P.R. Laws tit. 3, § 1758
It shall be the responsibility of every government agency of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico to ensure compliance with the provisions of the Code of Ethics established herein. On doing so, it shall deliver a copy of this chapter to every contractor, provider of goods and services and applicant for economic incentives at the time they attend a bid process in any of its stages or when a contract is executed with the concerned agency, whichever occurs first, and the person who receives the same shall attest to it by signing, and shall make a commitment to comply with the provisions of the Government Ethics Act, §§ 1801 et seq. of this title. The duly certified document that attests to said delivery shall be part of the record of the bid or contract. The failure to comply with the requirement provided in this paragraph shall not exempt the contracting parties from the obligations contracted among them nor from compliance with the provisions of said Code of Ethics.
Pursuant to such obligation, the executive agencies of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico are hereby empowered to carry out investigations in order to determine whether a contractor, supplier or applicant for economic incentives has acted in violation of this Code of Ethics. Said investigative power shall be exercised by any official designated by the Agency for such purposes, as provided in the regulations approved by every Agency for the implementation of the provisions of this chapter.
Violations of the provisions of this Code shall be elucidated before the administrative forums of the executive agencies pursuant to the provisions of §§ 2101 et seq. of this title, known as the “Commonwealth of Puerto Rico Uniform Administrative Procedures Act”.
When the executive agency determines that the person has failed to comply with any of the obligations or duties imposed by the Code of Ethics, it shall require the person to show cause for which the agency should not initiate procedures leading to the imposition of the sanctions set forth in § 1760 of this title, within a term of twenty (20) days from the receipt of the notice.
Upon compliance with the procedure typified by the administrative norm, the executive agency shall notify its decision to the person, who may request a reconsideration or resort to judicial review pursuant to §§ 2165 and 2172 of this title, part of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico Uniform Administrative Procedures Act.
History —June 18, 2002, No. 84, § 7; Feb. 20, 2004, No. 68, § 1; Sept. 10, 2009, No. 92, § 1.