P.R. Laws tit. 3, § 9101
A state of emergency is hereby declared to attain Puerto Rico’s fiscal and economic recovery after the downgrading of its credit rating and decrease in revenues that affect the Commonwealth’s liquidity, thus safeguarding the constitutional mandate for the payment of interest and amortization of the public debt. Furthermore, a plan is hereby devised to deal with the consequences thereof and to establish a structured management that allows the Island to meet its obligations. This shall guarantee the continuity of public efforts in essential areas such as health, security, education, social work, and development, among others, as well as the provision of necessary and essential services for the people. The public policy set forth in this subchapter is aimed at restoring the credit of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico by eliminating the General Fund’s deficit within a short timeframe and improving the fiscal condition of public corporations, without resorting to the layoff of career or regular employees, affecting critical functions of government agencies that provide security, education, healthcare, or social work services. This structured plan is necessary to protect the cash availability of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico without affecting essential services provided to the people. This plan considers the challenges faced by Puerto Rico to restore public credit rating and address the uncertainty as to the length, magnitude, and cost of tapping into capital markets absent an investment-grade rating.
Thus, in the exercise of the State’s police power, the Legislative Assembly has the authority to adopt measures to preserve the health, safety, and welfare of the people in a structured manner while addressing the fiscal crisis faced by the Island. To such purposes, the Legislative Assembly is empowered to enact statutes to address social and economic issues, as well as emergency situations. Section 19 of the Bill of Rights of the Constitution of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico provides that the enumeration of rights in Article II shall not be construed as to restrict “the power of the Legislative Assembly to enact laws for the protection of the life, health, and general welfare of the people.” Likewise, Section 18 of the Bill of Rights grants the Legislative Assembly the power to enact laws to deal with grave emergencies that clearly imperil the public health or safety or essential public services.
History —June 17, 2014, No. 66, § 2.