<P> Statehood might be useful as a means of dealing with the financial crisis, since it would allow for bankruptcy and the relevant protection . According to the Government Development Bank, this might be the only solution to the debt crisis . Congress has the power to vote to allow Chapter 9 protection without the need for statehood, but in late 2015 there was very little support in the House for this concept . Other benefits to statehood include increased disability benefits and Medicaid funding, the right to vote in Presidential elections and the higher (federal) minimum wage . </P> <P> At approximately the same time as the referendum, Puerto Rico's legislators are also expected to vote on a bill that would allow the Governor to draft a state constitution and hold elections to choose senators and representatives to the federal Congress . Regardless of the outcome of the votes, Congress will be the body to make the final decision on the status of Puerto Rico . </P> <P> Various U.S. presidents have signed executive orders to help define, study, and generate activity regarding the political status of Puerto Rico . Three major orders were the 2005, 2007, and 2011 executive orders to establish the President's Task Force on Puerto Rico's Status . </P> <P> The Territories Clause of the United States Constitution (Art . IV, Sec. 3, cl. 2) allows for Congress to "dispose of" Puerto Rico and allow it to become independent of the U.S. (in the same way as the Philippines did in 1945) or, under the authority of the Admissions Clause (Art . IV, Sec. 3, cl. 1) for it to be admitted as a state of the United States (with a vote of Congress in the same way that Alaska and Hawaii were admiited in 1958 and 1959 respectively). </P>

What document represents the first example of self government