page_title: Puerto Rico State Guard
section_title: Role
hierarchical_section_title: Puerto Rico State Guard / Role
caption_attribution_description: English: Lt. Governor Addresses the State Defense Force Conference by Joe Andrucyk at The Hotel at Arundel Preserve. 7795 Arundel Mills Blvd. Hanover Maryland 21076
context_page_description: The Puerto Rico State Guard —Spanish: Guardia Estatal de Puerto Rico— is the state defense force of Puerto Rico that operates under the sole authority of the governor of Puerto Rico who, in turn, delegates such authority to the Puerto Rico Adjutant General. The Guard's secondary purpose is to assume the state mission of the Puerto Rico National Guard in the event that the National Guard is mobilized. The first incarnation of the PRSG was created in 1941 in response to World War II and it disbanded in 1946. The PRSG is one of the few state defense forces of the United States that has an air division.
context_section_description: The task of the PRSG is to offer support, in its totality, to the Puerto Rico National Guard (PRNG) when the latter is activated by the Governor of Puerto Rico or called to active service by the President of the United States. The PRSG also represents the Puerto Rico National Guard in civic activities, and supports the PRNG in cases of emergencies.
  With the approved resources, the State Guard of Puerto Rico will be able to recruit and to train personnel to provide the security and defense with the armories; as well as to assist the civilian authorities in cases of natural disasters, emergencies and serious disturbances of public order. These volunteers will offer support and provide services to the community by means of health clinics.
  In the PRSG, there is a large representation of prior service soldiers with extensive combat and command experience as well as non-priors with significant professional and paramilitary backgrounds which greatly enhance the organization. A large proportion of PRSG soldiers are active members of State Guard Association of the United States (SGAUS) and a few senior officers and NCOs hold leadership positions in the organization.
  The PRSG have been a very active force multiplier for the PRNG, supporting Federal mobilizations (legal and medical support), and its current mission is to assist the National Guard especially in concern to homeland security and SAR duties (natural disasters, civil disturbances, communities service and facilities management).
  The PRSG is the state's authorized militia and assumes the state mission of the Puerto Rico National Guard in the event the Guard is mobilized. The PRSG comprises retired, active and reserve military personnel and selected professional persons who volunteer their time and talents in further service to their state.
  As a state organized militia, the PRSG ranks are official state military ranks in accordance with the Article 1, Section 8, Clause 16 of the United States Constitution were the US Congress received the power “to provide for organizing, arming, and disciplining, the Militia, and for governing such Part of them as may be employed in the Service of the United States, reserving to the States respectively, the Appointment of the Officers, and the Authority of training the Militia according to the discipline prescribed by Congress”. All PRSG appointments, commissions, warrants, and enlistments are recognized and authorized by the Governor of Puerto Rico through the Adjutant General of PR.  The PRSG military personnel render to all members of the military community, and receive from them, all courtesies common to all such members, such as saluting, and forms of address.
  Unlike the Civil Air Patrol or the United States Coast Guard Auxiliary, the PRSG is a statutory military entity of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico with each PRSG member subject to the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ) per the Military Code of Puerto Rico. Under state law, enlisted members and officers of the PRSG have the same similar legal status, privileges, and /or immunities as members of the state National Guard (in state status) when called to State Active Duty (SAD) or in drill status.
  Generally, the PRSG soldiers and airmen are not paid for drills, UTAs or annual training. However, because the PRSG is a state military force, members are subject to call to state active duty by the governor. When that happens, PRSG members are paid at the same rate of pay for their rank or grade as their National Guard counterparts. The Governor of Puerto Rico may provide for the use of the forces of Puerto Rico State Guard barracks, weapons and equipment from the National Guard of Puerto Rico as are not in current use by that body, as well as those buildings and public properties which are available. The Governor may request the Secretary of the Army of the United States to provide to the Puerto Rico State Guard all the weapons and equipment that could be provided to these forces by the Department of the Army of the United States.
  Like other State Defense Forces, the PRSG is not el
caption: Brigadier General Carlos M. Martínez, commander of the Puerto Rico State Guard, second from the right, attends a State Guard Association conference in October 2015.
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