2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE THREE - Executive (§§ 1 — 9311) › Chapter 114 - Government of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico Special Fiscal and Operational Sustainability Act (§§ 9101 — 9153) › Subchapter II - Measures To Cut Back On Spending In The Executive Branch (§§ 9111 — 9129) › § 9112 - Reduction in the Contracting of Professional and Purchased Services of the Executive Branch

The annual expenditures incurred in purchased or professional services by each Entity of the Executive Branch shall be reduced by at least ten percent (10%) vis-á-vis the expenditures incurred in Fiscal Year 2014, and shall remain below said level during the effectiveness of this subchapter.
This reduction shall apply to all purchased and professional services, contracted through all sources of funds, and apply independently to the total annual expenditure incurred in purchased or professional services chargeable to the General Fund. The implementation of this measure may be carried out through any of the following options or a combination thereof:
(i) the renegotiation of rate structure, costs, or sum of existing contracts or to be renewed, with the appropriate documentation;
(ii) limiting the award of contracts for essential services;
(iii) the cancellation or nonrenewal of nonessential contracts;
(iv) the reduction in the scope or service hours included in contracts.
Purchased or professional services shall include, but are not limited to, liability insurance, property insurance, or other type of insurance that is not related to the rendering of medical or healthcare services; technological support services; technical support services; professional services requiring State-issued licenses such as engineers, attorneys, certified public accountants, architects, surveyors, appraisers, among others; technical services requiring license such as expert electricians, master plumbers, auto technicians, among others; consulting or advisory services; advertising services; public relations or representation services; payment of advertisements or spots in mass media; communications and telecommunications services; customer or subscriber services; billing or collection services; lobbying services; security services; cleaning or maintenance services; infrastructure repair or maintenance services; public buildings or structures repair or maintenance services; landscape maintenance services; human resources or management consulting services; and miscellaneous services. Purchased or professional family or healthcare services geared to provide direct services to children and the elderly and to children with special education needs, among other essential services of this kind are hereby excluded. The Entities of the Executive Branch and the Office of Management and Budget shall implement the necessary safeguards to ensure that the provisions of this section do not result in a loss of Federal funding.
Every entity of the Executive Branch shall be required to submit within ninety (90) days a report to the Legislative Assembly including and itemizing any executed purchased or professional services contracts to which the expenditure reduction provided for in this Section shall apply, including contracts that are not under said category, but the services provided thereunder include professional and purchased services. Every Entity of the Executive Branch shall annually certify to the Office of Management and Budget, on or before July 31st, 2014, and every subsequent July 31st, the expenditures incurred in purchased or professional services; expenditure shall be understood as the sums of the contracts entered into or purchases made during the preceding fiscal year, regardless of the amount billed or paid for such services, including an itemization per source of funds, to wit, Federal, special, own income, General Fund, or other. On July 31st, 2014, expenditures incurred in both Fiscal Year ending on June 30th, 2013 and in Fiscal Year ending on June 30th, 2014 shall be certified.
On or before August 30th, 2014, and every August 30th thereafter, the Office of Management and Budget shall file with the Legislative Assembly and the Office of the Governor a report of the certifications received. If the head of an entity of the Executive Branch fails to submit the required certification as of the corresponding July 31st, the Office of Management and Budget shall issue a notice of noncompliance in an amount that shall be equal to an expenditure of twenty-five percent (25%) over the preceding year level. The Office of Management and Budget shall send a letter stating the over-expenditure to the head of those Entities of the Executive Branch whose reports show a noncompliance in the previous year. For those Entities of the Executive Branch whose operating expenses are covered under the Operating Expenses Joint Resolution, the Office of Management and Budget shall transfer, on or before September 30th, 2014, or every September 30th thereafter, from the operating expenses account, the amount overspent in the previous year, which shall be covered into the Budget Fund to be used as provided in this subchapter. The Entities of the Executive Branch that have their own budget, the appointing authority or his/her representative shall be authorized and required to make a payment to the Secretary of the Treasury in the amount of the notified over-expenditure to be covered into the Budget Fund. Said payment may be made on equal installments for the remainder of the fiscal year; however, the first payment shall be made not later than thirty (30) days after the date of the Office of Management and Budget notice. Entities of the Executive Branch shall not deduct any valuable consideration or obligation that the State may owe to them or that they have in their favor from the payment of the amount of the over-expenditure stated in the notice.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Office of Management and Budget may deduct any State’s debt from the over-expenditure notified to an Entity of the Executive Branch in accordance with this subchapter.
The Office of Management and Budget shall issue the rules that shall govern this requirement.
History —June 17, 2014, No. 66, § 6.