reglab/statecodes huggingface dataset:
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE TWENTY-EIGHT - Public Lands (§§ 1 — 737) › PART I - Lands Generally; Mines (§§ 1 — 226) › Chapter 6 - Development of Mineral Resources (§§ 91 — 91z) › § 91g - Subsidiary corporations

(a) Wholly possessed.— The Corporation is hereby authorized to create by resolution such subsidiary corporations wholly possessed as it may deem desirable in order to develop any project assigned to it as provided hereinbefore and to carry out, through said development, the provisions of this chapter. Said wholly-possessed subsidiary corporations shall be public corporations and shall have such powers and duties vested in the Corporation by the provisions of this chapter as may be assigned to them by the Board. The Board shall appoint the members of the Board of Directors of any of said subsidiary corporations; Provided, That at least a simple majority of the members of each one of said Board of Directors shall be appointed from among the seven members of the Board. All the rights, privileges and immunities conferred to the Corporation under this chapter are hereby conferred to said wholly-possessed subsidiary corporations for carrying out the powers and duties assigned to them.
(b) Partially possessed.— The Corporation is hereby authorized to create by resolution subsidiary capital corporations with power to issue capital stock; Provided, That the Corporation shall at all times possess and control at least fifty-one percent (51%) of the outstanding and issued capital stock of said subsidiary capital corporations. Subsidiary capital corporations shall only have such powers and duties conferred to the Corporation as may be delegated and assigned to them by resolution of the Board. The Board shall appoint at least a majority of the members of the Board of Directors of any of such subsidiary capital corporations and none of said subsidiaries shall take any action requiring approval of its Board of Directors unless a majority of the members of its Board of Directors appointed by the Corporation are present.
History —July 2, 1975, No. 145, p. 433, § 8.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE TWENTY-EIGHT - Public Lands (§§ 1 — 737) › PART I - Lands Generally; Mines (§§ 1 — 226) › Chapter 6 - Development of Mineral Resources (§§ 91 — 91z) › § 91h - Production sharing

In addition to the royalties that may be established on the basis of the Puerto Rico Mining Act, as amended, all the corporations, subsidiaries or any of the ones created under this chapter and which exploit commercial minerals in Puerto Rico, shall deliver to the Commonwealth part of its production or the equivalent in money, as may be provided by the Secretary of Natural and Environmental Resources, pursuant to the Puerto Rico Mining Act, as amended and the applicable regulations.
History —July 2, 1975, No. 145, p. 433, § 9.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE TWENTY-EIGHT - Public Lands (§§ 1 — 737) › PART I - Lands Generally; Mines (§§ 1 — 226) › Chapter 6 - Development of Mineral Resources (§§ 91 — 91z) › § 91i - Personnel

The personnel of the Corporation shall be included in the exempt service, as defined in Act No. 345 of May 12, 1947, as amended, known as the Personnel Act, but said personnel shall be subject to any measure that may be approved by this Legislature establishing a merit system for the employees of the Commonwealth and its instrumentalities.
For the administration of this personnel, the Corporation shall adopt a system in which merit shall be the governing principle, so that the fittest may be the ones to serve it, and that every employee be selected, trained, promoted and retained in his employment in consideration of his merit and capacity for work, without discrimination by reason of race, color, sex, birth, age, origin or social condition, or political or religious ideas. The Corporation shall send a copy of its personnel system to the Legislature which may disapprove or amend it in the regular session it may hold during or immediately after receiving same. If the Legislature fails to take action in said session on the matter, the system shall be deemed approved.
History —July 2, 1975, No. 145, p. 433, § 10.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE TWENTY-EIGHT - Public Lands (§§ 1 — 737) › PART I - Lands Generally; Mines (§§ 1 — 226) › Chapter 6 - Development of Mineral Resources (§§ 91 — 91z) › § 91j - Expenses; per diems

The officials, agents and employees of the Corporation shall be entitled to the refund of expenses incurred in the performance of their official duties, or in default thereof, of the proper per diems authorized by the Board.
History —July 2, 1975, No. 145, p. 433, § 11.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE TWENTY-EIGHT - Public Lands (§§ 1 — 737) › PART I - Lands Generally; Mines (§§ 1 — 226) › Chapter 6 - Development of Mineral Resources (§§ 91 — 91z) › § 91k - Corporation funds

Corporation funds shall be deposited in recognized depositary banks for Commonwealth funds, but shall be kept in accounts registered in the name of the Corporation.
History —July 2, 1975, No. 145, p. 433, § 12.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE TWENTY-EIGHT - Public Lands (§§ 1 — 737) › PART I - Lands Generally; Mines (§§ 1 — 226) › Chapter 6 - Development of Mineral Resources (§§ 91 — 91z) › § 91l - Disposal of surplus funds

On or before December 31 of each year, once the Corporation has met the payment of all its operating expenses and obligations, has provided for the payment of capital of and interest on its bonds and other obligations to be met, has provided for the reserves which it deems necessary and convenient to carry out its purposes, including a reserve for development and expansion, any surplus funds remaining shall be transferred by the Corporation to the Secretary of the Treasury of the Commonwealth to be covered into the general funds.
History —July 2, 1975, No. 145, p. 433, § 13.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE TWENTY-EIGHT - Public Lands (§§ 1 — 737) › PART I - Lands Generally; Mines (§§ 1 — 226) › Chapter 6 - Development of Mineral Resources (§§ 91 — 91z) › § 91m - Conflict of interest

No person may be a member of the Board of Directors of the Corporation, neither of a Board of Directors of one of its subsidiaries, nor hold an executive office in the Corporation, nor in one of its subsidiaries, who has a direct or indirect economic interest in any enterprise whose business is in competition with, or which does business with the Corporation, or with one of its subsidiaries, or who holds positions in other public or private entities, operated or not for profit, which may be in conflict with the performance of his duties as director or executive.
Upon ceasing in his official functions and during the following five (5) years, the principal officers of the Corporation or its subsidiaries as well as the members of the Board of Directors thereof, shall not work for or in any way receive payment from private enterprises which have or have had contracts or transact or have transacted business with the Corporation or its subsidiaries and the business of which is competitive or might be in conflict with those of the Corporation.
The Secretary of Justice shall interpret and apply these provisions motu proprio or upon complaints or petitions filed by any citizen.
History —July 2, 1975, No. 145, p. 433, § 14.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE TWENTY-EIGHT - Public Lands (§§ 1 — 737) › PART I - Lands Generally; Mines (§§ 1 — 226) › Chapter 6 - Development of Mineral Resources (§§ 91 — 91z) › § 91n - Contract registry

Pursuant to this act, the Corporation shall file its contracts in the Department of State of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and once they are thus filed they shall partake of the character of public documents.
History —July 2, 1975, No. 145, p. 433, § 15.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE TWENTY-EIGHT - Public Lands (§§ 1 — 737) › PART I - Lands Generally; Mines (§§ 1 — 226) › Chapter 6 - Development of Mineral Resources (§§ 91 — 91z) › § 91o - Construction and purchase contracts

All purchases and contracts for supplies or services, except personal services, made by the Corporation, including construction contracts for works thereof, shall be made by calls for bids sufficiently in advance of the date of opening the proposals, for the Corporation to guarantee adequate notice and opportunity to present bids; Provided, That when the estimated amount for the purchase or work does not exceed thirty thousand dollars ($30,000), the same may be carried out without the call for bids. No calls for bids shall be necessary, however, when:
(1) An emergency requires the immediate delivery of materials, supplies, equipment, or rendering of services.
(2) Spare parts, accessories, supplemental equipment or services are required for supplies or services previously furnished or contracted for.
(3) Professional or expert services or work are required and the Corporation deems it in the best interest of sound administration that such services or work be contracted for without such calls.
(4) The prices are not subject to competition because there is only one source of supply or because they are regulated by law; in such cases the purchase of materials, supplies and equipment or the obtainment of such services, may be made in the open market in the customary manner in commercial practice. In comparing bids and making awards, due consideration shall be given to factors (in addition to whether the bidder has complied with the specifications) such as the ability of the bidder to perform construction work of the kind involved in the contract under consideration; the relative quality and adaptability of the materials, supplies, equipment or services; the bidder’s economic responsibility, his skill, experience, reputation of commercial integrity and ability to render repair and maintenance services; the time of delivery or performance offered and whether the place of manufacture of the materials, supplies and equipment is located in Puerto Rico. There shall also be exempted from the requirements of this section, all contracts for personal services and those contracts concerning materials, equipment, supplies or services executed with any subsidiary company of the Corporation and any modifications of said contracts. The Corporation may decree regulations for the presentation of bids.
A written statement shall be made in each case of the reasons why, within the scope of this chapter, no bids were called. Said statement shall set forth accurately the circumstances that in each case the exercise of the power not to call bids requires. The Board of Directors shall ratify these decisions.
History —July 2, 1975, No. 145, p. 433, § 16.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE TWENTY-EIGHT - Public Lands (§§ 1 — 737) › PART I - Lands Generally; Mines (§§ 1 — 226) › Chapter 6 - Development of Mineral Resources (§§ 91 — 91z) › § 91q - Trust agreement

In the discretion of the Corporation, any bond issued under the provisions of this chapter may be secured by a trust agreement executed by and between the Corporation and a corporate trustee which may be any trust company or bank with the powers of a trust company in or outside the Commonwealth. It shall be legal for any bank or trust company incorporated under the laws of the Commonwealth or of any state of the Union which may act as depository of the proceeds of the bonds, income and other money under this chapter, to furnish the bonds or pledge the guarantees that the Corporation may require. In addition to the foregoing, any trust agreement shall contain such provisions as the Corporation may deem reasonable and proper for the security of the bondholders.
History —July 2, 1975, No. 145, p. 433, § 18.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE TWENTY-EIGHT - Public Lands (§§ 1 — 737) › PART I - Lands Generally; Mines (§§ 1 — 226) › Chapter 6 - Development of Mineral Resources (§§ 91 — 91z) › § 91s - Remedies of bondholders

(a) Any bondholder or trustee therefor, subject to any contractual limitations binding upon the holders of any bond issue, or trustees therefor, including, but without limitation to, the restriction of a specific proportion or percentage of such holders to exercise any remedy, shall have the right and power, for the equal benefit and protection of all bondholders in a similar situation, to:
(1) By mandamus or other suit, action, or proceeding at law or in equity, enforce his rights against the Corporation and its Board, officers, agents and employees to perform and carry out their duties and obligations under this chapter, as well as their covenants and agreements with the bondholders;
(2) by action or suit in equity, require the Corporation and its Board to account as if they were the trustee of an express trust;
(3) by action or suit in equity, enjoin any acts or things which may be unlawful or in violation of the rights of the bondholders, and
(4) to bring suit upon the bonds.
(b) No remedy granted hereunder to any bondholder or trustee therefor, is intended to be exclusive of any other remedy, but each such remedy is cumulative and in addition to every other remedy, and may be exercised without exhausting and without regard to any other remedy granted by this chapter or any other act. No waiver of any violation or nonperformance of duties or contracts, whether by any bondholder or trustee therefor, shall cover or affect any subsequent default or nonperformance of duties or contracts or shall impair any rights or remedies thereon. No delay or omission on the part of any bondholder or trustee therefor in exercising any right or power he may have in case of any default shall impair such right or power nor shall it be construed to be an acquiescence or consent to any such default. Every substantive right and every remedy conferred upon bondholders may be enforced or exercised from time to time and as many times as may be deemed convenient. In case any suit, action or proceeding to enforce any right or exercise any remedy is brought or taken and then discontinued or abandoned, or determined against the bondholder, or the trustee therefor, then, in every such case the Corporation and said bondholder or trustee shall be restored to their former positions, rights and remedies as if no such suit, action, or proceeding had been brought or taken.
History —July 2, 1975, No. 145, p. 433, § 20.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE TWENTY-EIGHT - Public Lands (§§ 1 — 737) › PART I - Lands Generally; Mines (§§ 1 — 226) › Chapter 6 - Development of Mineral Resources (§§ 91 — 91z) › § 91t - Tax exemption

(a) The Corporation and its subsidiaries shall be exempt from payment of commonwealth and municipal duties, taxes and excises except income tax.
(b) The Corporation shall also be exempt from payment of all kinds of fees, taxes or duties required or that may be required hereafter by laws to institute judicial proceedings, the issuance of certificates in all the offices and dependencies of the Government, the execution of public documents and their registration in the registry of property.
(c) In order to facilitate the procurement of funds by the Corporation to enable it to carry out its corporate purposes, all bonds issued or to be issued by the Corporation and the income therefrom shall be and remain at all times exempt from payment of every tax.
(d) Nothing provided in this section shall be understood to exempt from tax, duties, fees, or excises, private persons, corporations or partnerships, except for the provision concerning the income from bonds issued by the Corporation.
(e) Partially-possessed subsidiary corporations engaged in extraction shall not be entitled to tax exemption.
History —July 2, 1975, No. 145, p. 433, § 21.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE TWENTY-EIGHT - Public Lands (§§ 1 — 737) › PART I - Lands Generally; Mines (§§ 1 — 226) › Chapter 6 - Development of Mineral Resources (§§ 91 — 91z) › § 91u - Acquisition of property by condemnation

When in the judgment of the Corporation it becomes necessary to take immediate possession of property, rights or interests therein which the Corporation has declared as necessary or convenient to carry out its purposes, the Corporation shall request the Governor to acquire, in the name of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and he shall have power to acquire, by purchase, condemnation, or any other lawful means, for the use and benefit of the Corporation, such property, rights or interests therein, as requested. The Corporation shall deposit in advance with the Secretary of the Treasury of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico funds estimated as the value of the property, rights or interests to be acquired.
Any difference in value determined by a court of competent jurisdiction may be paid from the Commonwealth Treasury, but the Corporation shall be under obligation to reimburse such difference. Once it is proved before the court that the reimbursement has been fully made to the Commonwealth Treasury, there shall be conveyed to the Corporation, by order of the court, title to the property, rights or interests acquired; Provided, That in those cases in which the Governor of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico may deem it necessary and convenient that the property title and/or rights or interests thus acquired by registered directly in behalf of the Corporation in order to expedite fulfillment of the ends and purposes for which it was created, he may so request from the court at any time within the eminent domain proceedings, and if the court so orders; the registrar of property shall, upon presentation to him of the corresponding legal documents, proceed to make the recording of the property title, rights or interests in question in behalf of the Puerto Rico Mineral Resources Development Corporation. The power hereby conferred shall in nowise limit or restrict the power of the Corporation to acquire property by any lawful means, including condemnation.
History —July 2, 1975, No. 145, p. 433, § 22.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE TWENTY-EIGHT - Public Lands (§§ 1 — 737) › PART I - Lands Generally; Mines (§§ 1 — 226) › Chapter 6 - Development of Mineral Resources (§§ 91 — 91z) › § 91v - Transfer of Commonwealth property to the Corporation

The title to any property of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, heretofore or hereafter acquired and which may be deemed necessary or convenient to carry out the purposes of the Corporation, may be transferred to the Corporation by the head of the agency owning said property, or by the person having custody thereof, under such terms and conditions as the Governor of Puerto Rico may determine.
History —July 2, 1975, No. 145, p. 433, § 23.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE TWENTY-EIGHT - Public Lands (§§ 1 — 737) › PART I - Lands Generally; Mines (§§ 1 — 226) › Chapter 6 - Development of Mineral Resources (§§ 91 — 91z) › § 91w - Fiscal Agency Act

The Corporation shall be subject to the provisions of §§ 581—595 of Title 7, known as the “Fiscal Agency Act”, under which all its financing shall be made, through, and with the approval of the Government Development Bank for Puerto Rico.
History —July 2, 1975, No. 145, p. 433, § 24.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE TWENTY-EIGHT - Public Lands (§§ 1 — 737) › PART I - Lands Generally; Mines (§§ 1 — 226) › Chapter 6 - Development of Mineral Resources (§§ 91 — 91z) › § 91x - Legal investments

The bonds of the Corporation shall be legal investments and may be accepted as security for all fiduciary, trust and public funds, the investment or deposit of which shall be under the authority or control of the Commonwealth or of any officer or officers thereof.
History —July 2, 1975, No. 145, p. 433, § 25.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE TWENTY-EIGHT - Public Lands (§§ 1 — 737) › PART I - Lands Generally; Mines (§§ 1 — 226) › Chapter 6 - Development of Mineral Resources (§§ 91 — 91z) › § 91y - Agreement of the Commonwealth with bondholders

The Commonwealth does hereby pledge to and agree with the holders of any bonds issued under this chapter, and with any parties who may enter into contracts with the Corporation pursuant to the provisions of this chapter, that the Commonwealth will not limit or alter the rights hereby conferred to the Corporation until such bonds, together with the interest thereon, are fully met and redeemed and such contracts are fully complied with by the Corporation.
History —July 2, 1975, No. 145, p. 433, § 26.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE TWENTY-EIGHT - Public Lands (§§ 1 — 737) › PART I - Lands Generally; Mines (§§ 1 — 226) › Chapter 6 - Development of Mineral Resources (§§ 91 — 91z) › § 91z - Annual reports

The Corporation shall submit to the Legislative Assembly and to the Governor of Puerto Rico, within ninety (90) days after the close of each semester, complete reports, individual as well as consolidated, on the businesses conducted by the Corporation and its subsidiaries during the preceding semester. These reports shall include minimally the following:
(a) Balance sheet.
(b) Statement of receipts and disbursements.
(c) A projection of cash flow for the fiscal year.
(d) Statistical charts properly reflecting the operational phases of the Corporation and its subsidiaries. The statistics shall be characterized by their reliability, compatibility and comparability.
(e) A statement of the capital investments made and of the assets sold or otherwise alienated or leased during the period.
History —July 2, 1975, No. 145, p. 433, § 27.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE TWENTY-EIGHT - Public Lands (§§ 1 — 737) › PART I - Lands Generally; Mines (§§ 1 — 226) › Chapter 7 - Mines (§§ 110 — 125-180) › § 110 - Statement of public policy

It is hereby declared that it is the public policy of the Commonwealth to exploit and utilize the mineral resources of Puerto Rico for the benefit of their legitimate owner, the Puerto Rican People, constituted by the present and future generations.
The utilization of these nonrenewable resources must be planned with the utmost care so that it contributes to the integral and permanent development of the country and of the regions where such resources exist.
The Government shall make the efforts required to guarantee that industries able to use these resources as raw materials are established in Puerto Rico. Hence a more intense industrial activity and a greater economic production would be attained for the country. Notwithstanding the preceding, the extraction of metallic minerals using open pit or strip mining techniques or any other method that significantly alters the natural characteristics existing in the mining zone is hereby prohibited.
Likewise, it is hereby established that the public policy of the Commonwealth is to exploit its minerals in a manner compatible with the conservation of the other resources and the protection of environmental values. To this end we declare that the norms and regulations relating to the environmental quality in force in Puerto Rico may not be the object of negotiation or transaction in any contract concerning the exploitation of mineral deposits. It is likewise declared that it is the public policy of the Commonwealth to impose upon the mining enterprises the obligation to employ the most advanced techniques that science may develop for the prevention of damages and of the environmental hardships their operations may entail.
To attain that these mineral resources contribute to the integral development of the People of Puerto Rico, the Government of the Commonwealth shall examine the options which permit their exploitation and the flow of capital and the necessary technology therefor.
—Aug. 18, 1933, No. 9, p. 32, added as § 1 on Oct. 29, 1975, No. 10, p. 766, § 1; June 30, 1995, No. 73, § 1.
History
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE TWENTY-EIGHT - Public Lands (§§ 1 — 737) › PART I - Lands Generally; Mines (§§ 1 — 226) › Chapter 7 - Mines (§§ 110 — 125-180) › § 111 - Commercial minerals

Commercial minerals are the metallic and combustible substances, petroleum and all natural hydrocarbon compounds that compose, found therein or are derived therefrom; natural gas, precious stones and such other substances as may from time to time be declared commercial minerals by the Secretary of Natural and Environmental Resources, due to new uses found for such substances or their greater value under given circumstances of processing or manufacture or any other industrial or commercial factors.
Ownership of the commercial minerals found in the soil and subsoil of Puerto Rico, its adjacent islands and in surrounding waters and submerged lands next to their coasts up to where the depth of the waters allows their exploitation and utilization, in an extension of not less than three marine leagues, belongs to the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, which may exploit them directly or authorize their exploitation by other natural or artificial persons through leases executed by the Secretary of the Department of Natural and Environmental Resources and approved by the Governor of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.
For the purposes of this chapter, the term “marine league” shall mean 5,556 meters (3.45 land miles or 3 nautical miles).
History —Aug. 18, 1933, No. 9, p. 32, § 1; Oct. 6, 1954, No. 6, p. 48, § 1; June 27, 1969, No. 96, p. 257, § 1; renumbered as § 1A and amended on Oct. 29, 1975, No. 10, p. 766, § 2; July 17, 1979, No. 115, p. 279.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE TWENTY-EIGHT - Public Lands (§§ 1 — 737) › PART I - Lands Generally; Mines (§§ 1 — 226) › Chapter 7 - Mines (§§ 110 — 125-180) › § 114 - Other substances

Substances not classified as commercial minerals are free from the controls and limitations of this chapter.
A landowner has exclusive rights to the use and utilization of the fertility of his property and of the minerals providing such fertility and therefore he may alter the surface of his land and extract therefrom and sell any materials which are not or have not been classified as commercial minerals. It is recognized that extraction of commercial minerals lowers the value of property as regards its use or utilization for other purposes, and therefore the property owner must be compensated for such loss of value.
Siliceous and calcareous mineral substances, sand, argillaceous, magnesian and ferruginous earth, clay and other substances of this kind which may be used for construction, agriculture, or the arts, shall be under the surveillance of the Department of Natural and Environmental Resources.
History —Aug. 18, 1933, No. 9, p. 32, § 3; Oct. 6, 1954, No. 6, p. 48, § 1; renumbered as § 2 and amended on June 27, 1969, No. 96, p. 257, § 3; Oct. 29, 1975, No. 10, p. 766, § 3.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE TWENTY-EIGHT - Public Lands (§§ 1 — 737) › PART I - Lands Generally; Mines (§§ 1 — 226) › Chapter 7 - Mines (§§ 110 — 125-180) › § 115 - Mining Commission

A Mining Commission is hereby created, attached to the Office of the Governor of Puerto Rico and consisting of one representative of the Planning Board, another of the Department of Transportation and Public Works, another of the Department of Agriculture, another of the Department of Justice, another of the Department of Health, another of the Department of the Treasury, another of the Economic Development Administration and two representatives of the public interest. The said Commissioners shall be appointed by the Governor and each of them shall perform his duties until the Governor shall have designated his successor. The Governor shall designate one of the said Commissioners as Chairman of the Commission, and the said Chairman may, in turn, designate any other Commissioner to act as chairman in the event of his absence or inability to act as such. The Commission shall appoint with the approval of the Governor, an Executive Secretary who shall fulfill the office at the will of the Commission and until his successor is appointed and qualifies. The Commission shall determine the duties, powers and compensation of the Executive Secretary.
History —Aug. 18, 1933, No. 9, p. 32, § 4; Oct. 6, 1954, No. 6, p. 48, § 1; subdivided and renumbered as § 3 and amended on June 27, 1969, No. 96, p. 257, § 4; May 28, 1970, No. 47, p. 113, § 1.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE TWENTY-EIGHT - Public Lands (§§ 1 — 737) › PART I - Lands Generally; Mines (§§ 1 — 226) › Chapter 7 - Mines (§§ 110 — 125-180) › § 118 - Appeals

The decisions and findings of the Commission shall be final and [non-]appealable, excepting those involving questions of law, as well as those concerning the compensating of owners of the land or of any property right therein, from which any party aggrieved may appeal before the Supreme Court of Puerto Rico within the thirty (30) days following notice thereof; Provided, That when the appellant is the lessee, and the bond previously posted is, in the judgment of the Commission, insufficient to answer for the difference between the sum deposited and the compensation amount fixed by the Commission pursuant to the provisions of § 117(b)(10) of this title, the Commission shall order the proper modification of the said bond within the fifteen (15) days following the filing of the appeal, and such modification shall be made to the satisfaction of the Commission within the fifteen (15) days next following; otherwise the right to appeal shall lapse.
History —Aug. 18, 1933, No. 9, p. 32, § 7; Oct. 6, 1954, No. 6, p. 48, § 1.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE TWENTY-EIGHT - Public Lands (§§ 1 — 737) › PART I - Lands Generally; Mines (§§ 1 — 226) › Chapter 7 - Mines (§§ 110 — 125-180) › § 119 - Remedies before the Court of First Instance

The Commission may request the Court of First Instance of Puerto Rico to enforce any order or decision of the Commission, and may, further, ask the said court to issue any other adequate provisional order of remedy or restraint, including, among others, any necessary legal remedies, against any person violating or attempting to violate or intending to violate any provision of this chapter, the regulations of the Commission, or the orders or findings thereof, or who disregards, circumvents, impedes, or hinders the Commission or any of its authorized agents in the performance of the duties thereof under this chapter, or who interferes with the holding of a hearing carried out pursuant to this chapter.
History —Aug. 18, 1933, No. 9, p. 32, § 8; Oct. 6, 1954, No. 6, p. 48, § 1.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE TWENTY-EIGHT - Public Lands (§§ 1 — 737) › PART I - Lands Generally; Mines (§§ 1 — 226) › Chapter 7 - Mines (§§ 110 — 125-180) › § 121 - Transfer of records and properties

All documents, records, and properties relative to mining or to the administration and enforcement of the Puerto Rico Mining Law, in the possession of the Department of Transportation and Public Works, the Public Service Commission, and the Economic Development Administration, are hereby transferred to the Mining Commission, and the Executive Secretary of the Commission shall receive and store same and make them available for the use of the Commission and its Executive Secretary in the exercise of the powers granted to and the duties imposed upon them by this chapter.
History —Aug. 18, 1933, No. 9, p. 32, § 10; Oct. 6, 1954, No. 6, p. 48, § 1.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE TWENTY-EIGHT - Public Lands (§§ 1 — 737) › PART I - Lands Generally; Mines (§§ 1 — 226) › Chapter 7 - Mines (§§ 110 — 125-180) › § 122 - Appropriation

The sum of ten thousand dollars ($10,000) is, during the fiscal year 1954—55, hereby appropriated to the Commission from any available funds in the Commonwealth Treasury for the carrying out of the purposes of this chapter.
History —Aug. 18, 1933, No. 9, p. 32, § 11; Oct. 6, 1954, No. 6, p. 48, § 1.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE TWENTY-EIGHT - Public Lands (§§ 1 — 737) › PART I - Lands Generally; Mines (§§ 1 — 226) › Chapter 7 - Mines (§§ 110 — 125-180) › § 123 - Disposal of funds

All fees and other revenues collected and paid under the provisions of this chapter shall be covered into the general fund of the Commonwealth Treasury.
History —Aug. 18, 1933, No. 9, p. 32, § 12; Oct. 6, 1954, No. 6, p. 48, § 1.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE TWENTY-EIGHT - Public Lands (§§ 1 — 737) › PART I - Lands Generally; Mines (§§ 1 — 226) › Chapter 7 - Mines (§§ 110 — 125-180) › § 124 - Separability

Should any clause, paragraph, section, article, or part of this chapter be declared unconstitutional by a court of competent jurisdiction, the judgment entered to such effect shall not affect, impair, or invalidate the remainder of this chapter, the effects of such judgment being limited to the clause, paragraph, section, article, or part of this chapter so declared unconstitutional.
History —Aug. 18, 1933, No. 9, p. 32, § 13; Oct. 6, 1954, No. 6, p. 48, § 1.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE TWENTY-EIGHT - Public Lands (§§ 1 — 737) › PART I - Lands Generally; Mines (§§ 1 — 226) › Chapter 9 - Sand, Gravel, and Stone (§§ 201-205 — 220f) › § 206 - Jurisdiction of Secretary of Department of Natural and Environmental Resources

The Secretary of the Department of Natural and Environmental Resources is hereby vested with jurisdiction over activities of extraction, excavation, removal and dredging of the components of the earth’s crust called sand, gravel, stone, earth, silica, calcite, clay and any other similar component of the earth’s crust not regulated as economic mineral in public and private lands. Hereafter the aforesaid substances shall be referred to as “components of the earth’s crust”, the Department of Natural and Environmental Resources as the “Department”, and the aforesaid Secretary as “the Secretary”.
History —June 25, 1968, No. 132, p. 314, § 1; June 3, 1976, No. 144, p. 423, § 1, eff. 30 days after June 3, 1976.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE TWENTY-EIGHT - Public Lands (§§ 1 — 737) › PART I - Lands Generally; Mines (§§ 1 — 226) › Chapter 9 - Sand, Gravel, and Stone (§§ 201-205 — 220f) › § 207 - Permit—Necessity

No natural or juridical person, association or group of persons, department, agency, quasi-public corporation, municipality, or instrumentality of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico or of the United States of America shall excavate, extract, remove or dredge the components of the earth’s crust in public or private land within the geographical limits of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico without having obtained a permit for such purposes from the Secretary. Neither may components of the earth’s crust that have been excavated, extracted, removed or dredged in the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico be exported without the prior authorization of the Secretary.
The Secretary shall establish through regulations the standards that shall govern any excavation, extraction, removal or dredging operations incidental to or necessary for carrying out works or projects authorized pursuant to the provisions of law. The Secretary shall likewise provide for all matters related to the export of the components of the earth’s crust.
The Secretary may exempt from the permits and the payments corresponding by virtue thereof, when the amounts extracted are not significant or substantial.
The Secretary shall ensure compliance with the Environmental Public Policy Act, §§ 1121—1140a of Title 12, by requiring an Environmental Evaluation or an Environmental Impact Statement before granting any permit, except for those applicants whose request involves the coastal zone and the river beds used as sources of water supply. In those cases the Secretary shall ensure compliance with the Environmental Public Policy Act through an Environmental Impact Statement (DIA, Spanish acronym).
By means of the permit the Secretary shall regulate all requirements, limitations and restrictions related to the operational aspects of the activities for excavating, extracting, removing or dredging the components of the earth’s crust as well as the days and hours of operation and transportation. The faculty to regulate the days and hours of operation is extended to working days, holidays and weekends.
In the case of those applications for original permits certified by the Department within a term of not more than thirty (30) days that were fully and correctly submitted, the Secretary shall be responsible for granting or denying the permit within a term of not more than ninety (90) days.
History —June 25, 1968, No. 132, p. 314, § 2; June 3, 1976, No. 144, p. 423, § 2; June 27, 1987, No. 54, p. 180, § 1; Dec. 26, 1997, No. 195, § 1; Sept. 2, 2000, No. 318, § 1.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE TWENTY-EIGHT - Public Lands (§§ 1 — 737) › PART I - Lands Generally; Mines (§§ 1 — 226) › Chapter 9 - Sand, Gravel, and Stone (§§ 201-205 — 220f) › § 208 - Permit—Public hearings

Before issuing a new [permit], the Secretary shall provide notice to the public about the applications through the means he/she may establish by regulations. The Secretary shall hold public hearings if commentaries, controversies or objections arise with regard to any application, and he may call them motu proprio or by petition of an interested party. These public hearings will take place in the municipality where the requested activity would take place, after working hours, and shall be presided over by a technical/legal panel. During the first part of the hearing the applicants shall present to the community the activities that they request be authorized and they shall answer the attendees’ questions and clarify their doubts. During the second part, the panel shall receive for the record all the commentaries, preoccupations, doubts and objections by the attendees concerning the requested permit. The interested or affected parties may appear personally or through counsel, examine witnesses and introduce evidence to prove their case. The most liberal and open participation of the public shall be encouraged. After the hearing is held and within thirty (30) days after the case is submitted, the Secretary shall state his decision to deny or issue the permit in writing with the findings of fact and legal issues on which it is based, and shall send a copy thereof by registered mail to each one of the parties in the proceeding. The incidents of the public hearing shall be entered in a record which is admissible in evidence before a court.
The Secretary shall allow the participation or intervention in these hearings of all persons who so request.
The Secretary may require those persons requesting a hearing to pay for the costs incurred by the Department in the hearings, such as the use of the meeting room, public notices and sound system, among others. The Secretary shall determine by regulation the standards concerning this provision. The payments shall be covered into a special fund to defray the cost of the hearings. The applicants shall have the option of contracting directly for the services required for the hearings.
History —June 25, 1968, No. 132, p. 314, § 3; June 3, 1976, No. 144, p. 423, § 3; June 27, 1987, No. 54, p. 180, § 2; Dec. 26, 1997, No. 195, § 2; Sept. 2, 2000, No. 370, § 1.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE TWENTY-EIGHT - Public Lands (§§ 1 — 737) › PART I - Lands Generally; Mines (§§ 1 — 226) › Chapter 9 - Sand, Gravel, and Stone (§§ 201-205 — 220f) › § 209 - Permit—Factors in granting or denying permits

(a) The Secretary shall take into consideration the following factors upon granting or denying the permits:
(1) Limits of the property for which permit is requested to extract, excavate, remove or dredge.
(2) Effects of the activity in:
(A) Adjacent areas.
(B) The erosion of the maritime-terrestrial zone and of the river banks in Puerto Rico.
(C) The physical formation of the maritime-terrestrial zone and of the rivers of Puerto Rico.
(D) The action of the waters of the rivers or of the sea on the coasts or banks of Puerto Rico.
(E) Changes in the level of the land object of the activity applied for.
(F) The tide, and as a result of possible changes thereof, in neighboring islands, reefs, channels, bays or other bodies of water whether or not used for navigation.
(G) The sand dunes located in the maritime-terrestrial zone or in any place within the geographical limits of Puerto Rico.
(H) The navigation and contamination of waters and atmospheric contamination during any phase of the operation.
(I) Access to public highways, and how traffic will be affected.
(J) Dams and lakes.
(K) The environment and natural resources in the immediate or adjacent area, with special emphasis on vulnerable species in danger of extinction.
(3) Areas devoted to storage, processing and distributing of the components removed, excavated or dredged.
(4) Means used to remove, excavate or dredge and their effects in nearby dwellings, in public highways, in dams and in other structures of private or public use.
(5) Industrial demand and value of the components of the earth’s crust in the commercial market.
(6) Benefits derived, directly or indirectly, for the area object of the activity and for adjacent areas.
(7) Purposes to which the components excavated, extracted, removed or dredged from the earth’s crust are devoted.
(8) Previous violations by the petitioner, his representatives or agents of any condition or requirement established in a permit, of any ruling, decision or order issued by the Secretary or of any provision of this chapter or of the regulations promulgated pursuant thereto.
(9) Capacity of the factory or roadway are of the highways or roads which give access to the place of work to handle the vehicle traffic that such operation may generate.
(b) Nonprofit associations and entities shall have priority over any other persons, associations and entities operating for other purposes, to excavate, extract, remove and dredge components of the earth’s crust in land of public domain or in land belonging to the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico or to any of its public corporations or municipalities, except in the case of renewal of permit.
History —June 25, 1968, No. 132, p. 314, § 4; June 3, 1976, No. 144, p. 423, § 4; June 27, 1987, No. 54, p. 180, § 3.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE TWENTY-EIGHT - Public Lands (§§ 1 — 737) › PART I - Lands Generally; Mines (§§ 1 — 226) › Chapter 9 - Sand, Gravel, and Stone (§§ 201-205 — 220f) › § 211 - Permit—Renewal

The Secretary may renew the permits for the extraction, excavation, removal or dredging of the components of the earth’s crust. The application for such renewal shall be made, in writing, to the Secretary, at least ninety (90) days prior to the expiration date of the permit to be renewed. The renewal application must meet all the requirements of the original application, it being understood that if there have been no changes in the conditions stated in the original application, it shall suffice to thus consign them by means of a sworn statement given by the applicant. Nevertheless, any application for renewal shall have the necessary information for the Department to comply with § 1124(c) of Title 12. Once the application for renewal has been filed in due time, the Department of Natural and Environmental Resources shall have thirty (30) days to certify that the same has been duly completed for processing. If said thirty (30) days have elapsed without the Department having issued its certification, it shall be understood that the application for renewal is complete for processing. The evaluation of an application for renewal shall take into consideration the factors mentioned in § 209 of this title, and shall include an on-site inspection of the extraction area. The Secretary may require a legal evaluation. Once the Environmental Quality Board certifies compliance with § 1124(c) of Title 12, the Secretary may issue his/her decision on the application for renewal.
Provided, however, That the permit shall remain in force as a provisional permit until the Department and other agencies resolve the application for renewal and it becomes final and binding. Those applications for renewal that are not filed within ninety (90) days prior to the expiration of the permit shall not have the benefit of the terms granted in this section and shall be considered as original permit applications.
The Department shall perform an on-site inspection for every renewal application to verify the data in the application. A notice to the neighboring communities shall also be required advising them of their right to comment or object to the issuance of the permit subject to renewal, within thirty (30) days from the date of the notice. Any person who could be affected by adjudication of the application for renewal and is interested in commenting or objecting to a renewal or permit, may request that a public hearing be held, as established by § 208 of this title.
History —June 25, 1968, No. 132, p. 314, § 6; June 3, 1976, No. 144, p. 423, § 6; June 27, 1987, No. 54, p. 180, § 5; Dec. 26, 1997, No. 195, § 4; Aug. 6, 1999, No. 223, § 1; Sept. 2, 2000, No. 370, § 3.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE TWENTY-EIGHT - Public Lands (§§ 1 — 737) › PART I - Lands Generally; Mines (§§ 1 — 226) › Chapter 9 - Sand, Gravel, and Stone (§§ 201-205 — 220f) › § 212 - Permit—Applicant who is not the owner

When the applicant is a grantee, lessee, or other occupant not the owner of the property involved, whether or not by contract, he shall produce evidence of his right to carry out the activity requested as such grantee, lessee or other occupant. The permit shall not be granted for a term in excess of the time for which he is entitled to occupy the property.
History —June 25, 1968, No. 132, p. 314, § 7; June 3, 1976, No. 144, p. 423, § 7, eff. 30 days after June 3, 1976.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE TWENTY-EIGHT - Public Lands (§§ 1 — 737) › PART I - Lands Generally; Mines (§§ 1 — 226) › Chapter 9 - Sand, Gravel, and Stone (§§ 201-205 — 220f) › § 213 - Permit—Denial or revocation; public hearing

When a permit is denied or revoked, the Secretary shall notify the applicant or the holder of the permit, as the case may be, with a statement containing the grounds or reasons for the denial, issuance or revocation. Those commenting or participating in the permit’s public hearing, as well as parties adversely affected, who show that the action finally taken on the permit shall affect their person, income, economy or their rights, or shall impair or degrade the environment or the natural systems in the area immediately adjacent to the place where the corresponding excavation, extraction, removal or dredging of the earth’s crust would be made, may request that a quasi judicial public hearing be held within fifteen (15) days following the notification date.
The Secretary may require those persons requesting a hearing to pay for the costs and fees for professional and consulting services incurred by the Department in the hearings, and the corresponding investigations and studies. The Secretary may exempt people from payment for these expenses and fees if they show they have limited means. The Secretary shall determine by regulation the standards concerning this provision. The payments shall be covered into a special fund and shall be used to defray the expenses of the hearings.
History —June 25, 1968, No. 132, p. 314, § 9, renumbered as § 8 and amended on June 3, 1976, No. 144, p. 423, § 9; Sept. 2, 2000, No. 370, § 4.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE TWENTY-EIGHT - Public Lands (§§ 1 — 737) › PART I - Lands Generally; Mines (§§ 1 — 226) › Chapter 9 - Sand, Gravel, and Stone (§§ 201-205 — 220f) › § 214 - Official examiners, powers

The Secretary may designate one or more examiners to preside over the public hearings contemplated by §§ 206—220f of this title. One of them shall have been admitted to the Bar in the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.
The examiners shall have the power to:
(1) Administer oaths and take testimony;
(2) issue summons requiring the appearance of witnesses and the production of documentary evidence;
(3) receive pertinent evidence and decide thereon;
(4) take, or cause depositions to be taken;
(5) conduct the hearing;
(6) hold conferences to simplify the controversies;
(7) pass on procedural instances or similar matters, and
(8) recommend decisions.
History —June 25, 1968, No. 132, p. 314, § 10, renumbered as § 9 and amended on June 3, 1976, No. 144, p. 423, § 10; June 27, 1987, No. 54, p. 180, § 6.