reglab/statecodes huggingface dataset:
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE EIGHT - Public Welfare and Charitable Institutions (§§ 1 — 1422) › Chapter 18 - Bill of Rights for Elderly Persons (§§ 341 — 347) › § 347 - Other actions reserved

The execution of the action authorized by this chapter is apart from any other civil or criminal action, right or remedy provided by the statutes in effect, and none of its provisions shall limit or impede the execution of such actions, rights or remedies.
History —July 12, 1986, No. 121, p. 389, § 7, renumbered as § 11 on Dec. 17, 2003, No. 305, § 3.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE EIGHT - Public Welfare and Charitable Institutions (§§ 1 — 1422) › Chapter 19 - Establishment for the Elderly (§§ 351 — 368) › § 351 - Short title

This chapter shall be known as the Establishment for the Elderly Act.
History —June 22, 1977, No. 94, p. 209, § 1; Sept. 2, 2000, No. 331, § 4.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE EIGHT - Public Welfare and Charitable Institutions (§§ 1 — 1422) › Chapter 19 - Establishment for the Elderly (§§ 351 — 368) › § 352 - Health and Social Welfare Facilities, partial repeal

This chapter repealed the provisions of §§ 331–333p of Title 24 regarding the supervision, operation and licensing of the establishments mentioned in §§ 332–332g thereof.
History —June 22, 1977, No. 94, p. 209, § 2, eff. 90 days after June 22, 1977.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE EIGHT - Public Welfare and Charitable Institutions (§§ 1 — 1422) › Chapter 19 - Establishment for the Elderly (§§ 351 — 368) › § 353 - Definitions

Definitions for the purposes of this chapter:
(1) Department.— Means the Department of the Family of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.
(2) Institution.— Means any asylum, institute, residence, lodging, annex, center, home, house, mission or shelter devoted to the care of seven (7) or more elderly persons, for twenty-four (24) hours a day, with or without profit.
(3) Daycare home.— Is the home of a family engaged regularly in daycare for pay [for] a maximum of six (6) adults unrelated by blood ties to said family.
(4) Substitute home.— Is the home of a family engaged in the care of not more than six (6) elderly persons, who come from other homes or families, for twenty-four (24) hours a day, with or without profit.
(5) Daycare center.— Means an establishment, with or without pecuniary purposes, where the elderly are provided with a series of services, the majority of which concern health, for people with more than three limitations in their daily life.
(6) Multiple activities center.— Means an establishment, with or without pecuniary purposes where the elderly are provided with a series of services, the majority of which are social and recreational, with the purpose of maintaining or maximizing their independence during part of the twenty-four (24) hours of the day.
(7) Elderly person.— Means a human being sixty (60) years of age or older.
(8) License.— Means a written permit issued by the Department, by virtue of which a natural or [juridical] person is authorized to operate an institution, daycare center, daycare home or substitute home.
(9) Establishment.— Includes any institution, daycare center, substitute home, daycare home, as said terms are defined herein.
History —June 22, 1977, No. 94, p. 209, § 3; Sept. 2, 2000, No. 331, § 4; Jan. 1, 2003, No. 24, § 1.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE EIGHT - Public Welfare and Charitable Institutions (§§ 1 — 1422) › Chapter 19 - Establishment for the Elderly (§§ 351 — 368) › § 354 - Issuance of licenses

The Department shall be the sole agency authorized to issue licenses to any establishment set up in Puerto Rico, for the care of the elderly, and it shall do so taking into consideration the welfare of the latter.
History —June 22, 1977, No. 94, p. 209, § 4; Sept. 2, 2000, No. 331, § 4.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE EIGHT - Public Welfare and Charitable Institutions (§§ 1 — 1422) › Chapter 19 - Establishment for the Elderly (§§ 351 — 368) › § 355 - Unlicensed institutions prohibited

No person, entity, association, corporation, or the Commonwealth Government or any municipality or other political subdivision, or any department, division, board, agency or instrumentality thereof, shall establish, operate or maintain an establishment for the care of the elderly unless, before commencing operations, it requests and is granted the license required by § 354 of this title. Those persons who take care of one (1) or two (2) elderly persons, or any person who takes care of aged persons to whom he is related by consanguinity or affinity shall be exempted from complying with this provision.
History —June 22, 1977, No. 94, p. 209, § 5; July 11, 1988, No. 70, p. 315, § 1; Sept. 2, 2000, No. 331, § 4.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE EIGHT - Public Welfare and Charitable Institutions (§§ 1 — 1422) › Chapter 19 - Establishment for the Elderly (§§ 351 — 368) › § 356 - Inspection of institutions

The Department, through its duly authorized representative, shall visit and inspect, whenever it deems it necessary, but at least once every three (3) months, any establishment for the care of the elderly operating in Puerto Rico, to ascertain whether they are operating in accordance with the provisions in this chapter and the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder. These inspections shall be carried out at the instance of the Department itself, or at the request of the elderly residents of the establishments, or their family members. If the requested investigation is not carried out within the next thirty (30) days after being requested before the Department, the elderly resident or a family member, by means of a form provided and designed by the Department of the Family for such purposes, may appear before the Adjudication Board set forth by means of regulation, to compel the Department to perform the requested inspection. The cause for the submittal of such request shall be stated in said form. It shall be the obligation of the owners, operators, and/or administrators of such establishments to give orientation to the elderly persons and/or their family member in charge of same, regarding the rights of the elderly, pursuant to the dispositions set forth herein. In addition to said orientation, the owners, operators, and/or administrators shall give a copy of the text of this section to the elderly person, or the person in charge of same, on the same day in which the elderly person is moved into the establishment, and the receipt of the orientation and referenced documentation shall be so ratified in writing in a statement by the elderly person and/or the person in charge of same.
History —June 22, 1977, No. 94, p. 209, § 6; July 11, 1988, No. 70, p. 315, § 2; Sept. 2, 2000, No. 331, § 4; June 27, 2003, No. 152, § 1, eff. 30 days after June 27, 2003.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE EIGHT - Public Welfare and Charitable Institutions (§§ 1 — 1422) › Chapter 19 - Establishment for the Elderly (§§ 351 — 368) › § 358 - Licenses issued, not transferable

Each license shall be issued solely for the physical premises and the natural or juridical, public or private person applying for the same and it shall not be transferable, assignable or conveyed. Every duly licensed establishment shall post its license in a place clearly visible to the public.
The sale, conveyance, lease, transfer or assignment, through the payment of a price or gratuitously, of the establishment for the elderly to any natural or juridical person who does not possess a certificate of eligibility from the Department of the Family certifying that said person meets the requirements established by this chapter and its regulations for a license to operate these establishments from the Department, is hereby prohibited.
Any advertisement of sale or any other establishment transaction that directly or indirectly expresses that the transaction will include the resident elderly persons is hereby prohibited.
Any person who violates the provisions of this section will be subject to the penalties established in § 363 of this title. Every sale, conveyance, rental or transfer of an establishment in violation of this section’s provisions shall also be just cause for the cancellation of the license.
History —June 22, 1977, No. 94, p. 209, § 8; July 11, 1988, No. 70, p. 315, § 4.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE EIGHT - Public Welfare and Charitable Institutions (§§ 1 — 1422) › Chapter 19 - Establishment for the Elderly (§§ 351 — 368) › § 359 - Right to appeal

Every licensee or applicant for a license to operate an establishment for the care of the elderly shall have the right to appeal before the Reconsideration Board the Department’s decision cancelling, suspending or denying a license before the Board of Appeals of the Department of the Family, within the term provided by § 2165 of Title 3, the Puerto Rico Uniform Administrative Procedures Act.
History —June 22, 1977, No. 94, p. 209, § 9; July 11, 1988, No. 70, p. 315, § 5; Sept. 14, 1990, No. 87, p. 510, § 1; Sept. 2, 2000, No. 331, § 4.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE EIGHT - Public Welfare and Charitable Institutions (§§ 1 — 1422) › Chapter 19 - Establishment for the Elderly (§§ 351 — 368) › § 360 - Regulations

The Department is hereby authorized to promulgate the necessary regulations to ensure compliance with the provisions of this chapter after public hearings have been held. The regulations to determine the granting of a license to establishments for the care of the elderly shall specify the requirements, among others, that such establishments must comply with regard to the following aspects:
(a) Financial resources to maintain adequate services.
(b) Number, formal education and qualifications of the employees in accordance with the tasks to be performed and the number of elderly persons to be cared for; a good conduct certificate supplied by each employee serving therein.
(c) Adequate physical facilities, equipment and materials, sanitary conditions of the premises and the neighborhood, space, light, ventilation, fire safety measures, and other measures for the protection of the health and welfare of the elderly.
(d) Available medical services, nurses, occupational therapy services and services by other specialists, as necessary. If occupational therapy services are needed, the doctor shall recommend the same, and these may be provided or facilitated by the establishment, without it being understood that it shall be mandatory to have an occupational therapist as permanent staff within the establishment.
(e) Nutrition, clothes, social services, moral principles and other essential services for the elderly.
(f) Safe and accessible means of transportation for the elderly.
(g) Health requirements for the acceptance of the elderly in the establishment.
(h) Reports, files for the elderly and the employees, accounting books and any others needed for the proper functioning of the service.
(i) Age requirements to admit the elderly to the different establishments.
(j) Minimum rights that must be guaranteed to the elderly including the right to participate in the decision-making that affects them.
(k) Minimum knowledge and training that persons who operate and work at establishments for the care of the elderly must have, including a minimum knowledge of geriatrics.
(l) To establish a program of social, recreational, sporting, educational, artistic and cultural activities for the entertainment, relaxation and socialization of the aged who use their care services. Said program must contemplate and promote the integration and participation of their families.
History —June 22, 1977, No. 94, p. 209, § 10; July 11, 1988, No. 70, p. 315, § 6; Sept. 2, 2000, No. 331, § 4; Aug. 16, 2003, No. 183, § 1; Aug. 16, 2003, No. 187, § 1, eff. July 1, 2004.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE EIGHT - Public Welfare and Charitable Institutions (§§ 1 — 1422) › Chapter 19 - Establishment for the Elderly (§§ 351 — 368) › § 360a - Licensing authority

The Department of the Family is hereby authorized to certify those providers that issue Elderly Care Competency Development Training Certificate.
History —June 22, 1977, No. 94, p. 209, added as § 11 on Aug. 4, 2008, No. 157, § 2.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE EIGHT - Public Welfare and Charitable Institutions (§§ 1 — 1422) › Chapter 19 - Establishment for the Elderly (§§ 351 — 368) › § 360b - Certification responsibility

Within one hundred and eighty (180) days as of the approval of this act, the Secretary shall be responsible for establishing a regulation for the procedures of evaluation and certification of entities issuing certificates. Furthermore, the Secretary shall have the authority to designate an interdisciplinary team which shall advise him/her on the certification procedures and the development of a curriculum for the certification of the providers.
The regulations shall contain information on the parameters to be required to the institutions interested in providing training services for issuing the training certificates, which shall include the basic knowledge of the persons who work in the different establishments; develop assessment guidelines; evaluate institutions interested in offering training certificates; issue certifications to those entities that meet the requirements established in the regulations; conduct periodical visits every year for monitoring the certified entities; orient the general public on the selection criteria and the content of the courses; and investigate complaints filed against training services providers.
History —June 22, 1977, No. 94, p. 209, added as § 12 on Aug. 4, 2008, No. 157, § 3.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE EIGHT - Public Welfare and Charitable Institutions (§§ 1 — 1422) › Chapter 19 - Establishment for the Elderly (§§ 351 — 368) › § 363 - Penalties

(a) Any person or entity that operates or maintains an establishment for care of the elderly without a license issued by the Department, or that continues to operate it after its license has been canceled, suspended or denied pursuant to the procedures provided in this chapter, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction, shall be punished by a fine of not less than five hundred dollars ($500) nor greater than two thousand dollars ($2,000), or by imprisonment for a term of not more than six months, or both penalties at the discretion of the court.
(b) Once the officials of the Department of the Family have notified the deficiencies found during the inspection, the Department shall determine the number of days for their correction depending on the type of deficiency and its severity. Deficiencies in matters of security, nutrition, medications and health shall require immediate correction without the possibility of an extension. If said deficiencies are not corrected within the term established, the Department shall then order the cancellation of the license and the permanent closing of the establishment. It the deficiency has to do with the physical facility a maximum term of six (6) months may be granted for its correction. If after said term has expired the establishment still suffers from the same or part of the deficiencies identified, the Department shall set a fine of not less than five hundred dollars ($500) nor of more than three thousand dollars ($3,000), or shall proceed to cancel, suspend or deny the license, or both penalties at the discretion of the Department.
The Department shall proceed to penalize the license holder with the penalties and/or fines established, if the latter, after having been notified of the deficiencies identified, fails to correct them within the term determined by the Secretary, pursuant to the provisions of §§ 2101 et seq. of Title 3, known as the “Uniform Administrative Procedures Act of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico”.
(c) Every license in effect shall be temporarily suspended until the deficiencies identified and notified have been corrected. Within that period of time the establishment may not increase its enrollment even if it has the capacity to do so. Likewise, if during that same period one of the elderly persons should leave the establishment, the vacancy may not be filled until the deficiencies have been corrected and certified by the Department.
(d) Any person found guilty of operating an establishment for the care of the elderly in contravention of this chapter, and who has been ordered to close the same, may not operate another establishment of a similar nature anywhere in Puerto Rico; and if said person should do so, he or she shall be subject to the legally applicable penalties.
History —June 22, 1977, No. 94, p. 209, § 13; Aug. 23, 1997, No. 98, § 1; Aug. 12, 2000, No. 162, § 1; Sept. 2, 2000, No. 331, § 3.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE EIGHT - Public Welfare and Charitable Institutions (§§ 1 — 1422) › Chapter 19 - Establishment for the Elderly (§§ 351 — 368) › § 364 - Injunction

When the Secretary of the Department has knowledge that any establishment for the care of the elderly is operating without a license, either because it has been denied, suspended, cancelled or because it has failed to apply for one, a petition for an injunction may be filed before the Court of First Instance through the Secretary of Justice to prevent said establishment from continuing to operate.
History —June 22, 1977, No. 94, p. 209, § 14; Sept. 2, 2000, No. 331, § 4.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE EIGHT - Public Welfare and Charitable Institutions (§§ 1 — 1422) › Chapter 19 - Establishment for the Elderly (§§ 351 — 368) › § 365 - Expense of program

The Department of the Family shall make the necessary adjustments to pay for the program’s expenses. For subsequent years, the operating expenses related to these functions shall be included by the Department of the Family in its budgetary petitions.
History —June 22, 1977, No. 94, p. 209, § 15, eff. 90 days after June 22, 1977.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE EIGHT - Public Welfare and Charitable Institutions (§§ 1 — 1422) › Chapter 19 - Establishment for the Elderly (§§ 351 — 368) › § 366 - Administrative fines

If during an inspection visit, the Department of the Family identifies any non-compliance of the provisions of this chapter, the Department shall so notify the operator, administrator or owner of the establishment, who shall correct such deficiency. In addition to any fine authorized by this chapter, the Department may impose a fine which shall not exceed five hundred dollars ($500) for each violation of the terms of this chapter.
History —June 22, 1977, No. 94, p. 209, added as § 16 on Aug. 4, 2008, No. 157, § 4.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE EIGHT - Public Welfare and Charitable Institutions (§§ 1 — 1422) › Chapter 19 - Establishment for the Elderly (§§ 351 — 368) › § 367 - Special fund

The revenues collected as a result of the applications submitted and filed by the service providers with the Department of the Family, as well as any fines collected for noncompliance with this chapter, shall be deposited into a special fund of the Licensing Office of the Department of the Family, which shall be used for the operations of the Licensing Office, solely for the elderly services area.
History —June 22, 1977, No. 94, p. 209, added as § 17 on Aug. 4, 2008, No. 157, § 5.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE EIGHT - Public Welfare and Charitable Institutions (§§ 1 — 1422) › Chapter 19 - Establishment for the Elderly (§§ 351 — 368) › § 368 - Transitory provision

The owners, persons in charge, administrators, operators, directors, supervisors of establishments, and the staff working or rendering services therein, who at the date of approval of this measure have obtained an Elderly Care Basic Competency Development Training Certificate pursuant to Act No. 117 of May 21, 2004, shall not be bound to obtain a new Certificate. However, they shall be subject to comply with the six (6) continuing education hours, as established on this act after two (2) years have elapsed from its date of issue.
History —June 22, 1977, No. 94, p. 209, added as § 18 on Aug. 4, 2008, No. 157, § 6.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE EIGHT - Public Welfare and Charitable Institutions (§§ 1 — 1422) › Chapter 20A - Housekeeping Services (§§ 372 — 375) › § 372 - Obligation

All public or private entities who receive municipal, state or federal funds, or any kind of public assistance, related to operating or offering housekeeping services in Puerto Rico are hereby ordered to amend their norms and regulations to stipulate that every autistic person shall be considered as a disabled person for care services qualifying purposes, subject to the age of the clientele who receives the services of the housekeeping service program.
History —Dec. 12, 2002, No. 275, § 1.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE EIGHT - Public Welfare and Charitable Institutions (§§ 1 — 1422) › Chapter 20A - Housekeeping Services (§§ 372 — 375) › § 373 - Autism; housekeeping services benefits

For the purposes of housekeeping care services offered by any public or private entity who receives municipal, state or federal funds, or any kind of public assistance, an autistic person shall be qualified to benefit from this service.
History —Dec. 12, 2002, No. 275, § 2.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE EIGHT - Public Welfare and Charitable Institutions (§§ 1 — 1422) › Chapter 20A - Housekeeping Services (§§ 372 — 375) › § 374 - Noncompliance

Any public or private entity who declines to offer housekeeping services to an autistic person for understanding that he/she does not qualify as a beneficiary only for suffering from this condition shall not receive economic assistance from the Government of Puerto Rico.
History —Dec. 12, 2002, No. 275, § 3.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE EIGHT - Public Welfare and Charitable Institutions (§§ 1 — 1422) › Chapter 20A - Housekeeping Services (§§ 372 — 375) › § 375 - Application

This chapter shall only apply to housekeeping services programs that offer services to disabled persons as part of their operations.
History —Dec. 12, 2002, No. 275, § 4.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE EIGHT - Public Welfare and Charitable Institutions (§§ 1 — 1422) › Chapter 21 - Disabled Persons, Concessions in Public Buildings (§§ 381 — 388) › § 381 - Definitions

(a) Disabled.— Means any person suffering from any major physical defect [that] constitutes an occupational disability as defined by Article 2 of Act No. 414 of May 13, 1947.
(b) Severely disabled.— Is a person with a physical and/or mental impediment which limits him/her seriously in his/her functional capacities (mobility, communication, personal care, individual sense of direction, tolerance in work or in his/her work skills) in terms of employability; and whose vocational rehabilitation requires manifold services of the program for [a] prolonged time; or who has one or more than one physical or mental impediment as defined by the Program.
(c) Department.— Means the Department of the Family.
(d) Program.— Means the Vocational Rehabilitation Program of the Department of the Family.
History —June 3, 1976, No. 140, p. 413, § 1.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE EIGHT - Public Welfare and Charitable Institutions (§§ 1 — 1422) › Chapter 21 - Disabled Persons, Concessions in Public Buildings (§§ 381 — 388) › § 382 - Powers; adequate space

All departments, agencies, public institutions, public corporations and instrumentalities of the Government of Puerto Rico shall fit out adequate spaces in the buildings property of the Government of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico wherein the disabled persons duly qualified therefor may engage, without this constituting a limitation, in the sale of miscellaneous articles such as magazines and sweets and so that they may display any works of art, crafts or products handcrafted or acquired by them for sale. The department, agency, public institution, public corporation or instrumentality that believes that fitting out a space within its facilities is impractical, onerous or counterproductive, be it because of space limitations, a question of security or because of the nature of the services rendered, must document their inability to comply with this chapter. This shall be done through an official document addressed to the Administrator of the Vocational Rehabilitation Administration and sent by certified mail in the name of the director or secretary of the department, agency, public institution, public corporation or instrumentality indicating the reasons for soliciting a dispensation for being unable to comply with the provision. The Vocational Rehabilitation Administration shall have ninety (90) days as of the date in which it receives the document to object to the dispensation solicited by the department, agency, public institution, public corporation or instrumentality. Any dispensation submitted to the Vocational Rehabilitation Administration shall be deemed as admitted and not contested within the corresponding ninety (90) days. The Vocational Rehabilitation Administration shall have to ensure the faithful compliance of this chapter. The Vocational Rehabilitation Administration shall be duty bound to provide orientation to duly qualified clients as to how to obtain those permits that may be necessary to operate premises in which to sell miscellaneous articles as established in this chapter. The Vocational Rehabilitation Administration shall furthermore render a report to the Legislature every six (6) months concerning the functions, operations and persons who benefit from the program established pursuant to this chapter.
History —June 3, 1976, No. 140, p. 413, § 2; Aug. 25, 2005, No. 68, § 1.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE EIGHT - Public Welfare and Charitable Institutions (§§ 1 — 1422) › Chapter 21 - Disabled Persons, Concessions in Public Buildings (§§ 381 — 388) › § 383 - Right to benefits

Those persons severely disabled who meet the eligibility requirements provided in Act No. 414 of May 13, 1947, shall be entitled to the benefits of this chapter.
History —June 3, 1976, No. 140, p. 413, § 3.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE EIGHT - Public Welfare and Charitable Institutions (§§ 1 — 1422) › Chapter 21 - Disabled Persons, Concessions in Public Buildings (§§ 381 — 388) › § 384 - Concessions nontransferable

Concessions granted in accordance with the provisions of this chapter shall be personal and nontransferable unless the Program expressly authorizes the transfer.
History —June 3, 1976, No. 140, p. 413, § 4.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE EIGHT - Public Welfare and Charitable Institutions (§§ 1 — 1422) › Chapter 21 - Disabled Persons, Concessions in Public Buildings (§§ 381 — 388) › § 385 - Equipping space; electric power

The Division shall equip the spaces referred to in § 382 of this title by using its resources available for the rehabilitation of disabled persons. Provided, That the disabled person shall not be charged for the space occupied in public buildings nor for the use of electric power.
History —June 3, 1976, No. 140, p. 413, § 5.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE EIGHT - Public Welfare and Charitable Institutions (§§ 1 — 1422) › Chapter 21 - Disabled Persons, Concessions in Public Buildings (§§ 381 — 388) › § 386 - Profits from sales

All profits from sales shall be for the benefit of the concessionaire who operates the space furnished.
History —June 3, 1976, No. 140, p. 413, § 6.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE EIGHT - Public Welfare and Charitable Institutions (§§ 1 — 1422) › Chapter 21 - Disabled Persons, Concessions in Public Buildings (§§ 381 — 388) › § 387 - Regulation

The equipping of spaces and their operation and functioning shall be carried out under the regulations promulgated by the Department and the General Services Administration to assure the utmost benefit to disabled persons and concessionaires.
History —June 3, 1976, No. 140, p. 413, § 7.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE EIGHT - Public Welfare and Charitable Institutions (§§ 1 — 1422) › Chapter 21 - Disabled Persons, Concessions in Public Buildings (§§ 381 — 388) › § 388 - Authority of Secretary of Transportation and Public Works

Nothing herein provided shall limit the authority of the Secretary of Transportation and Public Works to grant permits for equipping such spaces, provided that permits so granted have the prior recommendation of the Department; Provided, That such power may be delegated to the Department.
History —June 3, 1976, No. 140, p. 413, § 8.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE EIGHT - Public Welfare and Charitable Institutions (§§ 1 — 1422) › Chapter 22 - Act For The Development And Implementation Of The Public Policy On Early Childhood In Puerto Rico (§§ 391 — 398) › § 395 - Coordination among organizations serving early childhood

Community, for-profit, nonprofit and faith-based organizations, as well as other community institutions that receive public funds, shall provide direct services or support the services of the Central and/or municipal government for children in their early childhood, in accord with the means available. These community, nonprofit, for-profit and faith-based organizations shall have direct participation in the following areas but are not limited to:
(1) Knowing the profile of families and their needs within their communities.
(2) Developing programs, activities and initiatives for children in their early childhood, and most particularly, for children with special needs and their families, in their communities, for the areas identified in this public policy, pursuant to the principles and mandates set forth in this chapter and according to the fiscal resources available and within their reach.
(3) Assisting the Central and the municipal governments in the identification of resources that are available in their communities.
(4) Operating as agents of change in the creation of new projects in keeping with this public policy.
(5) Promoting the appropriation of funds for the implementation of this public policy.
History —June 18, 2008, No. 93, § 6.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE EIGHT - Public Welfare and Charitable Institutions (§§ 1 — 1422) › Chapter 22 - Act For The Development And Implementation Of The Public Policy On Early Childhood In Puerto Rico (§§ 391 — 398) › § 398 - Office of the Governor’s Multi-Sector Council on Early Childhood

The Office of the Governor’s Multi-Sector Council on Early Childhood shall be responsible for the discharge of the following functions in order to support the general operations of the Council:
(a) Coordinating the meetings of the Council.
(b) Keeping an agenda on the activities of the Council.
(c) Preparing and keeping an updated directory of services for children, and most particularly, for children in their early childhood and their families.
(d) Assisting the Council in the gathering of statistic information from all agencies belonging to the Council, in relation to the services and needs of children in their early childhood.
(e) Preparing and keeping organized the official documents of the Council.
(f) Serve as a liaison between Council members, the personnel assigned by the agencies, and the general community in terms of the purposes and responsibilities set forth in this chapter.
(g) Working in close coordination with Council members and provide support to their endeavor, in order to develop the activities established in this chapter.
(h) Assist the Council in the preparation of plans, reports, and documents relative to its functions as requested.
The Office of the Council shall have an Executive Director, appointed by the Governor.
History —June 18, 2008, No. 93, § 9.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE EIGHT - Public Welfare and Charitable Institutions (§§ 1 — 1422) › Chapter 23B - Comprehensive Child Wellbeing and Protection Act (§§ 444 — 450m) › Subchapter I - General Provisions (§§ 444 — 444j) › § 444a - Department of the Family—Faculties and responsibilities

The Department shall be responsible for promoting the comprehensive wellbeing and protection of minors through child abuse prevention programs and through support services for families.
The Department shall also be responsible for investigating and attending to situations of abuse, institutional abuse, neglect, and/or institutional neglect. Likewise, it shall be responsible for instituting programs for the prevention, identification, investigation, and provision of the necessary services, pursuant to the public policy established in this chapter and the needs of minors and their families in any situation of abuse, institutional abuse, neglect, and/or institutional neglect. To this end, the Department is authorized to adopt the necessary guidelines, procedures, rules, and/or regulations to implement the public policy set forth in this chapter and to fulfill the responsibilities delegated hereby.
The Department shall investigate, order or refer for investigation referrals of abuse, institutional abuse, neglect, and/or institutional neglect, making use, for this purpose, of all procedures, services, and means required to guarantee the most expeditious and effective attention to such investigations.
Whenever the Department of the Family is the custodian and relations between siblings have not been restricted or prohibited, the Department shall have the responsibility of organizing and establishing a visitation plan so that siblings who have been removed from their homes may be able to interact at least twice (2) a month, seeking to place them together whenever possible. The Department of the Family shall be bound to guarantee that physical custodians comply with all the duties and obligations set forth in the plan.
History —Aug. 1, 2003, No. 177, § 4; Aug. 10, 2009, No. 63, § 1.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE EIGHT - Public Welfare and Charitable Institutions (§§ 1 — 1422) › Chapter 23B - Comprehensive Child Wellbeing and Protection Act (§§ 444 — 450m) › Subchapter I - General Provisions (§§ 444 — 444j) › § 444b - Department of the Family—Support and protective services

The Department shall offer, provide, and coordinate support services to families in order to promote and reinforce values, knowledge, attitudes, and behavior in the pursuit of a peaceful and violent free environment to live and raise children in harmony. These services may include counseling, social work services, shelter, medical attention, and processing legal actions, among others.
No effort to support families must place the minors or other members of the family at risk of abuse or violence. The Department of the Family shall offer, provide, and coordinate protective services for minors when the father, mother, or other person in charge of caring for protecting, and guaranteeing the wellbeing of the minor in his or her care is unable to meet the protective criteria that guarantee the optimum wellbeing of the minor. When the Department identifies an adult who is a nonabusing victim of violence in the family of a minor who has been abused, or is suspected of having been abused, it shall provide-directly or in coordination-support and protective services aimed at ensuring the adult’s safety and wellbeing. When this nonabusing adult who is the victim of violence and is the father, mother, or the adult responsible for rearing the minor, the Department shall make every necessary effort to ensure his or her safety and wellbeing as part of the effort to protect the minor. Whenever possible, nonabusing adults shall be kept with their dependant minors.
The Department of the Family shall see to the coordination of the multisector support and protective services to ensure the greatest wellbeing of the minors and their best interests.
History —Aug. 1, 2003, No. 177, § 5, eff. 90 days after Aug. 1, 2003.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE EIGHT - Public Welfare and Charitable Institutions (§§ 1 — 1422) › Chapter 23B - Comprehensive Child Wellbeing and Protection Act (§§ 444 — 450m) › Subchapter I - General Provisions (§§ 444 — 444j) › § 444e - Coordination and cooperation with nongovernment organizations

The Department, its instrumentalities, and officials must assume the initiative to:
(a) Facilitate and maintain ongoing efforts to integrate the perspectives of nongovernmental and community entities in the various aspects of their services.
(b) Foster participation of representative of these entities, as well as of the people who have been served by these organizations, in the planning, development, provision, and evaluation of services related to the victims and the survivors of child abuse and domestic violence.
(c) Establish collaboration agreements with nongovernmental and private entities that develop service projects for abused minors and/or their mothers who have been victims of domestic violence, as well as for abusing adults, so as to implement the public policy set out in this chapter. These agreements may be established for, but should not be limited to, the following areas: the design and establishment of procedures aimed at promoting and guaranteeing the optimum wellbeing of minors; protection and safety plans for the victims of domestic violence and their children; support services for the prevention and management of family violence, for persons, families, communities, and the country.
(d) Offer all the support that these entities need to guarantee their participation and to make possible multisector collaboration in all the enforcement aspects of this chapter, while respecting the autonomy of the organizations.
History —Aug. 1, 2003, No. 177, § 8, eff. 90 days after Aug. 1, 2003.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE EIGHT - Public Welfare and Charitable Institutions (§§ 1 — 1422) › Chapter 23B - Comprehensive Child Wellbeing and Protection Act (§§ 444 — 450m) › Subchapter I - General Provisions (§§ 444 — 444j) › § 444f - Multisector Coordinating Board—Creation

The Multi-Sector Coordinating Board created hereby shall be charged with coordinating, supporting, and promoting collaboration efforts between government agencies and non-government organizations to guarantee the most effective and efficient attention to cases of abuse and/or institutional abuse, neglect and/or institutional neglect.
The Board shall be chaired by the Secretary of the Department of the Family and shall include the Secretaries of each of the agencies to which § 444c of this title assigns responsibilities, or representatives with decision-making powers; the administrator of the Administration for Families and Children or his or her representative; a representative of the College of Social Workers; and three (3) representatives of nongovernmental organizations with a history of work in providing care, shelter, counseling, treatment, or other services for populations at risk, or for surviving victims of child abuse and their families. The members of the Board who represent nongovernmental organizations shall be appointed by the Secretary for three (3) year terms.
The Board shall have the following obligations:
(a) To promote compliance with the obligations imposed on the agencies of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico for the enforcement of this chapter.
(b) To facilitate the approval and fulfillment of interagency cooperation agreements and agreements with other nongovernmental organizations to facilitate an integrated effort to prevent child abuse and provide services for the comprehensive wellbeing and protection of minors, in accordance with the public policy stated herein.
(c) To serve as a forum for harmonizing the procedures, visions, practices, and perspectives adopted by the various government agencies to attend to and intervene in cases of abuse, and/or institutional abuse, neglect, and/or institutional neglect.
(d) To promote interdisciplinary and interagency training of personnel in each of the government agencies that attend to and intervene in cases of abuse, and/or institutional abuse, neglect, and/or institutional neglect.
(e) To facilitate communication and participation of nongovernmental, community, service, and professional organizations with scientific, technical, or specialized knowledge and training in the prevention, investigation, identification, counseling, treatment, or other services aimed at populations at risk or the surviving victims of abuse, and/or institutional abuse, neglect, and/or institutional neglect.
The Secretary shall establish through regulations the functions of the Board to guarantee its proper functioning, as well as the regions where they shall be established. Likewise, the provisions of this chapter regarding confidentiality shall extend to the work performed by this Board and each of its members.
History —Aug. 1, 2003, No. 177, § 9; Sept. 29, 2004, No. 510, § 3.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE EIGHT - Public Welfare and Charitable Institutions (§§ 1 — 1422) › Chapter 23B - Comprehensive Child Wellbeing and Protection Act (§§ 444 — 450m) › Subchapter I - General Provisions (§§ 444 — 444j) › § 444g - Death Review Panel

The Secretary shall appoint a Death Review Panel composed of a multidisciplinary team to prevent, share information about, and evaluate the circumstances of the deaths of minors in Puerto Rico. The panel may share with the public the causes of the minors’ deaths and intercede for the creation of policies and programs to prevent such fatalities. It may also perform any other function established by regulation.
History —Aug. 1, 2003, No. 177, § 10, eff. 90 days after Aug. 1, 2003.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE EIGHT - Public Welfare and Charitable Institutions (§§ 1 — 1422) › Chapter 23B - Comprehensive Child Wellbeing and Protection Act (§§ 444 — 450m) › Subchapter I - General Provisions (§§ 444 — 444j) › § 444h - Review Board—Creation

The Department of the Family shall establish in each region a permanency plan review board for the cases of minors who have been placed outside their homes. This review board shall evaluate the permanency plans of the minors placed in foster care. The Secretary shall establish regulations setting forth the composition and functioning of the review board, as well as the effective terms of appointments thereto. In addition, the regulations must include measures to promote community participation and representation, parental rights in the proceedings before the board, guidelines governing confidentiality, prevention of conflicts of interest, and access to files, among others.
The members of the review board shall be given the necessary [advice with] regard to the services provided by the Department and other public and private entities. They shall also be given information about the various permanency plans that may be established for minors so as to guarantee their wellbeing and safety, and any other information that may be needed to achieve the purposes of this chapter.
Each region of the Department shall appoint a Coordinator for the information and follow-up system for minors placed outside the parental home who shall collaborate with the review board in the identification of cases that require review of the plans. The provisions of this chapter regarding confidentiality shall extend to the work performed by this board and each of its members.
History —Aug. 1, 2003, No. 177, § 11, eff. 90 days after Aug. 1, 2003.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE EIGHT - Public Welfare and Charitable Institutions (§§ 1 — 1422) › Chapter 23B - Comprehensive Child Wellbeing and Protection Act (§§ 444 — 450m) › Subchapter I - General Provisions (§§ 444 — 444j) › § 444i - Review Board—Objectives and functions

The Review Board shall have the following objectives and functions:
(a) To ensure that a permanency plan be drafted for every minor placed in a physical facility outside his or her parental home, according to his or her specific needs and situation, subject to review by the review board.
(b) To ascertain that the permanency plan is reviewed every four (4) months or as needed. To ensure that the permanency plan is put into effect as soon as possible, within a period not to exceed twelve (12) months from the time the minor is removed from his or her home.
(c) To allow the father, mother, or other person responsible for the minor who wishes to do so to attend the meetings, and to have the regional coordinator notify him or her in advance of the date the case will be reviewed.
(d) To favorably recommend the established plan or to suggest an alternate plan that responds to the best interests of the minor.
(e) To suggest alternatives in those situations whereby the review board finds that the permanency plan fails to meet the specific needs of the minor and the particular situation of his or her natural family.
(f) To request special and specific reports from the multidisciplinary professional team in those situations in which additional information is needed to evaluate the permanency plan or for the discussion of cases which so merit.
(g) To request discussion of the cases with agency personnel and the multidisciplinary team of professionals.
(h) To submit to the Department those cases in which the members are unable to arrive at a final decision.
(i) To prepare the reports required in § 447j of this title.
(j) To prepare statistical reports on the work performed.
(k) To perform all other functions provided for by regulations with the objective of fulfilling the tasks specified in this chapter.
History —Aug. 1, 2003, No. 177, § 12; Sept. 16, 2004, No. 354, § 3; Sept. 29, 2004, No. 510, § 4.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE EIGHT - Public Welfare and Charitable Institutions (§§ 1 — 1422) › Chapter 23B - Comprehensive Child Wellbeing and Protection Act (§§ 444 — 450m) › Subchapter I - General Provisions (§§ 444 — 444j) › § 444j - Adoptive homes

When reunification is not possible, the Secretary shall be responsible for promoting placement in adoptive homes to ensure the stability, safety, and wellbeing of the minors under his or her custody.
History —Aug. 1, 2003, No. 177, § 13, eff. 90 days after Aug. 1, 2003.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE EIGHT - Public Welfare and Charitable Institutions (§§ 1 — 1422) › Chapter 23B - Comprehensive Child Wellbeing and Protection Act (§§ 444 — 450m) › Subchapter II - Prevention, Education, and Training (§§ 445 — 445f) › § 445 - Prevention of violence

The Department shall develop and offer educational programs on peaceful and harmonious living and the rearing of children for individuals of all ages and social groups, to be disseminated through the mean communication media.
These programs shall be aimed at:
(1) Developing responsible awareness of the abuse problem;
(2) enabling and promoting harmonious living, child rearing, and discipline without violence, based on the values of love, solidarity, and peace, compatible with respect for the human rights of all, including children;
(3) transforming violent attitudes and behavior and promoting the values of solidarity, love, and peace to counter cultural tolerance of violence in all aspects of life, especially harmonious living and child rearing;
(4) promoting multisector participation involving families, communities, and organizations in violence prevention programs, and
(5) helping victims of domestic violence and child abuse to identify and seek the support resources and services needed to emerge from the abuse cycle as quickly as possible.
History —Aug. 1, 2003, No. 177, § 14, eff. 90 days after Aug. 1, 2003.