2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE TWENTY-TWO - Public Works (§§ 1 — 1104) › Chapter 21 - Public Buildings Authority (§§ 901 — 937) › Subchapter I - Creation and Functions (§§ 901 — 917) › § 916 - Lease contracts

Any department, agency, instrumentality, authority, public corporation or municipality of the Commonwealth may, by means of resolution or law, or acting on behalf and through its Secretary, Director or Chief Executive, be committed through a contract or contracts with the Authority for the total or partial lease of any schools, health facilities, offices, headquarters, courts, warehouses, workshops or any other physical facilities, buildings or developments belonging to and operated by the Authority, or for any space or services provided by any government body in relation to said facilities. Said contract or contracts may contain such terms and conditions that by mutual agreement may be stipulated between the Authority and said department, agency, instrumentality, authority, public corporation or municipality. Such lease contracts shall not be detrimental to any appropriate recognized unit, nor diminish the vested rights of the employees of the contracting parties. The [rent] payable to the Authority under any such contracts shall be reasonable and sufficient, taking into consideration the amounts needed by the Authority to (i) pay the interest, principal, and amortization requirements of the bonds issued by the Authority for financing such a building, and to provide a reserve for such purposes, and (ii) to pay the operating and maintenance expenses of such a building, including a reasonable proportional amount to cover the administrative expenses of the Authority, the cost for replacing equipment, and other operating and maintenance expenses not occurring annually, and to provide a reserve for such purposes. Any head or executive director of any department, agency, instrumentality, authority, public corporation or municipality of the Commonwealth is hereby authorized to carry out and execute any and all acts, agreements, stipulation, contracts and transactions necessary, convenient or desirable to carry out and execute every contract and to provide for the payment or settlement of any obligation of said department, agency, instrumentality, authority, public corporation or municipality. All contracts shall be valid and binding for the department, agency, instrumentality, authority, public corporation or municipality of the Commonwealth. The amount of any such rental fee or other obligation of said department, agency or instrumentality with the Authority shall be subject to the approval of the Office of Management and Budget and the latter shall consign the payment of said rental fee or obligation, in the case of any contracting department, agency, instrumentality or authority, in its respective budget, or in the case of a public corporation, as a deduction from any contribution made to it by the Government of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, for the corresponding term, or in the case of a municipality, as a deduction from any collected funds payable thereto by the Department of the Treasury.
All or any part of the rents payable to the Authority under any such contracts may be committed by the Authority for the payment of the principal and interest of any bonds issued by the Authority.
For the purposes of §§ 901—917 of this title, the word “department” shall mean any executive department created by or pursuant to Article IV, Section 6, of the Constitution of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and any other government body created by a law of the Legislature and which depends primarily upon funds appropriated by the Legislature to defray its operating expenses.
The good faith and credit of the Commonwealth are hereby pledged for the payment of the rent under any lease contract executed pursuant to the terms of §§ 901—917 of this title with any department, agency, instrumentality, authority or public corporation of the Commonwealth, and the good faith and credit of any municipality shall be pledged for the payment of the rent under any lease contract executed pursuant to the terms of §§ 901—917 of this title, by or on behalf of the municipality.
If any portion of the rent payable to the Authority in any fiscal year, by any department, agency, instrumentality, authority or public corporation of the Commonwealth, under the terms of any lease contract executed pursuant to the provisions of §§ 901—917 of this title, are not paid when they fall due, the Commonwealth shall advance to the Authority the unpaid balance of such rent. The Secretary of the Treasury is hereby directed to make any such advance from any available unencumbered funds in the Treasury of Puerto Rico, and the good faith and credit of the Commonwealth are hereby pledged to produce the required advances. Any advances so made by the Commonwealth shall be reimbursed to the Commonwealth by the department, agency, instrumentality, authority or public corporation for whose account such advances have been made, from any surplus of such department, agency, instrumentality, authority or public corporation after the payment of rents then owed to the Authority, and of all other general operating expenses of such department, agency, instrumentality, authority or public corporation. The [rent] to be paid to the Authority by any municipality under the terms of any contract executed pursuant to the provisions of §§ 901—917 of this title, shall be periodically deducted by the Municipal Revenues Collection Center from the property taxes collected for the corresponding municipality and said amounts shall be paid directly to the Authority.
History —June 19, 1958, No. 56, p. 120, § 15; June 19, 1962, No. 51, p. 112; Dec. 7, 1962, No. 1, p. 1; May 14, 1964, No. 27, p. 76; June 20, 1966, No. 79, p. 239, § 2; May 6, 1968, No. 31, p. 48; July 14, 1973, No. 6, p. 831, § 5; July 23, 1974, No. 228, Part 2, p. 177, § 2; May 16, 2006, No. 97, § 14.