P.R. Laws tit. 5, § 1107
(a) The Administrator may regulate the diverse phases of the milk industry subject to the provisions of §§ 1092—1118 of this title and to the extent necessary to enforce the public policy and the purposes of such sections.
(b) In determining the limit of the regulation of the industry, the Administrator shall take into account the needs and interests of the different sectors within the industry so that any measure adopted will tend to stabilize and stimulate the progress in the production and marketing of milk and its byproducts and therefore further the prosperity of the industry.
(c) For the purposes of regulating the industry, the Administrator may establish milk and milk byproducts production and distribution areas.
(d) The Administrator shall fix the maximum, minimum or only prices for liquid milk, including surplus, in its different denominations, this being types, formulas or categories in all and any of the distribution channels and levels. Any determination of prices shall be the product of a process of duly convoked public hearings. In the hearings to fix the maximum, minimum or only price for liquid milk and/or its byproducts, the Administrator shall summon the Secretary of the Department of Consumer Affairs, who shall appear in representation of the consumers. Said Department shall also render a report and its recommendations to the Administrator on said hearings. The Administrator shall take into consideration the recommendations of the Department of Consumer Affairs in determining the fixing of maximum, minimum or only prices.
(e) In fixing the maximum, minimum or only prices to be paid for each quart of liquid milk or fraction thereof, the Administrator shall set fair and reasonable prices that will ensure an adequate liquid milk market, without affecting the production or the sources of production and supply unfavorably. To this end, the Administrator shall consider all cost factors involved in the production, processing and sterilizing of milk, including but without being limited to the cost of labor, feed, transportation and distribution of liquid milk and its by-products, as well as compliance with the sanitary requirements established by law.
He shall likewise take into consideration the supply and demand of the product in all its different denominations, the purchasing power of the community according to the income and general business activity indexes, and other market conditions and economic factors that may affect the supply, demand or the value of milk or its by-products. The Administrator shall ensure that the maximum, minimum or only price of UHT milk produced in Puerto Rico or imported, at all levels be fixed in accordance with the evaluations and recommendations of the Milk Industry Regulating Office for the corresponding level.
At least once a year as of the month of August, the Administrator shall revise the price of milk and make the needed price adjustments in keeping with the increases or reductions in production and operating costs at all levels; Provided, That when the first revision required by §§ 1092—1118 of this title is carried out, he shall take into account the latest study made by his Office to these effects. He shall, likewise, make thorough economic studies, at least every four (4) years, for the purpose of revising and keeping the price of fresh milk within a reasonable and equitable margin for the different sectors within the industry, that is, producers, processors, distributors of the product and consumers in general.
Any determination by the Administrator, which pursuant to this subsection introduces changes in the price of milk, shall be published in a newspaper of general circulation in the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico for three (3) consecutive publications from the date that the corresponding administrative order or resolution is issued.
(f) In formulating systems of payment or liquidation to producers, consideration shall be given to differences for distances between production areas and the location of the plants processing the milk produced.
History —June 11, 1957, No. 34, p. 67, § 16; Aug. 24, 1979, No. 1, p. 951; Aug. 7, 1990, No. 27, p. 109; Jan. 8, 2004, No. 26, § 1; Jan. 8, 2004, No. 27, § 1; Dec. 14, 2007, No. 209, § 3.