2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE TWENTY-SEVEN - Public Service (§§ 1 — 2641) › PART III - Puerto Rico Public Service Act (§§ 1001 — 1282) › Chapter 53 - Powers and Duties of the Commission (§§ 1101 — 1124) › § 1101 - General powers

(a) The Commission is hereby empowered to grant all authorizations of a public nature for whose granting no other legal procedure has been fixed, including the right to use or cross public highways or public water riverbeds at grade, above grade or below grade, and to regulate public service companies and contract carriers, including the assignment of public vehicles which will use parking lots (terminals) which are provided for passenger carriers by municipal legislatures or by the Department of Transportation and Public Works, which shall keep the Commission informed of the existing or proposed parking lots (terminals) in order for the Commission to be able to discharge such function, taking into consideration factors such as public peace, cooperation between carriers, and between these and the public, the parking lot (terminal) vehicle capacity and the facilities it provides for public service, among others.
The Commission shall be empowered to regulate the private vehicle enterprises engaged in business. Any regulation that is established for these private vehicle enterprises engaged in business shall only cover the aspect related to their safety.
The Commission shall be empowered to regulate, investigate, intervene, and impose sanctions on persons engaged in rendering special bus services or on special bus companies as such terms are defined in this chapter. Any person interested in engaging in the rendering of said transportation shall follow the procedures adopted by the Commission for such purposes.
In granting authorization for public transportation, the Commission shall consider the Transportation Plan prepared by the Secretary of the Department of Transportation and Public Works and approved by the Governor as one of the criteria of necessity and convenience, as provided by §§ 2001 et seq. of Title 9.
(b) The Commission shall be further empowered to impose administrative fines and other administrative sanctions under this part, to carry out investigations and interventions, to require any type of information that may be necessary for the proper fulfillment of its powers, to direct or request from the courts, through the public interest attorneys, that they order the cessation of activities or acts under §§ 1262 [and] 1262a of this title or of any other provision of this part; to impose and order the payment of costs, expenses, and lawyer fees; as well as the payment of expenses and fees for professional and advisory services, incurred in the investigations, hearings, and proceedings before the Commission, and to order that any such act be performed in compliance of the provisions of this part.
(c) The powers and faculties provided in subsections (a) and (b) of this section shall be enforceable not only with regard to public service companies, contract carriers, private vehicle companies engaged in commerce, persons engaged in tourist transport, as defined in this part, and entities acting as public service companies or contract carriers, but also with respect to:
(1) Every person or entity who violates the provision of this part.
(2) Every person or entity whose actions affect or may affect the rendering of any public service.
(3) Every person or entity who carries out any activity for which it is necessary to obtain an authorization or endorsement from the Commission.
(4) Every person or entity whose actions or omissions may be damaging to the activities, resources or interests with regard to which the Commission has powers of regulation, supervision or surveillance.
History —June 28, 1962, No. 109, p. 288, § 14; May 31, 1972, No. 60, p. 134; June 27, 1974, No. 104, Part 1, p. 345; June 12, 1980, No. 120, p. 435; May 24, 1986, No. 27, p. 65, § 2; June 4, 1990, No. 9, p. 65, § 2; Mar. 6, 1991, No. 1, § 10; Dec. 19, 2002, No. 282, § 68; Aug. 2, 2006, No. 141, § 1; Aug. 16, 2012, No. 173, § 5.