P.R. Laws tit. 16, § 4011
A State Election Commission is hereby created to be composed of a Chair, who shall be its executive officer, and an Election Commissioner representing each of the major political parties, parties, and parties by petition.
The vice chairs, alternate commissioners, one Secretary, and the deputy secretaries may participate in the meetings of the Commission. These officials shall have voice but no vote, and shall not be considered to constitute a quorum.
The Election Commissioners of the Commission shall earn an annual compensation, and any differential established by law, equal to that of a Secretary of the executive departments of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico other than the Secretary of State. The Chair of the Commission shall earn an annual compensation, and any differential established by law, equal to that of an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of Puerto Rico. Whenever the presence of the Alternate Chair is required by the Chair or the Commission in order to keep him informed of the matters being discussed, the Alternate Chair shall receive the per diem determined by the Commission. Likewise, the Commissioners and the Chair may render services under contract without exceeding the total annual salary fixed herein. Any Election Commissioner, Chair, Alternate Chair, Vice Chair, Secretary, or Deputy Secretary of the Commission is hereby expressly banned from receiving any additional compensation for conducting lobbying tasks before any government, municipal, or legislative body, or receiving any additional compensation from any government, municipal, legislative, or judicial agency. Teaching contracts or services or tenures in the University of Puerto Rico are hereby excluded from this provision.
Alternate Chairs shall have voice and vote and shall be necessary to constitute a quorum in such cases where they are replacing the Election Commissioner and the latter has authorized such proxy upon notice to the Chair and the members of the Commission.
The seat and headquarters of the Commission shall be located in the city of San Juan, Puerto Rico.
Pursuant to Act No. 32 of August 8, 1990, the State Election Commission shall be exempted from the provisions of §§ 1461 et seq. of Title 3, known as the “Public Service Human Resources Administration Act”. The Commission shall unanimously adopt and put into effect all those rules and regulations that are necessary for the administration of its personnel.
Unless otherwise provided in this subtitle, employees of the Commission may avail themselves of the benefits of a Retirement System or Retirement Investment Plan provided by the Government of Puerto Rico or any one in which they have enrolled or are participating as of the date of their appointment.
Each year, the Legislative Assembly shall provide sufficient funds to the Commission for the operation thereof. To such effect, the Governor shall submit to the Legislative Assembly for its consideration the Commission’s Operating Expense Budget, which shall never be less than the budget in effect for the previous fiscal year. The Governor and the Legislative Assembly shall provide additional resources on the budget of the Commission for those fiscal years that fall within the calendar year in which a general election is to be held, so that the Commission may carry out all the pre-election and election events provided in this subtitle. These additional resources shall not be considered as part of the operating expense budget of the Commission.
The Commission’s budget shall be accounted for preferentially as requested by the Chair. No government official of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico may freeze the Commission’s budget items or accounts, or postpone budget expenditures or disbursements. No provision of special or general laws shall be invoked in order to alter or modify the budget of the Commission once it has been approved.
Furthermore, a special fund is hereby created as a financing option for expenditures incurred in connection with the implementation of an electronic voting or canvassing system. This special fund shall be nourished from any remaining balance or surplus of the Commission’s regular operating funds for a specific fiscal year and from funds appropriated for any election event. This special fund shall be administered by the Commission pursuant to the applicable standards on public fund disbursement for such purposes, and shall be kept in a special account, separate from that of the Operating Expense Budget of the Commission. This special fund shall also be nourished from any appropriations made by the Governor, the Legislative Assembly, any imposed fines or penalties, or any other source provided in this subtitle. The Commission shall render an annual report to the Legislative Assembly regarding the use given to the special fund and the balance thereof. Said report shall be submitted on or before March 31 of the year following the year covered in such report.
The Commission may purchase, contract, or lease any supplies, printed materials, services, facilities, and equipment from private entities without being subject to the provisions of §§ 930 et seq. of Title 3, known as the “Puerto Rican Industry Investment Act”, and §§ 931 et seq. of Title 3, known as the “General Services Administration Act”, or any other provisions of analogous laws.
History —June 1, 2011, No. 78, § 3.001; Dec. 22, 2014, No. 239, § 3.