2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE THIRTEEN - Taxation and Finance (§§ 1 — 33423) › Subtitle 2 - Taxation In General (§§ 161 — 393) › Chapter 45 - Hospital Facilities Tax Exemption (§§ 371 — 378) › § 373a - Governing principles for the granting of incentives

In the evaluation, analysis, consideration, award, renegotiation, and revision of any incentives or benefits granted under this chapter, the Department of Health and the Secretary thereof shall be required to oversee and ensure compliance with the following governing principles as provided below:
(a) Jobs.— The hospital unit and the operators thereof shall promote the creation of new jobs.
(b) Commitment to economic activity.— The hospital unit and the operators thereof shall acquire raw materials and products manufactured in Puerto Rico for the construction, maintenance, renovation or expansion of the physical facilities thereof. If the purchase of said products cannot be financially justified when taking into account criteria such as the quality, quantity, price, or availability of these products in Puerto Rico, the Secretary of the Department of Health may issue a certificate attesting to such fact.
(c) Commitment to agriculture.— The hospital unit and the operators thereof shall acquire agricultural products of Puerto Rico for the operation thereof. If the purchase of said products cannot be financially justified when taking into account criteria such as the quality, quantity, price, or availability of these products in Puerto Rico, the Secretary of Health may issue a certificate attesting to such fact.
(d) Transfer of knowledge.— The hospital unit and the operators thereof shall acquire services from professionals or companies with a presence in Puerto Rico. However, if this is not possible due to criteria such as availability, experience, specificity, or skill or any other valid reason recognized by the Secretary of Health, the hospital unit may acquire such services through an intermediary with a presence in Puerto Rico, which shall contract directly with the service provider chosen by the hospital unit, in order to receive the requested services.
The term “services” shall mean, solely, the contracting of jobs relating to:
(1) Surveying, the production of construction plans, as well as engineering and architectural designs, and related services;
(2) construction and all that pertains to this sector;
(3) financial, environmental, management, marketing, human resources, and auditing consulting services;
(4) advertising, public relations, commercial art, and graphic design services; and
(5) security or facility maintenance.
(e) Financial commitment.— The hospital unit and the operators thereof shall submit proof that they use the services of, and that they deposit a significant amount of the income derived from their economic activity in, banking and/or cooperative institutions with a presence in Puerto Rico. If the financial activity cannot be financially justified when taking into account criteria such as the availability or accessibility of these institutions in Puerto Rico, the Secretary of Health may issue a certificate attesting to such fact.
The Secretary of the Department of Health shall be the official responsible firstly, for verifying and ensuring that the hospital unit and its operators meet the eligibility requirements established in this section and this chapter, except as otherwise provided.
If the hospital unit and the operators thereof partially meet the requirements established in this section, the Secretary of the Department of Health shall be required to establish a formula, with the advice of the Secretary of the Treasury, that allows for the quantification of the aforementioned factors, and for the subtraction of the requirements that have not been met from the total percentage of the specific credit, in order to obtain the exact percentage of the benefit in question.
The Secretary of the Department of Health shall draft an annual report to be filed with the Governor and the Legislative Assembly, stating in detail with figures and statistics the oversight, impact, and compliance with the provisions of this section and § 373 of this title.
The governing principles established in this section shall apply to every hospital unit and the operators thereof that apply for any of the benefits awarded under this chapter after January 1 st, 2015.
History —June 30, 1968, No. 168, p. 606, added as § 3 -A on Nov. 17, 2015, No. 187, § 24.