills with similar text, bills that were folded into this law, and rules that brought it to the floor. A bill that is itself a public law in this site’s data links here; the others link to Congress.gov.
Timeline
From introduction to signing, newest first: the committees, the floor and the president. 16 actions.
- Dec 28, 2012Became lawBecame law · Became Public Law No: 112-226.
- Became lawBecame law · Signed by President.
- Dec 19, 2012FloorFloor · Presented to President.
- Dec 14, 2012FloorFloor · Message on Senate action sent to the House.
- Dec 13, 2012FloorFloor · Passed Senate without amendment by Unanimous Consent.
- CommitteeCommittee · Senate Committee on the Judiciary discharged by Unanimous Consent.
- Nov 15, 2012CommitteeCommittee · Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.
- Nov 14, 2012FloorFloor · The title of the measure was amended. Agreed to without objection.
- FloorFloor · Motion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.
- FloorFloor · On motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill, as amended Agreed to by voice vote.
- FloorFloor · DEBATE - The House proceeded with forty minutes of debate on H.R. 6116.
- FloorFloor · Considered under suspension of the rules.
- FloorFloor · Mr. Coble moved to suspend the rules and pass the bill, as amended.
- Jul 19, 2012CommitteeCommittee · Referred to the Subcommittee on Courts, Commercial and Administrative Law.
- Jul 12, 2012CommitteeCommittee · Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.
- IntroducedIntroduced · Introduced in House
Data notes
Every action the Library of Congress lists for the bill, from introduction to signing, plus the dated committee hearings. The source lists many steps twice (the chamber’s own entry and the Library of Congress copy, or a presidential and a became-law entry with the same words); those are shown once. Amendments are listed in their own section.
Amendments
No amendments to this bill are on record.
Data notes
Amendments offered to this bill in either chamber, as the Library of Congress records them: each with a status read from its last recorded step: agreed to, rejected, withdrawn, ruled out of order, fell with another amendment, or offered with no vote recorded (most Senate amendments are only ever offered). The wording of each amendment is the source’s. Amendments to amendments and amendments to other bills are not listed.
Official record
The bill’s full text is on Congress.gov. Data through Oct 7, 2026.