2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE EIGHT - Public Welfare and Charitable Institutions (§§ 1 — 1422) › Chapter 36B - Assistive Technology Equipment Guarantee (§§ 851 — 859) › § 855 - Powers and duties

(1) Office of the Disabled Persons Investigative Official.— The Office of the Disabled Persons Investigative Official, hereinafter the ODPIO, shall have the obligation to:
(a) Advise the citizenry on the scope and applicability of this chapter and refer petitions and complaints filed pursuant to this chapter.
(b) Ensure that the guarantees covering the technological equipment acquired by persons with a disability are honored. For this purpose, the ODPIO shall enter into interagency agreements with the Puerto Rico Assistive Technology Program, the Department of Education, the Department of the Family and its Vocational Rehabilitation Administration, the Family and Children’s Administration, the Department of Health, the Department of Labor, the State Insurance Fund, the Department of Corrections, and the Sports and Recreation Department.
(c) Represent the citizen before the Department of Consumer Affairs when he/she files a complaint with regard to the violation of the guarantee covering any assistive technology equipment.
(d) Fulfill any other obligation applicable under §§ 532 et seq. of Title 3, known as the “Disabled Persons Investigative Official Act”.
(2) Department of Consumer Affairs.— The Department of Consumer Affairs, hereinafter the DCA, shall have the obligation to:
(a) Advise the citizenry and carry out the pertinent actions when a consumer or purveyor files a petition or a complaint concerning any breach of the guarantee covering assistive technology equipment. Thus, the DCA shall be the administrative forum to act on said petitions or complaints.
(b) Adopt a regulation to include provisions on the compliance requirements for manufacturers, suppliers, dealers, and authorized vendors or lessors regarding the guarantee that all technological assistance equipment shall have and the terms for processing cases and the issuing of the determination set forth in § 858 of this title.
(c) Draft the regulations within a term of six (6) months from the date of approval of this act, pursuant to §§ 2101 et seq. of Title 3.
(d) Conduct an information campaign concerning this chapter, its implementation, procedures, guidelines, and regulations. Public agencies and dependencies shall submit an annual report to the DCA and the ODPIO, including an account of all actions undertaken regarding the provisions of this chapter.
(e) Fulfill any other obligation that may apply under §§ 341 et seq. of Title 3, known as the “Department of Consumer Affairs Organic Act”.
(3) Responsibilities of the purveyors.— The purveyors shall have the obligation to:
(a) Provide consumers, pursuant to federal and Commonwealth laws, with assistive technology equipment through a manufacturer, supplier, distributor, authorized dealer, or authorized lessor.
(b) Ensure that the guarantee covering the assistive technology equipment provided to persons with disabilities meets the guidelines set forth in this chapter, specifically the provisions concerning the regulations that the Department of Consumer Affairs is directed by this chapter to establish. The purveyors shall also ensure compliance with all federal laws to that effect.
(c) Implement administrative procedures to expedite the delivery of assistive technology equipment provided to persons with disabilities, in order to prevent the guarantee covering said equipment from being affected negatively.
(d) Deliver the assistive technology equipment to the person with a disability within ten (10) days from the date the manufacturer, supplier, distributor, authorized dealer, or authorized lessor delivers the equipment to the purveyor.
(e) Oversee the quality of the service provided by the manufacturer, supplier, distributor, authorized dealer, or authorized lessor when installing the assistive technology equipment.
(f) Ensure that the assistive technology equipment installed by the manufacturer, supplier, distributor, authorized dealer, or authorized lessor, is in working order.
(g) Ensure that the manufacturer, supplier, distributor, authorized dealer, or authorized lessor provides proper training on the use and handling of the assistive technology equipment delivered.
(h) Report to the manufacturer, supplier, distributor, authorized dealer, or authorized lessor, any malfunction of the assistive technology equipment within the term of the guarantee. The purveyors shall also be responsible for procuring the documents concerning the guarantee covering the assistive technology equipment being transferred when said transfer is made before the expiration of the term of the applicable guarantee.
(4) Responsibility of the Office of Monopolistic Affairs of the Department of Justice.— The Office of Monopolistic Affairs, hereinafter the OMA, shall have jurisdiction for the purposes of this chapter, when the practices set forth in §§ 852, 853 and 854 of this title have been breached so as to affect business or commerce in general terms, in violation of the provisions of § 259 of Title 10. The OMA is hereby empowered to file and process any complaints within the Department of Consumer Affairs pursuant to the procedure established in subsections (c)–(j) of § 259 of Title 10, supra, and the provisions of this chapter.
History —Sept. 9, 2000, No. 402, § 6; Sept. 3, 2003, No. 243, § 1.