P.R. Laws tit. 29, § 713
(a) Duties and powers of the Secretary.—
(1) It shall be the duty of the Secretary to administer this chapter; and he shall have power and authority to adopt, amend, or rescind such rules and regulations, to employ such persons, make such expenditures, require such reports, make such investigations, devise such methods of procedure, and take such other measures as he deems necessary and suitable to that end. The Secretary shall determine his own organization pursuant to § 712(a) of this title; he may delegate such power and authority as he deems reasonable and proper for the effective administration of this chapter, and may, in his discretion, require a bond of any person handling money or signing checks. The Secretary shall have an official seal which shall be judicially noticed.
(2) The Secretary shall establish and maintain free public employment offices in such number and in such places as may be necessary for the proper administration of this chapter and of §§ 551—563 of this title.
(3) Not later than October 15 of each year, the Secretary shall submit to the Governor and to the Legislature a report covering the administration and operation of this chapter during the preceding fiscal year and shall make such recommendations for amendments to this chapter as he deems proper.
(b) Research and publications.—
(1) The Secretary shall, with the advice and assistance of the advisory council, study and make recommendations on the most effective methods of providing economic security through the unemployment insurance, employment service, and related programs and shall take appropriate steps to promote the placement of unemployed workers throughout the Island in every feasible way; and to these ends he shall carry on researches and surveys and publish the results thereof. The Secretary shall establish within the Bureau of Employment Security a unit of Technological Unemployment Research which shall:
(A) Make social, economic and technical studies necessary to determine the specific sectors of the Puerto Rico economy in which unemployment due to technological changes will occur, and
(B) make recommendations for the alleviation of such unemployment.
(2) The Secretary shall cause to be printed for distribution to the public the text of this chapter, his rules and regulations, his annual reports to the Governor and the Legislature, and any other material he deems relevant and suitable, and shall furnish same on request.
(c) Adoption, amendment, and rescission of general and special rules and regulations.— General and special rules may be adopted, amended, or rescinded by the Secretary after public hearings duly announced and opportunity to be heard thereon. General rules shall become effective ten (10) days after their filing with the Secretary of State and their publication in one or more newspapers of general circulation in Puerto Rico. Special rules shall become effective ten (10) days after their notification or mailing to the last known address of the individuals or employing units affected thereby. Regulations may be adopted, amended, or rescinded by the Secretary and shall become effective as and at the time prescribed by him.
(d) Personnel and merit system.— In accordance with the requirements of the Personnel Act of this Commonwealth and pursuant to the authority granted under subsection (a) of this section, the Secretary shall appoint, fix the compensation, and prescribe the duties and powers of such officers, employees, and other persons as may be necessary in the performance of his duties under this chapter; Provided, That in cooperation with the Office of Personnel, the Secretary shall take such action as may be necessary to meet the personnel standards promulgated by the Secretary of Labor of the United States pursuant to Title III of the Social Security Act and the Act of June 6, 1933 (48 Stat. 113), as amended.
(e) Personnel for the collection of contributions.— The Secretary of the Treasury shall appoint the personnel necessary for the discharge of the functions assigned to him by this chapter.
Subject to the provisions of § 711(c) of this title, the Secretary may use money in the Employment Security Administration Fund, established by § 711 of this title, for the compensation of such personnel to the extent that he believes their services are necessary for the proper and efficient administration of this chapter.
(f) Political activity prohibited.—
(1) No officer or employee working in the administration of this chapter may:
(A) Use his official authority or influence for the purpose of interfering with an election or a nomination for any office, or affecting the result thereof, or
(B) directly or indirectly coerce, attempt to coerce, direct or advise any such other employee to pay, lend, or contribute any part of his salary or compensation, or anything else of value, to any party, committee, organization, agency, or person, for political purposes. No such officer or employee shall take any active part in politics management or political campaigns. All such persons shall retain the right to vote as they may choose and to express their opinions on all political issues and candidates.
For the purposes of this subsection, the term “officer or employee” shall not include:
(A) The Governor;
(B) duly elected or appointed heads of executive departments of the Puerto Rico Government or of any municipality who are not in the competitive service of the Commonwealth Government;
(C) officers holding elective offices.
(2) Any officer or employee working in the administration of this chapter who violates the provisions of this subsection shall be immediately removed from office, and thenceforth no funds appropriated by the Puerto Rico Legislature or granted by any agency of the federal government shall be used to pay the compensation of such person.
(3) No person shall seek or attempt to use any political endorsement in connection with any appointment to a position in the competitive service.
(4) No person shall directly or indirectly use his official authority or influence to secure for any person an appointment to any position in the competitive service, or an increase in pay or other advantage, for the purpose of influencing the vote or political action in favor of any person, or for any other purpose.
(5) Any person who shall directly or indirectly coerce, attempt to coerce, or direct any officer or employee working in the administration of this chapter to pay, lend or contribute any part of his salary or compensation, or anything else of value to any party, committee, organization, agency or person, for political purposes, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and shall, upon conviction thereof, be punished by a fine not exceeding one thousand dollars ($1,000) or by imprisonment in jail for a term not exceeding one year, or by both penalties.
(g) Records and reports of employment units.—
(1) Each employment unit shall keep true and accurate accounting records covering such periods of time and containing such information as the Secretary may prescribe. Such records shall be open to inspection by the Secretary or his authorized representative and kept available for said officials to copy the same at any reasonable time and as often as necessary. Provided, That for purposes of this subsection, “accounting records” mean those books and records classified as such in accounting practice, including financial statements, declarations and reports filed at other agencies of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico or of the federal government, or any other document related to the operations of the business, that may be useful for the best administration of this chapter.
(2) The Director, a referee, or the Secretary may require from any employing unit, with respect to persons who are performing or have performed service for it, any sworn or unsworn reports deemed necessary for the effective administration of this chapter.
(3) It shall be presumed that any employment unit which fails to keep the accounting records required by clause (1) of this subsection shall constitute an employer under obligation to pay the taxes, interest and penalties prescribed by this chapter.
(4) Any employing unit which fails to render any report required in accordance with the regulation approved by the Secretary, with the exception of contribution reports, or who fails to report the wages paid to any of its employees in accordance with such regulation, unless the Director determines that the omission has been due to reasonable cause and not to voluntary oversight of the employing unit, shall be bound to pay a penalty of five dollars ($5.00) for each report not rendered or employee omitted. This penalty shall be collected in the manner provided for in subsections (b) and (c) of § 709 for the collection of the contributions, interests and penalties imposed by subsections (a), (b) and (d) of § 708 and § 709(a) of this title.
(h) Preservation and destruction of records.—
(1) The Secretary may cause to be made such summaries, compilations, photographs, duplicates, reproductions, and transcripts of any records and reports he may deem advisable for the effective and economical preservation of the information contained therein; and such summaries, compilations, photographs, duplicates or reproductions, duly authenticated, shall be admissible in any proceedings under this chapter where the original record or records be admissible.
(2) The Secretary may provide by regulation for the destruction after reasonable periods of time of any records, reports, transcripts, or other documents in his custody or reproduction thereof whose preservation is no longer necessary for the establishment of contribution liability or benefit rights or for any other purpose necessary to the proper administration of this chapter, including the record of any required audit thereof.
(i) Authority to administer oaths and issue subpoenas.—
(1) In the discharge of the duties imposed by this chapter, the Secretary or his duly authorized representative and a referee shall have power to administer oaths and affirmations, take depositions, attest to official acts, and issue subpoenas to compel the attendance of witnesses and the production of books, papers, correspondence, memoranda, and other records deemed relevant as evidence in connection with a disputed claim or with the administration of this chapter.
(2) In case of contumacy on the part of any person during a hearing or other investigation under this chapter, or if any person disobeys a subpoena issued to him hereunder, the Secretary or his duly authorized representative may, on their behalf or on behalf of a referee, upon his request, move for a judicial order which may be issued by any court of Puerto Rico within whose jurisdiction the hearing or investigation is being carried on, or within whose jurisdiction the person guilty of contumacy or of disobedience to the subpoena is found, resides, or transacts business. The order may command such person to appear before the official who is conducting the hearing or investigation, to produce records or other evidence if so ordered by such official, and to give testimony regarding the matter in issue at the hearing or under investigation. Failure to obey such judicial order may be punished as for contempt by said court.
(3) No person shall be excused from attending and testifying or from producing books, papers, correspondence, memoranda, and other records before a referee or before the Secretary or his duly authorized representative, or in obedience to a subpoena issued by any of them, on the ground that the testimony or evidence, documentary or otherwise, required of him may tend to incriminate him or subject him to a penalty or forfeiture; but no individual shall be prosecuted or put in jeopardy of penalty or forfeiture for or on account of any transaction, matter, or thing concerning which he is compelled, after having claimed his privilege against self-incrimination, to testify or produce evidence, documentary or otherwise, except that such individual so testifying shall not be exempt from prosecution and punishment for perjury committed while so testifying.
(j) Agency representative before courts.—
(1) In any civil action to enforce this chapter and in any proceedings for judicial review under §§ 706(i), 708(e), 709(f) and 713(g)(4) of this title, the Secretary and the Government of Puerto Rico may be represented by any qualified attorney retained and assigned by the Secretary for this purpose; or if the action is brought in the courts of any state, then by an attorney qualified to appear before the courts of that state.
(2) All criminal actions for violation of any provision of this chapter, or of any rules or regulations promulgated hereunder, shall be prosecuted by the Secretary of Justice; or, at his behest and under his direction, by the prosecutor of any jurisdiction where the employing unit has its place of business or where the offender resides.
(k) Disclosure of information.— Except as otherwise provided in this chapter, any information obtained from any employing unit or individual on the administration of this chapter and determinations as to the benefit rights of any individual, shall be held confidential and shall not be disclosed or open to public inspection in any way that reveals the individual’s or the employing unit’s identity. Any claimant or his legal representative shall be supplied with information from the records of the Department, to the extent necessary for the proper presentation of his claim in any proceeding under this chapter related to such claim.
Subject to such restrictions as the Secretary may, by regulations, prescribe:
(1) Information may be made available to any agency of Puerto Rico or any federal or state agency charged with the administration of a similar unemployment insurance program or the maintenance of a system of public employment offices, and for the purposes of the Federal Unemployment Tax Act, the Internal Revenue Service of the Department of the Treasury of the United States, and
(2) information obtained in connection with the administration of the Employment Service may be made available to persons or agencies for purposes related to the operation of a public employment service. Upon request therefor, the Secretary shall furnish to any United States agency charged with the administration of public works or public-employment relief, the name, address, regular occupation, and employment status of each recipient of benefits under this chapter.
Upon request therefor and for the purposes of determining the eligibility to benefits under the Food Stamp Act of 1977, the following information or any part thereof shall be furnished from the agency records to the agency in charge of the administration of said act:
(A) Wage information.
(B) Benefits receivable under this chapter, whether potential benefits or those already received.
(C) Claimant’s address.
(D) If he has refused any job offer, description of the job offered, wages, terms and conditions thereof.
Upon request therefor, the Secretary shall furnish the agency in charge of the Child Support Program, under a plan described in § 454 of the Social Security Act, approved under Part D of Title IV of said act, any information on employment and wages of the claimant needed to locate the person who owes said child support, to establish his obligation, and collect the same.
The Secretary shall prescribe through regulations the safeguards to insure that the information disclosed shall be used by the employees and officials of said agencies solely for the above-stated purposes.
The Secretary is hereby authorized to require the corresponding reimbursement for this service.
Upon request therefor, information which in the judgment of the Secretary will not impede the operation nor be inconsistent with the purposes of the employment service and unemployment insurance programs, may be furnished to other government agencies, for their internal use only; but the information so furnished shall be held confidential and shall not be disclosed in any manner whatsoever.
The Secretary may remit a copy of any return or report of any national banking association, rendered pursuant to the provisions of this chapter to the Comptroller of the Currency of the United States and request him to cause an examination to be made of the correctness of such return or report.
With the intention of verifying the beneficiary’s eligibility or social welfare benefits of a person, the Secretary shall furnish information from the wage records and benefits received by said person to any agency in charge of the administration of the following programs: Medicaid, Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) and Titles I, X, XIV and XVI of the Social Security Act. The Secretary shall see to the establishing of safeguards that will guarantee that the information furnished shall be protected against unauthorized disclosure, and shall also establish an accounting system for the recovery of the costs of providing agencies with such information.
(l) Disclosure of information to the Legislature or legislative committees.— At the request of the House, the Senate or any committee of either or both, in connection with an investigation of the administration or operations of the Puerto Rico unemployment insurance and employment service programs, the Director shall furnish such information as is necessary for the purpose of such investigation, except information revealing the identify of individuals or employing units.
(m) Federal-state cooperation.—
(1)
(A) In the administration of this chapter the Secretary shall cooperate to the fullest extent consistent with the provisions hereof with the United States Department of Labor, and shall take such action, through the adoption of appropriate rules, regulations, administrative methods and standards, as may be necessary to secure for the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and its citizens all the advantages deriving from such cooperation, including among them, those available under the provisions of the Social Security Act that relate to unemployment compensation, the Federal Unemployment Tax Act, the Wagner-Peyser Act, and the Federal-State Extended Unemployment Insurance Act of 1970.
(B) In the administration of the provisions of § 716c of this title, which are enacted to conform with the requirements of the Federal-State Extended Unemployment Insurance Act of 1970, the Secretary shall take such action as may be necessary to ensure that the provisions are so interpreted and applied as to meet the requirements of such federal act as interpreted by the United States Department of Labor, and to secure for the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico the full reimbursement of the federal share of extended, regular and additional benefits paid under this chapter that are reimbursable under the federal act.
(2) The Secretary is hereby authorized to make such investigations, obtain and transmit such information, make available such services and facilities, and exercise such other powers provided herein with respect to the administration of this chapter as he deems necessary or appropriate to facilitate the administration of any state or federal public employment or unemployment insurance law, and likewise to accept and utilize information, services, and facilities made available to the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico by the agency charged with the administration of any such other public employment service or unemployment insurance law.
(3) The Secretary shall comply with the requirements of the Secretary of Labor of the United States relating to receipt or expenditure by this Commonwealth of money granted under Title III of the Social Security Act and the Act of June 6, 1933 (48 Stat. 113), as amended, and shall make such reports, in such form and containing such information as the Secretary of Labor of the United States may from time to time require, and shall comply with such provisions as the Secretary of Labor of the United States may from time to time find necessary to assure the correctness and verification of such reports. The Secretary shall afford reasonable cooperation with every agency of the United States charged with the administration of any employment security law.
History —June 21, 1956, No. 74, p. 328, § 13; June 30, 1959, No. 104, p. 296, § 5; renumbered as § 14 and amended on Dec. 22, 1960, No. 1, p. 1, §§ 13—16; June 8, 1962, No. 27, p. 54, § 8; June 6, 1967, No. 102, p. 330, § 14; June 24, 1971, No. 85, p. 257, § 9; June 15, 1972, No. 16, p. 374, § 11; June 22, 1981, No. 15, p. 103, § 6; July 9, 1985, No. 95, p. 300, § 6.