TIME OF TAKING EFFECT Section 29.-This Act shall take effect ninety days after its approval. TRANSPORTATION AUTHORITY [No. 125] AN ACT Creating the Puerto Rico Transportation Authority; defining its status and providing for its powers and duties; authorizing it to acquire, construct, maintain, operate, improve, and extend revenueproducing undertakings to continue the development of transportation facilities in, to, and from the island; providing for the appointment and status of its officers and employees and for the management of the funds of the Authority, and for the procurement of property and services for the Authority; providing for the fixing and collecting of rates, fees, and other charges for the services of such undertakings. and for the segregating or combining and the pledging, charging and otherwise encumbering of the revenues thereof; authorizing it to accept grants and loans from the United States or any agency or instrumentality thereof, to borrow money, and to issue negotiable bonds; providing for the payment of such bonds and for the rights of the holders thereof; authorizing the people of Puerto Rico to acquire property for the Authority, authorizing municipalities and political subdivisions to grant and convey property to the Authority; declaring of public utility any works, projects and property necessary for carrying out the purposes of this Act; providing an appropriation of one million (1,000,000) dollars; prohibiting the granting of injunction preventing the enforceability of this Act, and for other purposes Be it enacted by the Legislature of Puerto Rico: Section 1.-That this Act may be cited as the "Puerto Rico Transportation Authority Act." DEFINITIONS Section 2.-The following terms, whenever used or referred to in this Act, shall have the following meanings, except where the context clearly indicates otherwise: (a) The term "Authority" shall mean the Puerto Rico Transportation Authority created by this Act. (b) The term "Board" shall mean the Board of Directors of the Authority. (c) The term "bonds" shall mean the bonds, temporary bonds, refunding bonds, debentures, notes provisional or interim bonds, receipts, certificates, or other evidences of indebtedness or obligations which the Authority is authorized to issue pursuant to this Act, but shall not include the debts or accounts incurred in the usual course of business for expenses of the Authority. (d) The term "undertaking" shall mean any piece or pieces of property, or combination thereof, real, personal or mixed, owned, operated, managed, controlled or used by the Authority, or intended to be so owned, operated, managed, controlled or used, in connection with any of its activities, including, but without limitation, any and all system or systems, stations, offices, equipment, supplies, fuel, energy, services, facilities, structures, garages and parking spaces, plants, vehicles and rolling stock, together with all parts and appurtenances thereof, that are or may be used, useful or convenient in conducting any of the activities or services usually performed by common or public carriers of persons or property or activities or services auxiliary or supplemental thereto. (e) The term "Federal agency" shall mean the United States of America, the President or any Department thereof, or any corporation, agency, or instrumentality heretofore or hereafter created, designated, or established by, the United States of America. (f) The term "holder of bonds" or "bondholder" or any similar term shall mean any person who shall be the bearer of any outstanding bond or bonds registered to bearer or not registered or the registered owner of any outstanding bond or bonds which at the time shall be registered other than to bearer. (g) Words importing the singular number shall include the plural number and vice versa, and words importing persons shall include firms, partnerships of all kinds and corporations. CREATION AND COMPOSITION OF THE AUTHORITY Section 3.-(a) The Governor of Puerto Rico, the Commissioner of the Interior of Puerto Rico, and the Commissioner of Agriculture and Commerce of Puerto Rico are hereby created a body corporate and politic constituting a public corporation and governmental instrumentality of The People of Puerto Rico by the name of the "Puerto Rico Transportation Authority." Said Members of the Authority shall be entitled to no compensation for their services as Members. (b) The Authority hereby created is and shall be a governmental instrumentality subject, as provided herein, to the control of certain officers of the Insular Government, namely the Governor, Commissioner of the Interior and Commissioner of Agriculture and Commerce acting in their capacity as Members thereof but it is a corporation having legal existence and personality separate and apart from that of the government and those of the officers so controlling it. The debts, obligations, contracts, bonds, notes, debentures, receipts, expenditures, accounts, funds, undertakings, and property of the Authority, its officers, agents or employees shall be deemed to be those of said government-controlled corporation and not to be those of the Insular Government or any office, bureau, department, commission, dependency, municipality, branch, agent, officer or employee thereof. BOARD OF DIRECTORS Section 4.-(a) The powers of the Authority shall be exercised by a Board of Directors consisting of five Members acting as a board. Within sixty (60) days after this Act becomes effective, the Members shall meet and organize and shall at that time by majority vote elect the five (5) Directors who shall hold office for terms of one, two, three, four, and five years, respectively, as determined by said Members, from the date of their election and until their successors are elected and qualified. Annually thereafter the Members shall meet and elect the successors of said Directors for terms of five (5) years. Vacancies on the Board shall be filled for the unexpired term in the same manner. Within thirty (30) days after their election, the Board shall meet and organize and shall at that time appoint a General Manager of the Authority and a Secretary, neither of whom shall be a Director. The General Manager shall be authorized to attend all meetings of the Board but shall not be entitled to vote. (b) Three Directors shall constitute a quorum of the Board for all purposes, and action shall be taken only by a vote of a majority. The by-laws of the Authority may authorize the delegation to its General Manager or to its other officers, agents, or employees of such of the powers and duties of the Authority as the Board may deem proper. GENERAL MANAGER Section 5.-The General Manager shall be appointed by the Board exclusively upon the basis of merit as determined by technical training, skill, experience, and other qualifications best suited to carrying out the purposes of the Authority. The General Manager shall be removable by the Board but only for cause and after he has been given notice and an opportunity to be heard. POWERS OF THE AUTHORITY Section 6. The purposes of the Authority shall be to develop and improve, own, operate, and manage any and all types of transportation facilities and services in, to, and from the Island of Puerto Rico and to make available the benefits thereof in the widest economic manner, thereby promoting the general welfare and increasing commerce and prosperity; and the Authority is granted and shall have and may exercise all rights and powers necessary or convenient for carrying out the aforesaid purposes, including (but without limiting the generality of the foregoing) the following: (a) To have perpetual existence as a corporation; (b) To adopt, alter, and use a corporate seal, which shall be judicially noticed; (c) To prescribe, adopt, amend, and repeal by-laws governing the manner in which its general business may be conducted and the powers and duties granted to and imposed upon it by law may be exercised and performed; (d) To have complete control and supervision of any undertaking constructed or acquired by it including the power to determine the character of and necessity for all its expenditures and the manner in which they shall be incurred, allowed and paid without regard to the provisions of any laws governing the expenditure of public funds, and such determination shall be final and conclusive upon all officers of the Insular Government, and to prescribe, adopt, amend, and repeal such rules and regulations as may be necessary or proper for the exercise and performance of its powers and duties or to govern the rendering, sale, or exchange or transportation service or facilities; (e) To sue and be sued; To make contracts and to execute all instruments necessary or convenient in the exercise of any of its powers; (g) To prepare, or cause to be prepared, plans, designs, and estimates of costs for the construction, reconstruction, extension, improvement, enlargement, or repair of any undertaking or any part or parts thereof, and from time to time to modify such plans, designs, or estimates; (h) To acquire in any lawful manner including, but without limitation, acquisition by purchase, whether by agreement or by the exercise of the power of eminent domain, lease, bequest, devise, gift, and to hold, maintain, use and operate any undertaking or part or parts thereof; (i) To acquire in the manner set forth in subsection (h) hereof, produce, develop, manufacture, hold, conserve, use, distribute, supply, exchange, sell, rent and otherwise dispose of any and all equipment, supplies, services, goods, and such other property real and personal as the Authority shall deem necessary, proper, incidental, or convenient in connection with its activities; To acquire in the manner set forth in subsection (h) hereof and to hold and use any property, real, personal, or mixed, tangible or intangible, or any interest therein, deemed by it to be necessary or convenient for carrying out the purposes of the Authority, and (subject to the limitations contained in this Act) to lease as lessor, or exchange, any property or interest therein at any time acquired by it; (k) To construct, reconstruct, and operate any undertaking or any part or parts thereof, and any additions, improvements, and extensions to any undertaking of the Authority by contract or contracts, or under, through, or by means of its own officers, agents, and employees; (1) To determine, fix, alter, charge, and collect reasonable rates, fees, rentals, and other charges for the use of the facilities or services of the Authority, or other commodities sold, rendered, or furnished by it, which shall be sufficient for the payment of the expenses of the Authority incurred in the conservation, development, improvement, extension, repair, maintenance, and operation of its facilities and properties, for the payment of the principal of and interest on its bonds, and for fulfilling the terms and provisions of such covenants as may be made with, or for the benefit of, the purchasers or holders of any bonds of the Authority: Provided, That, in fixing rates, fees, rentals, and other charges, the Authority shall have in view the encouragement of the widest economically possible diversified use of its facilities; and that before changes in the general rate structure for transportation service are made, or, in cases where the Board shall decide to make changes and deems the immediate effectiveness thereof to be necessary, then within a reasonable time after such changes are made, a public hearing of an informative, quasi legislative character shall be held with respect thereto before the Board of the Authority, or before such hearing officer or officers as the Board may designate, and upon such hearing, the Board, pursuant to the powers, duties, and obligations vested in it by this Act, may alter, suspend or revoke such changes; (m) To appoint such officers, agents, and employees and vest them with such powers and duties, and to fix, change, and pay such compensation for their services as the Authority may determine; (n) To borrow money, make and issue bonds of the Authority for any of its corporate purposes, and to secure payment of its bonds and of any and all other obligations by pledge of or lien on all or any of its contracts, revenues, and income only; (0) To make and issue bonds for the purpose of funding, refunding, purchasing, paying, or discharging any of the outstanding bonds or obligations issued or assumed by it or any bonds or obligations the principal or interest of which is payable in whole or in part from its revenues; (p) To accept grants from, and enter into contracts, leases, agreements, or other transactions with, any Federal agency, The People of Puerto Rico, or political subdivisions of The People of Puerto Rico, and to expend the proceeds of any such grants for any corporate purposes; (q) To sell, or otherwise dispose of, any property of any kind, real, personal, or mixed, or any interest therein, that in the judgment of the Board is no longer necessary for carrying on the business of the Authority or for effectuating the purposes of this Act; (r) To enter on any lands, waters, or premises, after notifying the owners or holders thereof, or their representatives, for the purpose of making surveys, soundings, or examinations; (8) To acquire, hold and dispose of stocks, memberships, contracts, bonds or other interests in other corporations and to exercise any and all powers or rights in connection therewith and to obtain the organization in accordance with law and exercise partial or complete control over subsidiary, affiliated or associated corporations whenever, in the opinion of the Board, such an arrangement is necessary, appropriate or convenient for the effectuation of the Authority's purposes or the exercise of its powers and to sell, lease, give or otherwise grant any of the property of the Authority or delegate or transfer any of its rights, powers, functions, or duties to any such corporation that shall be subject to its control; (t) Under such rules and regulations as the Board shall prescribe, to make loans to persons engaged in the business of common or public carriers of persons or property and to enter into arrangements with such persons to operate or aid in the operation of any of its undertakings or for the use of any of its property or facilities pursuant to the purposes of the Authority, or for supplying to such persons or corporations with goods and services including but without limitation, fuel, vehicles, tires, parts, dispatcher service, stations, insurance, and managerial or coordination facilities and services, and to make rules and regulations, contracts, licenses and other arrangements as to the conditions under which such goods, services and loans shall be made available. In supplying such goods, services and loans, preference and priority shall be given to persons now engaged in the common or public carrier business whose vehicles are instruments of their own labor as heretofore defined; (u) To promulgate such rules and regulations concerning the rates, tariffs and service of public or common carriers of persons and property as are consistent with the adequate and proper development of the transportation resources of Puerto Rico and to enforce the same except that regulations of public carriers by rail shall be enforced by the Public Service Commission. All grants of franchises, rights and privileges of public or quasi-public nature to public carriers of persons or property made by the Public Service Commission shall contain provisions requiring the grantee thereof to comply with the regulations of the Authority and providing for the termination of said franchise upon failure so to comply. If any transportation company shall violate any of the provisions of this Act, or any of the orders of the Transportation Authority, the said company shall pay into the Treasury of Puerto Rico a sum of not less than ten (10) nor more than one thousand (1,000) dollars for such violation or offense, such sum to be recovered by an action in behalf of The People of Puerto Rico filed in the District Court of San Juan, Section One. Said court is hereby invested with exclusive jurisdiction to hear and decide all such actions and fix the amount of the fine. (v) To do all acts or things necessary or convenient to carry out the powers granted to it by this Act or by any other Act of the Legislature of Puerto Rico, or by any Act of the Congress of the United States; Provided, however, That the Authority shall have no power at any time or in any manner to pledge the credit or taxing power of The People of Puerto Rico or any of its political subdivisions, nor shall The People of Puerto Rico or any of its political subdivisions be liable for the payment of the principal of or interest on any bonds issued by the Authority. OFFICERS AND EMPLOYEES Section 7.-(a) Appointments, removals, promotions, transfers, discontinuances, reinstatements, suspensions, leaves of absence and changes in grade, compensation or title of the officers and employees of the Authority shall be made and permitted as provided in rules and regulations to be prescribed by the Board, in consultation with the chief of personnel or the executive officer of the Puerto Rico Civil Service, in pursuance of a general plan similar, insofar as the Board shall deem it consistent, with the best interests of the Authority, of its employees and of its service to the public, to that which may be in effect for employees of the Insular Government under the Civil Service Laws of Puerto Rico. The Directors, officers, and employees of the Authority shall be entitle to reimbursement for, or per diem payment in lieu of, such necessary travel expenses as shall be authorized or approved pursuant to rules and regulations of the Board Officers and employees of any board, commission, agency, or department of The People of Puerto Rico may be appointed to similar positions in the Authority without examination. Any such Insular officers and employees that shall have been so appointed who, prior to said appointment, were beneficiaries of any existing pension, retirement or savings and loan fund system or systems, shall continue to have, after said appointment, the rights, privileges, obligations, and status, with respect thereto that are prescribed by law for officers and employees holding similar positions in the Insular Government, unless within six (6) months after this Act takes effect or six (6) months after said appointment, whichever is later, they or any of them shall signify the intention to relinquish them, in which case they shall then have those of resigned or separated officers or employees of the Insular Government; and all employees so appointed to positions in the Authority who, at the time of their appointment, held or shall have held positions in the Insular Government or any rights or status under the rules and classifications of the Puerto Rico Civil Service Commission, shall have the same status with respect to employment or re-employment in the service of the Insular Government as they had at the time they entered the service of the Authority or such better or higher right or status as the Civil Service Commission shall consider to be consistent with advancement attained in the Authority. All officers and employees appointed to positions in the Authority, who, at the time of their appointment, had, or shall later acquire, some right or status under the rules and classifications of the Puerto Rico Civil Service Commission for appointment to any similar position in the Insular Government shall have, upon request, the same rights, privileges, obligations, and status, with respect to becoming beneficiaries of any existing pension, retirement or savings and loan fund system or systems, as if they had been appointed to similar positions in the Insular Government. The Authority shall be subject to the provisions of Act No. 8, approved April 5, 1941. (b) No person shall hold office as a Member, Director, officer, employee or agent of the Authority who has a direct or indirect financial interest in any privately owned enterprise engaged in the transportation business or any business whose primary activities are auxiliary thereto; Provided, That where such incompatibility affects a Member of the Authority, the vacancy so created shall be filled for the time that said incompatibility exists, by the appointment by the Governor of Puerto Rico of any other head of a department of the Insular Government. MONEYS AND ACCOUNTS OF THE AUTHORITY Section 8.-All moneys of the Authority shall be deposited in qualified depositories for funds of the Insular Government, but they shall be kept in a separate account or accounts in the name of the Authority. The disbursements shall be made by it pursuant to regulations and budgets approved by the Board. The Auditor of Puerto Rico shall, upon consultation with the Authority, establish the accounting system required for the proper statistical control and record of all expenses and income belonging to or managed or controlled by the Authority. The said Auditor shall require that the accounts of the Authority be kept in such manner as appropriately to segregate, insofar as advisable, the accounts in respect of the different classes of operations, projects, undertakings, and activities of the Authority. The said Auditor or his representative shall from time to time, examine the accounts and books of the Authority, including its receipts, disbursements, contracts, leases, sinking funds, investments and any other matters which relate to its financial condition, and shall report thereon to the Board of the Authority and the Legislature. ACQUISITION OF Property by The People of Puerto RicO FOR THE AUTHORITY Section 9.-Upon application of the Authority, the Governor of Puerto Rico or the Commissioner of the Interior shall have power to purchase, either by agreement or by the exercise of the right of eminent domain, or by any other lawful means, title in the name and in behalf of The People of Puerto Rico, to any property or interest therein which the Board of the Authority shall deem necessary or convenient for its purposes. The Authority may make available to said officers in advance such funds as may be needed for the payment for said property, and upon acquisition thereof, may reimburse the Insular Government for any amount paid that shall not have been previously advanced. Upon such reimbursement to the Insular Government (or, if the total cost or price has been previously advanced by the Authority, within such reasonable period as shall be determined by the Governor) the title to property so acquired shall pass to the Authority. The Commissioner of the Interior may, with the approval of the Governor, make such arrangements as he may deem appropriate for the operation and control of said property by the Authority in behalf of the Insular Government during the period intervening before said title has passed to the Authority. The power hereby conferred shall not limit or restrict in any manner or to any extent the power of the Authority itself to acquire property. The title to any property of The People of Puerto Rico heretofore or hereafter acquired, and which shall be considered necessary or convenient for the purposes of the Authority, may be transferred to the Authority by the official in charge of said property or having the custody thereof, upon such terms and conditions as shall be determined by the Executive Council. |