reglab/statecodes huggingface dataset:
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE SEVENTEEN - Housing (§§ 1 — 1546) › Chapter 48 - Assisted Living Housing Projects (§§ 1481 — 1481q) › § 1481c - Special services

For a housing project within the conceptual framework of assisted living to be certified as such, the sponsor shall provide or establish arrangements for the rendering of services to persons with an individualized service plan to ensure for the elderly person, as a minimum, the following:
(a) Supervision and assistance for the performance of daily living activities or incidental activities of daily living; a medication monitoring plan; a minimum of two (2) daily meals if the units of the residence have a kitchenette. If the units of the residence do not have a kitchenette, it shall be the responsibility of the residence to make available a kitchen facility accessible to all the units; timely assistance in emergency situations supplied by personnel available twenty-four (24) hours for such purposes and complemented by an emergency response system for emergencies or any other additional emergency response system required by the Department or the Office.
(b) As part of the incidental activities of daily living, each resident shall be provided, at least once per week, with a recreational, educational or leisure [activity] of the resident’s choice, as long as it does not contravene the law, morals or the public order. For this purpose, the Office shall obtain cooperative agreements with internal tourism and entertainment entities to establish special service offers to such residents. The activity shall be chosen by the resident, pursuant to his/her intellectual or recreational interests.
(c) In addition, professional or technical courses or seminars that are in tune with the interests and aspirations of the residents must be one of the components of the incidental activities of daily living. For this purpose, the residences may establish collaborative agreements with the Department of Education, the Department of the Family, and with any other agency that is capable of offering courses or programs of interest to the residents of any assisted living housing project.
(d) Provide up to three (3) daily meals or therapeutic diets, but not less than two (2) per day. All housing projects pursuant to this chapter shall use the dietary criteria recommended by means of regulation by the Office, in coordination with the Department of Health.
Those who, in spite of having met the criteria set forth by law initially, later require services beyond the service coverage pursuant to this chapter shall not be able to continue to live in the units covered by this chapter.
History —Sept. 3, 2003, No. 244, § 6.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE SEVENTEEN - Housing (§§ 1 — 1546) › Chapter 48 - Assisted Living Housing Projects (§§ 1481 — 1481q) › § 1481d - Medical and nursing services

The sponsor of the residence shall provide or make arrangements to provide health services pursuant to the following conditions:
(a) The rendering of high skilled and complex medical and nursing services are hereby restricted in all residences to legally authorized certified providers that do not have any sort of bonds with the residence in question. Said provider or external hospice shall not, pursuant to any circumstances, train or instruct the personnel of the residence in these areas. However, it may advise the personnel regarding aspects of health care that the resident must carry out by himself/herself, or that do not require specialized knowledge or procedures. The latter shall be allowed to the extent that the powers of the resident to manage his/her own treatment are not restricted.
(b) It shall be allowed to provide nursing services such as insulin injections, or other medication used daily for maintenance therapy provided by a certified health care services provider or a hospice authorized by law.
(c) Excluded from housing projects within the conceptual framework of assisted living are potential residents that require more than ninety (90) consecutive days of high skilled or complex medical treatment or nursing. Likewise, elderly persons who suffer seriously substantial physiological, cognitive or psychiatric conditions and incapacitating effects requiring intense, continuous and complex medical care, or who cannot self-administer a substantial part of their own treatment, nor sustain themselves without the continuous assistance of another person without risking their own safety are hereby excluded from the coverage of this chapter. Also beyond the scope of the housing projects pursuant to this chapter are elderly persons who require twenty four (24) hour high[ly] skilled medical attention.
History —Sept. 3, 2003, No. 244, § 7.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE SEVENTEEN - Housing (§§ 1 — 1546) › Chapter 48 - Assisted Living Housing Projects (§§ 1481 — 1481q) › § 1481e - Services provided

All housing projects within the conceptual framework of assisted living shall hereby:
(a) Provide units for one (1) or two (2) persons with locked doors, to restrict unwanted entries by other residents and to achieve greater mobility, individual space and privacy in their room for the elderly residents. Single units shall have an area of at least eighty (80) square feet, while double units shall have, as a minimum, an area of one hundred sixty (160) square feet. All units shall have free access to the common areas of the residence and shall be furnished for the use of cooking equipment and food storage. The resident shall have exclusive rights to the enjoyment of his/her unit with external lock.
An individual bathroom shall be provided for every two (2) persons in residences built prospectively after this act takes effect. Those residences already rendering services to elderly persons at the time this act takes effect and who wish to convert to the conceptual framework of assisted living shall provide, as a minimum, one private bath per unit, equipped with a lavatory, shower or bathtub, and one toilet, or at least with one bathroom facility for every three (3) residents.
(b) Design an individualized services plan for each resident, which shall include a detailed description of the services needed by each person. Same shall be configured prior to the admission of elderly persons to the residence and shall be updated at least every six (6) months, or when substantial changes in the circumstances so do warrant.
The individualized services plan, which shall be strictly confidential, shall identify the specific services to be provided to the person, including frequency and duration; identify the providers of the different services rendered; specify, if required by the resident, the medication management plan to be used. Said plans shall be configured in such a manner that the physical, cognitive and psychosocial capabilities of each resident are taken into account.
(c) Contribute toward the development of a health care system that tends toward the creation of a home environment in behalf of the residents that need to receive assistance with their daily living activities and incidental activities of daily living.
(d) Set forth measures that protect the individuality of the residents, while tending toward affording them independence and privacy.
(e) Facilitate for residents the use and retention of their personal property.
(f) Allow the residents to configure ways in which the medical services shall be received, while never risking their safety.
(g) The residence shall be responsible for the supervision of the general condition of the residents, even when the residents do not use the assistance services provided by the residence.
History —Sept. 3, 2003, No. 244, § 8.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE SEVENTEEN - Housing (§§ 1 — 1546) › Chapter 48 - Assisted Living Housing Projects (§§ 1481 — 1481q) › § 1481g - Office of the Advocate for the Elderly—Duties

The Office of the Advocate for the Elderly shall perform the following actions:
(a) Follow up on the operations of the residences and develop the creation of housing projects within the conceptual framework of assisted living.
(b) Prepare advertising campaigns in the different communications media to inform about the potential of housing project developments within the conceptual framework of assisted living, instruct elderly persons regarding the benefits of the institutional concept of assisted living and give orientations to the citizenry on the principles that inspire the development of housing projects pursuant to this chapter.
(c) Procure, in coordination with the Department of Housing, the availability of funds and federal programs to defray expenses for assisted living services for qualified residents.
(d) Promulgate regulations on all matters that tend toward expediting the implementation of the provisions of this chapter and of all matters that pursue the protection of the rights of elderly persons pursuant to this chapter.
(e) Work and prepare, in collaboration with the Department of Housing, a statistical framework that allows the creation of a profile of residents that use this type of housing concept and allows the evaluation of the quality and scope of the services rendered therein.
History —Sept. 3, 2003, No. 244, § 10.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE SEVENTEEN - Housing (§§ 1 — 1546) › Chapter 48 - Assisted Living Housing Projects (§§ 1481 — 1481q) › § 1481j - Ombudsman for Elderly Residents—Duties

(a) The Ombudsman shall have the primary duty to attend the claims of the housing projects within the conceptual framework of assisted living residents, and their relatives or representatives, with diligence. When addressing the claims, the Ombudsman shall provide said persons with pertinent juridical and government information that allows the claimant to make an informed decision regarding the steps to be taken to remedy the situation.
When addressing the claim and deeming that same is warranted pursuant to this chapter, the Ombudsman shall perform a thorough investigation of the situation and issue a report in that regard. Then, same shall take the appropriate steps in the pertinent public agency or organism that shall result in the prompt solution for, and due attention to, the problem subject of the claim.
(b) In the exercise of his/her powers, the Ombudsman shall have free access to the residences set forth in this chapter, and may review the files of each resident with the informed consent of same. Moreover, the Ombudsman shall interview the personnel of the residence, the external providers of the residence, the latter having the inescapable duty to provide all data or documentation that throws light over the submitted claim.
(c) The Ombudsman shall set forth the necessary mechanisms for the receipt and processing of claims and for the performance of investigations, as well as informing the results of same to the Director of the Office of the Advocate for the Elderly.
(d) The Ombudsman shall exercise all the powers conferred upon same pursuant to Act No. 308 of October 3, 1999, to comply with the duties imposed by this chapter.
(e) When complying with the duties set forth herein, the Ombudsman shall acquire knowledge of the particular services offered in the residences within the conceptual framework of assisted living and act according to same.
(f) The Ombudsman shall carry out an amount randomly [sic] periodic visits that represent the amount of residences to verify that they are in compliance with this chapter. The results of same shall be detailed in a report to be submitted to the Office and the Department. In addition, said report shall be made accessible to the residences concerned.
History —Sept. 3, 2003, No. 244, § 13.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE SEVENTEEN - Housing (§§ 1 — 1546) › Chapter 48 - Assisted Living Housing Projects (§§ 1481 — 1481q) › § 1481k - Penalties

All housing projects or residences established within the conceptual framework of this chapter that incurs in a violation or noncompliance against the provisions set forth in this chapter and the duties demanded in same shall risk that the Department of Housing may determine that the suspension of their certification, the permanent repeal of their certification, or the denial of the renewal of same is warranted.
Furthermore, any person who operates or manages a housing project or residence within the conceptual framework of assisted living created pursuant to this chapter without the due certification shall incur in a misdemeanor, and if found guilty, shall be punished with a penalty not to exceed five thousand dollars ($5,000) or a jail term of up to six (6) months, or both penalties, at the discretion of the court.
Any person in Puerto Rico who is dedicated to or disposed toward running residences within the conceptual framework of assisted living for the elderly created pursuant to this chapter, knowing that said residence or housing project does not have a certification for its operations shall incur in a misdemeanor, and if convicted, shall be punished with a fine not to exceed five thousand dollars ($5,000) or a jail term of up to six (6) months, or both penalties, at the discretion of the court.
Any violation against the aforementioned shall constitute reasonable cause to deny, renew, modify or repeal a certification for dedication to the purposes mentioned previously in this chapter. Regardless of the existence or use of any other remedy, at the request of the Office or the Department, the Secretary of Justice of Puerto Rico shall request an injunction or any other remedy to restrain the accused person from operating or managing a housing project or residence within the conceptual framework of assisted living without due certification.
History —Sept. 3, 2003, No. 244, § 14.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE SEVENTEEN - Housing (§§ 1 — 1546) › Chapter 48 - Assisted Living Housing Projects (§§ 1481 — 1481q) › § 1481m - Establishment of the model project

The Department of Housing shall establish a model project within the conceptual framework of assisted living to begin the forthcoming implementation of this new regulatory scheme set forth in this chapter, and to execute the concept of assisted living, as conceived herein. Regarding the administration of said model project, same shall correspond to the entity previously chosen by the Department and the Office.
Said model project shall be in operation for a term of two (2) years, at the end of which the Legislature shall pass judgment over the results obtained and shall extend said term, if by so doing the exposure and proliferation of assisted living establishments is thereby developed. The evaluation term of two (2) years shall commence to take effect when said project obtains the certification as set forth in § 1481b of this title and begins its operations.
History —Sept. 3, 2003, No. 244, § 16.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE SEVENTEEN - Housing (§§ 1 — 1546) › Chapter 48 - Assisted Living Housing Projects (§§ 1481 — 1481q) › § 1481n - Collaboration agreements

For this chapter to be effective, the necessary collaboration of innumerable agencies, municipalities and public and private instrumentalities is required. Therefore, both the Department of Housing and the Office of the Advocate for the Elderly are hereby empowered to set forth collaboration agreements with the Department of Health, the Department of the Family, the Health Services Administration (ASES, in Spanish), and any other deemed necessary for the implementation of this chapter.
History —Sept. 3, 2003, No. 244, § 17.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE SEVENTEEN - Housing (§§ 1 — 1546) › Chapter 48 - Assisted Living Housing Projects (§§ 1481 — 1481q) › § 1481o - Applicability of the Establishments for the Elderly Act

The Establishments for the Elderly Act §§ 351 et seq. of Title 8, shall not apply in any manner to residences within the conceptual framework of assisted living.
History —Sept. 3, 2003, No. 244, § 19.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE SEVENTEEN - Housing (§§ 1 — 1546) › Chapter 48 - Assisted Living Housing Projects (§§ 1481 — 1481q) › § 1481p - Regulation and forms

The Department of Housing is hereby empowered to create by means of regulation any necessary dispositions for the implementation of this chapter within one hundred eighty (180) days after the approval of this act, and pursuant to §§ 2101 et seq. of Title 3, known as the “Uniform Administrative Procedures Act of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico”. In addition, it shall create all the necessary forms for its implementation within one hundred eighty (180) days after the approval of this act.
Likewise, same shall set forth procedures to validate or accept any federal or state assistance such as Medicaid, the Nutritional Assistance Program, the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) Program, Social Security or Section 8, among others, that may be received by elderly persons interested in living in the housing projects set forth pursuant to this chapter as payment or partial payment of the rent established by means of the residency agreement.
History —Sept. 3, 2003, No. 244, § 20.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE SEVENTEEN - Housing (§§ 1 — 1546) › Chapter 48 - Assisted Living Housing Projects (§§ 1481 — 1481q) › § 1481q - Funds

The Department of Housing shall request federal funds through the federal Department of Housing in order to comply with the provisions herein. However, the Department of Housing may use funds identified and appropriated in the General Fund of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, subject to the availability of such resources.
In addition, it [is] hereby authorized to receive and administer funds originating from legislative appropriations and transfers, delegations, contributions and donations of any sort received from agencies, municipal governments and the Government of the United States of America, as well as those originating from persons and other private entities for the implementation of this chapter.
History —Sept. 3, 2003, No. 244, § 21.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE SEVENTEEN - Housing (§§ 1 — 1546) › Chapter 49 - Housing Rental and Improvement Subsidy Program for Low-Income Elderly Persons (§§ 1491 — 1495) › § 1491 - Definitions

For purposes of this chapter, the following terms and phrases shall have the meaning stated hereinbelow:
(a) Elderly person.— Refers to any person who is sixty (60) years of age or older, whose income is within the limits established by the Secretary of Housing through regulations to participate in the program, which may be equal to or more liberal, but never more restrictive than those established by the federal government.
(b) Monthly income.— Shall mean one twelfth (1 / 1 2) of the total yearly income of the person or family.
(c) New construction.— Shall mean any individual or collective housing whose construction begins after the effective date of this act and is certified by the Department of Housing as a participant of this program.
(d) Existing housing.— Means any individual or collective housing that has been built prior to the effective date of this act, and which the Department of Housing deems acceptable under the program created by this chapter.
(e) Domiciliary care system.— Shall mean the service area which provides shelter, food and outpatient medical care.
(f) Nursing care service.— Shall mean the service area that provides shelter to convalescent veterans, who neither suffer from any acute disease nor need hospital care, but require intermediate nursing care and other medical care related thereto.
(g) Existing housing.— Is any single or collective housing built before this act became effective, and deemed acceptable by the Department of Housing under the program created by this chapter.
(h) Veteran.— Shall mean any person who is a bona fide resident of Puerto Rico and a veteran of the Armed Forces of the United States of America pursuant to the federal laws in effect.
(i) Veteran’s State House.— Any collective housing built pursuant to Public Law No. 88-450 of August 19, 1964, as amended, known as the “Nursing Home Care”.
(j) Lessor.— Any person, persons, or corporative juridical entity that own and/or operate one or several housing projects qualified by the Department of Housing to participate in the “Housing Rental and Improvements Subsidy Program for Low-Income Elderly Persons” created by this chapter.
(k) Department.— The Department of Housing of the Government of Puerto Rico.
(l) Secretary.— The Secretary of the Department of Housing of the Government of Puerto Rico.
(m) Housing project.— Projects qualified by the Department of Housing to participate in the Housing Rental and Improvements Subsidy Program for Low-Income Elderly Persons.
History —Aug. 31, 1996, No. 173, § 2; Sept. 8, 2000, No. 393, § 2; Apr. 11, 2002, No. 53, § 1; Sept. 29, 2012, No. 293, § 1.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE SEVENTEEN - Housing (§§ 1 — 1546) › Chapter 49 - Housing Rental and Improvement Subsidy Program for Low-Income Elderly Persons (§§ 1491 — 1495) › § 1492 - Program

(a) The Secretary of Housing is hereby authorized to create a program to subsidize the monthly payment of housing rents and interest on loans granted to elderly persons or their relatives with whom they live permanently, to perform improvements to facilitate their mobility and enhance the enjoyment of their home.
(b) The subsidy shall consist of reducing the monthly rental payments of individual or multiple housing, and of the payments of loans granted to elderly persons or their relatives for home improvements, as provided in subsection (a) of this section. The Secretary of Housing is hereby authorized to adopt the regulations needed to determine the subsidy to be received by the beneficiary, based on the monthly income of the person or his/her relatives, and his/her family composition.
(c) The maximum subsidy to be granted shall not exceed the amount of four hundred dollars ($400) per month. The Secretary of Housing is hereby empowered to adopt the regulations needed to provide the subsidies to be granted and the duration thereof.
(d) Upon granting of the lease subsidy, the same may be varied annually, should there be a change [in] the income or family composition of the beneficiary.
(e) The Secretary of Housing may request and obtain evidence of the income or family composition of the applicant, in order to determine the subsidy to be granted.
(f) The beneficiary of the subsidy shall keep the corresponding monthly payments up to date, to continue availing him/herself of the subsidy granted under this chapter. Should the beneficiary of the subsidy fall in arrears in the payment of the loan for improvements or the rental payment, the subsidy for months in arrears shall only be honored if the payment is brought up to date and the financial institution or the lessor accepts it.
(g) This Program shall receive a recurring annual appropriation of five million dollars ($5,000,000) from the General Budget of the Government of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, to be made to the Department of Housing beginning in Fiscal Year 2016-2017 to defray the administrative and operating expenses of the Program. This budget appropriation shall be considered separate from the contributions of the Puerto Rico Lottery which are established in this chapter.
History —Aug. 31, 1996, No. 173, § 3; Sept. 8, 2000, No. 393, § 3; Nov. 17, 2015, No. 187, § 61.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE SEVENTEEN - Housing (§§ 1 — 1546) › Chapter 49 - Housing Rental and Improvement Subsidy Program for Low-Income Elderly Persons (§§ 1491 — 1495) › § 1492-1 - Housing projects

The provisions of this chapter shall equally apply to housing projects and not only to individuals, as defined in this chapter. Provided, that the housing project qualification shall be subject to the discretion of the Secretary contingent on the availability of funds for the implementation of the provisions of this chapter.
Furthermore, the Secretary is hereby authorized to prescribe by regulations the maximum rent that shall apply to housing projects benefiting from this chapter. The Secretary shall also be empowered to enter into contracts that at his discretion are necessary to ensure that any housing project lessor meets the requirements of this chapter and the regulations promulgated thereunder. It is hereby specified that not all projects qualified by the Department of Housing shall be recipients of the benefits provided by this chapter, since the appropriation of funds shall be made contingent on the availability of funds therefor at the discretion of the Secretary.
History —Aug. 31, 1996, No. 173, added as § 3-A on Sept. 29, 2012, No. 293, § 2.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE SEVENTEEN - Housing (§§ 1 — 1546) › Chapter 49 - Housing Rental and Improvement Subsidy Program for Low-Income Elderly Persons (§§ 1491 — 1495) › § 1492a - Veteran’s Housing Rental Matching of Funds Program

(a) The Secretary of Housing is hereby authorized to create a program to subsidize the monthly payment for housing rental pursuant to Public Law No. 88-450 of August 19, 1964, as amended, better known as the “Nursing Home Care”, to all veterans and their spouses or veterans’ surviving spouses.
(b) The subsidy shall consist of reducing the monthly payment of the collective housing rental granted to all veterans, their spouses or his/her surviving spouse. The Secretary of Housing is hereby authorized to adopt any regulations needed to determine the subsidy to be received by the beneficiary depending on his/her monthly income.
(c) The maximum subsidy to be granted in the case of veterans who have availed themselves of the domiciliary care program shall not exceed the sum of four hundred dollars ($400) each month. The Secretary of Housing is hereby empowered to adopt any regulations needed to provide for the subsidies to be granted and the duration thereof.
(d) The maximum subsidy to be granted in the case of veterans who have availed themselves of the nursing care program shall not exceed the sum of six hundred dollars ($600) each month. The Secretary of Housing is hereby empowered to adopt any regulations needed to provide for the subsidies to be granted and the duration thereof.
(e) Once the rent subsidy is granted, the same may vary annually if there is a change in the income of the veteran, his/her spouse or his/her surviving spouse.
(f) The Secretary of Housing may request and obtain evidence of the income of the veteran, his/her spouse or his/her surviving spouse income in order to determine the subsidy to be granted.
(g) The Secretary of Housing shall reevaluate the cases and transfer them to the new matching of funds program established in these subsections regarding veterans receiving a subsidy pursuant to this chapter.
(h) The beneficiary of the subsidy shall make the corresponding monthly payments on time in order to continue receiving the benefit of the subsidy granted under this chapter. If the beneficiary of the subsidy is in arrears in the payment of rent, the subsidy of those payments in arrears shall be provided once the debt is settled and the payment of rent is received.
History —Aug. 31, 1996, No. 173, added as § 4 on Sept. 8, 2000, No. 393, § 4.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE SEVENTEEN - Housing (§§ 1 — 1546) › Chapter 49 - Housing Rental and Improvement Subsidy Program for Low-Income Elderly Persons (§§ 1491 — 1495) › § 1493 - Regulations

The Secretary of Housing shall adopt such regulations as are necessary and consistent with the purposes of this chapter, and the same shall have force of law after their promulgation pursuant §§ 2101 et seq. of Title 3, known as the “Uniform Administrative Procedures of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico Act”.
History —Aug. 31, 1996, No. 173, § 4, renumbered as § 5 on Sept. 8, 2000, No. 393, § 5.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE SEVENTEEN - Housing (§§ 1 — 1546) › Chapter 49 - Housing Rental and Improvement Subsidy Program for Low-Income Elderly Persons (§§ 1491 — 1495) › § 1495 - Veterans’ Housing Rental Matching of Funds Program—Restrictive conditions

In the rental matching of funds the following restrictive conditions shall be consigned in the housing rental contract:
(a) The lessee shall neither sublet the property nor use it for a purpose other than his/her usual and permanent residence.
(b) If the beneficiary dies, the rent subsidy shall be suspended unless his/her surviving spouse is eligible to continue to receive the same.
(c) In case of divorce, the veteran shall continue to receive the rent subsidy.
(d) Any other condition established by the Secretary of Housing through regulations thereto.
Failure to comply with the restrictive conditions consigned in the contract shall result in the suspension of the subsidy.
History —Aug. 31, 1996, No. 173, added as § 7 on Sept. 8, 2000, No. 393, § 6.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE SEVENTEEN - Housing (§§ 1 — 1546) › Chapter 50 - Housing Subsidy for Veterans (§§ 1501 — 1505) › § 1501 - Definitions

For the purposes of this chapter, the following terms and phrases shall have the meaning stated below:
(a) Monthly income. — Means one-twelfth (1 / 1 2) of the total annual income of a person or family.
(b) Advocate. — Is the Puerto Rico Veterans Advocate Office.
(c) Home care system. — Means the service area that provides room and board and outpatient medical care.
(d) Nursing care system. — Means the service area that provides housing to convalescing veterans who neither suffer from a serious illness nor need hospital care but require intermediate nursing care and other related medical care.
(e) Veteran. — Means any bona fide resident of Puerto Rico who is a veteran of the Armed Forces of the United States of America according to the federal laws in effect.
(f) Commonwealth Veterans Home. — Means any collective housing facility built under Public Law No. 88-450 of August 19, 1964, as amended, better known as “Nursing Home Care”.
History —Sept. 2, 2000, No. 313, § 2; Feb. 14, 2004, No. 59, § 1.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE SEVENTEEN - Housing (§§ 1 — 1546) › Chapter 50 - Housing Subsidy for Veterans (§§ 1501 — 1505) › § 1502 - Housing Rental Subsidy Program

(a) The Veterans Advocate is hereby authorized to create a program to subsidize the monthly housing rental payments established pursuant to Public Law No. 88-450 of August 19, 1964, as amended, better known as “Nursing Home Care”, for every veteran and his or her spouse, or for the surviving spouse of a veteran.
(b) The subsidy shall consist of a reduction in the monthly rental payments of the collective housing facility granted to every veteran and his or her spouse, or the surviving spouse of a veteran. The Veterans Advocate is hereby authorized to adopt the regulations needed to determine the subsidy to be received by the beneficiary depending on the monthly income of the veteran.
(c) The maximum subsidy to be granted in the case of veterans who avail themselves of the home care system shall not exceed the sum of four hundred dollars ($400) a month. The Veterans Advocate is hereby empowered to adopt the regulations needed to dispose of the subsidies to be granted and their duration.
(d) The maximum subsidy that may be granted in the case of veterans who avail themselves of the nursing care system shall not exceed the sum of six hundred dollars ($600) a month. The Veterans Advocate is hereby empowered to adopt the regulations needed to provide the subsidies to be granted and their duration.
(e) Once the rental subsidy has been granted it may vary annually should there be a change in the income of the veteran and his or her spouse or of the surviving spouse of the veteran.
(f) The Veterans Advocate may request and obtain evidence of the income of the veteran and his or her spouse or of the surviving spouse of a veteran with the purpose of determining the subsidy to be granted.
(g) The beneficiary of the subsidy must keep the corresponding payments up to date to continue to benefit from the subsidy granted under this chapter. Should the beneficiary of the subsidy be delinquent in paying the rent, the subsidy for the months in arrears shall only be honored if the payment is brought up to date and it is accepted by the lease holder.
History —Sept. 2, 2000, No. 313, § 3; Feb. 14, 2004, No. 59, § 2.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE SEVENTEEN - Housing (§§ 1 — 1546) › Chapter 50 - Housing Subsidy for Veterans (§§ 1501 — 1505) › § 1503 - Regulations; reports

The Veterans Advocate, with the advice of the Secretary of Housing, shall adopt the regulations and standards that are necessary and consistent with the purposes of this chapter, and shall have the force of law after being promulgated pursuant to §§ 2101 et seq. of Title 3, known as the “Commonwealth of Puerto Rico Uniform Administrative Procedures Act”.
The Veterans Advocate, after the close of each fiscal year, but no later than the first of November, shall render a report to the Legislature that shall include a statement of the results obtained in the administration of this chapter, the fiscal situation, and recommendations to improve the condition of our veterans. It is hereby provided that an external audit of the operations of the Program shall be performed annually, and a copy thereof shall be remitted to the Legislature.
History —Sept. 2, 2000, No. 313, § 4; Feb. 14, 2004, No. 59, § 3.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE SEVENTEEN - Housing (§§ 1 — 1546) › Chapter 50 - Housing Subsidy for Veterans (§§ 1501 — 1505) › § 1504 - Restrictive conditions

The following restrictive conditions in the leasing subsidies shall be consigned in the lease contract:
(a) The lessee may not sublet the property nor devote the same to any use other than as his or her habitual and permanent residence.
(b) In the case of the death of a beneficiary, the rental subsidy shall be suspended unless the surviving spouse qualifies for continuing to receive said subsidy.
(c) In the case of divorce, the veteran shall continue to receive the rental subsidy.
(d) Any other condition established by the Veterans Advocate through regulations to such effect.
Failure to comply with the restrictive conditions consigned in this subsection shall entail the suspension of the subsidy.
History —Sept. 2, 2000, No. 313, § 5; Feb. 14, 2004, No. 59, § 4.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE SEVENTEEN - Housing (§§ 1 — 1546) › Chapter 50 - Housing Subsidy for Veterans (§§ 1501 — 1505) › § 1505 - Special fund—Creation

A special fund is hereby created that shall be known as the “Veterans Housing Rental Subsidy Fund”. This Fund shall be administered pursuant to the standards and regulations adopted by the Veterans Advocate Office, in accordance with the provisions for the administration of similar funds in effect. The Fund shall be used by the Veterans Advocate Office to grant the subsidies provided in this chapter.
The Puerto Rican Veterans Advocate Office shall incur obligations up to the amount of one million six hundred thousand dollars ($1,600,000) to comply with the provisions of this chapter. The resources used by the Fund chargeable to this authorization shall be consigned annually in the General Budget of the Veterans Advocate Office of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.
History —Sept. 2, 2000, No. 313, § 6; Feb. 14, 2004, No. 59, § 5.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE SEVENTEEN - Housing (§§ 1 — 1546) › Chapter 51 - Individual Savings and Development Accounts (§§ 1511 — 1525) › § 1513 - Matching of funds

The persons that are selected to participate in the Individual Savings and Development Accounts Program shall receive a progressive contribution of funds equal to the amount deposited in savings. Said contribution shall be limited to a maximum of one thousand dollars ($1,000) annually per participant.
History —Dec. 4, 2001, No. 170, § 5.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE SEVENTEEN - Housing (§§ 1 — 1546) › Chapter 51 - Individual Savings and Development Accounts (§§ 1511 — 1525) › § 1514 - Consideration of assets for other programs

While the participant is making contributions to his/her account, the assets deposited in the individual savings and development accounts, including any interest generated thereby, shall not be considered for the purposes of any federal, state, local assistance or social welfare program that requires consideration of the financial situation of the participant. This includes, but is not limited to Nutritional Assistance Program, (PAN, Spanish acronym), the Temporary Aid for Needy Families Program and the Public Housing Program of the Public Housing Administration attached to the Department of Housing of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico or any other local or federal social welfare program and the benefits provided by the Health Reform.
History —Dec. 4, 2001, No. 170, § 6.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE SEVENTEEN - Housing (§§ 1 — 1546) › Chapter 51 - Individual Savings and Development Accounts (§§ 1511 — 1525) › § 1515 - Tax exemptions

The money donated to the Communities Revitalization Administration (ARCo.) to be used for the matching of funds in individual savings and development accounts, may [be] deducted from the gross income of the donors pursuant to Section 1022(o) and 1023(aa)(2)(M) of the Internal Revenue Code.
The money deposited in the individual savings and development accounts shall be exempt from the payment of taxes on the interest accrued as long as the account is maintained and even after it is withdrawn, if the disbursement responds to one of the approved uses as defined in this chapter.
The money deposited or contributed by the Communities Revitalization Administration (ARCo.) to an individual savings and development account and that proceeds from the matching of funds as provided in §§ 1512(1) and 1513 of this title, shall constitute tax exempted income for the participant owner of the account. The interest accrued by the individual savings and development accounts shall be exempted from the payment of income taxes up to the amount established in Section 1022(b) of the Puerto Rico Internal Revenue Code of 1994, as amended.
History —Dec. 4, 2001, No. 170, § 7.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE SEVENTEEN - Housing (§§ 1 — 1546) › Chapter 51 - Individual Savings and Development Accounts (§§ 1511 — 1525) › § 1516 - Deductions for donations

The sum donated to the Communities Revitalization Administration (ARCo.), to be used to match funds in the Individual Savings and Development Accounts may be deducted from the gross income of the donors pursuant to Section 1022(o) and 1023(aa)(2)(M) of the Puerto Rico Internal Revenue Code of 1994.
History —Dec. 4, 2001, No. 170, § 8.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE SEVENTEEN - Housing (§§ 1 — 1546) › Chapter 51 - Individual Savings and Development Accounts (§§ 1511 — 1525) › § 1517 - Forfeiture

The funds contributed through matching to an [sic] individual savings and development accounts created by this chapter, shall be nonforfeitable.
History —Dec. 4, 2001, No. 170, § 9.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE SEVENTEEN - Housing (§§ 1 — 1546) › Chapter 51 - Individual Savings and Development Accounts (§§ 1511 — 1525) › § 1518 - Eligible persons

(a) Limit of income. — In order to participate in the Individual Savings and Development Accounts Program, the income of potential participants shall not exceed 100% of the area median income, as established or modified by the Secretary of the Federal Urban Housing Department, known as the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
(b) Persons who are residents of public housing projects of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, even though they are beneficiaries of the Nutritional Assistance Program of the Government of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the Temporary Aid to Needy Families of the Federal Government or the Health Reform of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, among other programs.
History —Dec. 4, 2001, No. 170, § 10.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE SEVENTEEN - Housing (§§ 1 — 1546) › Chapter 51 - Individual Savings and Development Accounts (§§ 1511 — 1525) › § 1519 - Intermediary agency

The Communities Revitalization Administration (ARCo.) shall serve as intermediary between the owners of individual savings and development accounts and the financial institutions that maintain the deposits. Its responsibilities shall include, but shall not be limited to:
(a) Request or provide from any available and legal source, the funds to match the contribution of participants;
(b) determine the ratio for the matching of funds;
(c) provide advisory services to the participants of the program;
(d) market the program;
(e) determine the eligibility of participants pursuant to this chapter, and
(f) carry out all activities regarding the verification and compliance of requirements.
History —Dec. 4, 2001, No. 170, § 11.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE SEVENTEEN - Housing (§§ 1 — 1546) › Chapter 51 - Individual Savings and Development Accounts (§§ 1511 — 1525) › § 1520 - Withdrawals

Withdrawals from accounts may be made only by simultaneous agreement between the participant owner of the account and the Communities Revitalization Administration (ARCo.), and may only be made for one or more of the approved uses, as defined in § 1512(4) of this title. The participant may withdraw his/her contribution, without the part corresponding to the money contributed through matching, at any time. The cost of any approved use shall be paid directly from the individual savings and development accounts and through the Communities Revitalization Administration (ARCo.), to the persons or entities to which money is owed in accordance to this section.
History —Dec. 4, 2001, No. 170, § 12.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE SEVENTEEN - Housing (§§ 1 — 1546) › Chapter 51 - Individual Savings and Development Accounts (§§ 1511 — 1525) › § 1521 - Selection of participants

From the total number of individuals or families eligible for assistance under the Individual Savings and Development Accounts Program, pursuant to § 1517 of this title, the Communities Revitalization Administration (ARCo.), shall select those individuals or families that the organization deems are the most suited to receive said assistance, pursuant to the definition of “eligible person” and to the regulations adopted.
History —Dec. 4, 2001, No. 170, § 13.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE SEVENTEEN - Housing (§§ 1 — 1546) › Chapter 51 - Individual Savings and Development Accounts (§§ 1511 — 1525) › § 1522 - Financial institutions

The financial institutions participating in the Individual Savings and Development Accounts Program shall: (i) maintain the account in the name of the participant; (ii) allow that deposits be made to the participants’ account, and (iii) ascertain that the accounts generate the prevailing interests at that time, established by the Commissioner of Financial Institutions, or those agreed upon by the Communities Revitalization Administration (ARCo.), and the financial institutions. This interest shall be tax exempted while the money is maintained in the accounts and even if withdrawn, if disbursed for an approved use.
History —Dec. 4, 2001, No. 170, § 15.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE SEVENTEEN - Housing (§§ 1 — 1546) › Chapter 51 - Individual Savings and Development Accounts (§§ 1511 — 1525) › § 1523 - Annual report

The Communities Revitalization Administration (ARCo.), the intermediary agency, shall render an annual report to the Department of Housing specifying the number of accounts it administers, the total of matching funds assigned to those accounts and the source thereof, the activity in active accounts and any other reasonable information that does not violate the privacy of the participants and that allows the evaluation of the program. The Department of Housing shall be responsible for submitting a summarized annual report, with the information contained in the reports received from the Communities Revitalization Administration (ARCo.), to the Governor of Puerto Rico, the Legislature, the Senate Committee on Housing and to the House Committee on Urban Development and Housing.
History —Dec. 4, 2001, No. 170, § 16.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE SEVENTEEN - Housing (§§ 1 — 1546) › Chapter 51 - Individual Savings and Development Accounts (§§ 1511 — 1525) › § 1524 - Other powers and obligations

The Secretary of the Department of Housing shall immediately request the permits and exemptions needed to implement this program from the pertinent agencies, and shall ensure that they are obtained as soon as possible.
History —Dec. 4, 2001, No. 170, § 17.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE SEVENTEEN - Housing (§§ 1 — 1546) › Chapter 51 - Individual Savings and Development Accounts (§§ 1511 — 1525) › § 1525 - Coordination of programs

There is no prohibition to combine this program with any other program that is not inconsistent therewith and for which the participant also qualifies.
History —Dec. 4, 2001, No. 170, § 18.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE SEVENTEEN - Housing (§§ 1 — 1546) › Chapter 52 - Good Samaritan [Law] for Collaborators in a Construction Affected by a Natural Disaster (§§ 1531 — 1533) › § 1531 - Definitions

The following terms shall have the meaning stated hereinbelow:
(a) Architect. — Shall mean that person who is licensed, as provided in §§ 711 et seq. of Title 20, known as the “Board of Examiners of Engineers, Architects, Surveyors and Landscape Architects of Puerto Rico Act”.
(b) Engineer. — Shall mean that person who is licensed, as provided in §§ 711 et seq. of Title 20, known as the “Board of Examiners of Engineers, Architects, Surveyors and Landscape Architects of Puerto Rico Act”.
(c) Land surveyor. — Shall mean a person who is licensed, as provided in §§ 711 et seq. of Title 20, known as the “Board of Examiners of Engineers, Architects, Surveyors and Landscape Architects of Puerto Rico Act”.
(d) State of emergency. — Shall mean those cases in which the Governor of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico declares a state of emergency caused by a hurricane, earthquake, tornado, fire, explosion, landslide, flooding or other natural or catastrophic disaster.
History —Aug. 1, 2008, No. 143, § 2; Aug. 5, 2009, No. 61, § 1.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE SEVENTEEN - Housing (§§ 1 — 1546) › Chapter 52 - Good Samaritan [Law] for Collaborators in a Construction Affected by a Natural Disaster (§§ 1531 — 1533) › § 1532 - Release from liability

Every architect, engineer, land surveyor, or construction personnel under his/her supervision, who voluntarily without any compensation and by petition or with the approval of an officer or a federal or state employee, a member of the Puerto Rico or Municipal Police or a housing inspector of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, acting in his/her official capacity who renders services or architectural, structural, electrical or mechanical inspections or other engineering, architectural, or land surveying service when a state of emergency has been declared by the Governor of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, shall not be liable for any type of bodily injury, death or property damage or any other loss related to his/her acts, errors or omissions caused in the performance of his/her functions.
History —Aug. 1, 2008, No. 143, § 3; Aug. 5, 2009, No. 61, § 2.
2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE SEVENTEEN - Housing (§§ 1 — 1546) › Chapter 52 - Good Samaritan [Law] for Collaborators in a Construction Affected by a Natural Disaster (§§ 1531 — 1533) › § 1533 - Applicability

This exoneration from responsibility shall only be applicable when the architects, engineers or land surveyors act free of charge and voluntarily without having any legal or contractual relation whatsoever, and when they have not acted with gross negligence nor have had the purpose of causing any harm.
History —Aug. 1, 2008, No. 143, § 4; Aug. 5, 2009, No. 61, § 3.