The Secretary shall issue provisional permits for parking in areas designated for disabled people in the form of removable placards, to any person who acquires a provisional medical condition where such condition substantially limits his/her capacity of movement, rendering access to places or buildings difficult, subject to the following provisions:
(a) A provisional parking permit shall not be issued to people under eighteen (18) months of age.
(b) Any person who acquires a provisional medical condition where such condition substantially limits his/her capacity of movement rendering access to places or buildings difficult, may request the removable placard referred to, subject to the regulations enacted for such purpose by the Secretary, with previous coordination and direct consultation with the Advocate for Persons with Disabilities and with the Secretary of Health. [For the purpose of establishing which medical conditions would qualify to request the permit, the Secretary, in conjunction with the Advocate for Persons with Disabilities and Secretary of Health, has the power to establish said conditions through regulations.]
(c) Special and provisional removable placards for disabled people issued by the pertinent authorities of the States, or jurisdictions of the United States of America, or by any other country, shall be entitled to full faith and credit and automatically shall have full force and effect in Puerto Rico for a period of one hundred twenty (120) days.
(d) Possession of a provisional removable placard does not authorize the disabled person to park in areas where parking normally is prohibited and the areas are duly signaled.
(e) The issuance of the removable provisional placard mentioned in this section shall cost fifteen dollars ($15) as processing charge which the Secretary is authorized to charge for which an internal revenue voucher shall be given, the amount being deposited in the DISCO fund to pay for the cost of producing the same. This amount may be reduced, at the Secretary’s discretion, to a minimum of five dollars ($5) if the applicant is a recipient of Medicaid, of the Nutritional Assistance Program, or of the Provisional Aid Program for Families in Need of the Department of the Family (TANF), subject to the regulations adopted by the Secretary therefor. In addition, the Secretary is authorized to impose through regulation, the requirements for obtaining a duplicate removable placard. For the purposes of the application and obtaining a duplicate removable placard, and subject to the regulations approved by the Secretary, the Secretary is authorized to charge the amount of five dollars ($5) for which an internal revenue voucher shall be cancelled, which amount shall be deposited in the DISCO fund to defray the cost of producing the same. The issuance of a duplicate due to theft or illegal appropriation shall be free of cost, for which an official copy of the report filed before the Police of Puerto Rico for said criminal incident shall be presented.
(f) The provisional parking permit shall be issued for a maximum term of up to six (6) months. This permit can be renewed subject to the provisions of this section and previous payment of the cost for its issuance, for an additional term, which shall not exceed six (6) months. The Secretary shall determine the time for the permit to be issued taking into consideration the length of term that a specialist physician certifies the temporary condition may last, with the exception that said permit cannot exceed six (6) months.
(g) The Secretary, previous coordination and direct consultation with the Advocate for Persons with Disabilities, shall determine through regulations all matters concerning design, procedure, processing, and certification of the permit, size, colors, position, issuance, use, renewal, and cancellation of this removable placards.
History —Jan. 7, 2000, No. 22, added as § 2.21a on Sept. 11, 2002, No. 227, § 2, eff. 8 months after Sept. 11, 2002.