2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE TWELVE - Conservation (§§ 1-16 — 8162) › Subtitle 8 - Environment II (§§ 8001 — 8162) › Chapter 501 - Environmental Public Policy (§§ 8001 — 8007f) › Subchapter II - Environmental Quality Board (§§ 8002 — 8002p) › § 8002a - Creation; members; terms

(a) The Environmental Quality Board is hereby created, to be attached to the Office of the Governor of Puerto Rico. The Board shall be constituted by three (3) associate members, to be appointed by the Governor of Puerto Rico with the advice and consent of the Senate of Puerto Rico. Associate members shall devote all their working hours to serving on the Board. The term for each associate member shall be four years; Provided, That the first appointments to be made under this chapter are to be staggered, for a term of two (2), three (3), and four (4) years, respectively. Each member shall hold office until his/her successor is appointed and takes office. Any vacancy arising before the corresponding term is lapsed, shall be covered by appointing a new member for the part of the term yet to be lapsed. All agreements or decisions of the Governing Board shall be made official by the affirmative vote of the majority of its members.
(b) The Governor shall designate one Board member to serve as the Chair, who shall hold office at the will of the Governor. The Chair, in turn, may designate one of the associate members of the Board to serve as the Vice Chair, who, during temporary absences of the Chair, may serve as Chair Pro Tem until the Chair returns to office or the vacancy is filled. In the event that vacancies or temporary absences arise in both offices simultaneously, the other associate member shall serve as Chair Pro Tem. The Chair and the associate members of the Environmental Quality Board shall earn the salary provided for under the law.
(c) The Governor of Puerto Rico shall also appoint an alternate member for a four (4)-year term, to substitute associate members in cases such as vacancy, illness, leave with or without pay, vacation leave, temporary absences or inability of any such members, so that the latter discharge the functions or perform the tasks entrusted by the Chair as he/she may deem necessary in order to accomplish the purposes of this chapter or that such member discharge any other functions entrusted to him/her under this or other laws.
Such alternate member shall earn, on account of per diems, the amount of seventy-five dollars ($75) for each day he/she is discharging functions as an active member of the Board; Provided, That when the appointment falls on an official or employee of the Government of Puerto Rico, such member shall earn no per diems whatsoever.
(d) The Chair, as well as the other two associate members and the alternate member of the Board shall, as a result of their training and experience, be persons of renowned capability in environmental protection and conservation matters and shall have no conflicts of interests that might interfere with the discharge of their offices.
(e) The present members of the Governing Board shall remain in office until the lapsing of their term as assigned pursuant to Act No. 9 of June 18, 1970, as amended, known as the “Environmental Public Policy Act”.
History —Sept. 22, 2004, No. 416, § 7, eff. 6 months after Sept. 22, 2004.