P.R. Laws tit. 18, § 1357
(1) Composition.— The Secretary shall constitute a Consulting Committee composed of twenty-four (24) members, of which eleven (11) shall represent the public interest and shall be designated by him/her. Of these eleven (11), four (4) shall be persons with disabilities, one (1) of which shall be a youth with disabilities under the age of twenty-two (22) throughout his/her incumbency. The other three (3) shall be parents of children or youths with disabilities: one (1) to represent the 0-4 population; one (1) to represent the 5-12 population; and one (1) to represent the 13-21 population. There shall be one (1) private citizen of recognized interest in the problems that affect children and youths with disabilities; two (2) specialists in related services, one (1) of which shall be a school psychologist, and one (1) representative of the Parents of Children with Disabilities Association (APNI, Spanish acronym).
In representation of the Government, three (3) teachers shall be designated from the Department of Education: one (1) special education teacher, one (1) regular education teacher, and one (1) adapted physical education teacher.
There shall also be one (1) school director and one (1) regional director. From the Department of Health, there shall be one (1) representative of the Office of the Deputy Secretary for Health Protection and Promotion and one (1) representative of the Mental Health and Addiction Services Administration. From the Sports and Recreation Department, there shall be one (1) representative of the Secretary. From the Department of the Family, there shall be one (1) representative of the Secretary, which shall be from the Administration for Families and Children. From the Department of Labor and Human Resources, there shall be one (1) representative of the Secretary and one (1) representative of the Vocational Rehabilitation Administration. From the Corrections and Rehabilitation Department, there shall be one (1) representative of the Secretary. Finally, from the University of Puerto Rico, there shall be one (1) representative of the President.
The members of the Consulting Committee designated by the Secretary shall be in office for a four-year (4) term, or until their successors are appointed and take office. The representatives of the Secretaries of the Departments of Health, Sports and Recreation, of the Family, of Corrections and Rehabilitation, of Labor and Human Resources, and of the University of Puerto Rico shall be appointed by the Secretary of the Department they represent; likewise, the representative of the President of the University of Puerto Rico shall be appointed by the President. The initial appointment of the eleven (11) representatives of the public interest shall be made in the following manner: four (4) members for a two-year term, four (4) members for a three-year term, and three (3) members for a four-year term.
Upon the conclusion of the terms of the initial appointments, the subsequent appointments shall be for four-year (4) terms.
The Committee shall evaluate the performance of its members every (2) two years and shall submit its recommendations to the Secretary. The Secretary may dismiss the officials appointed by him/her or request the dismissal of any representative of another Department for just cause, upon prior notice and holding of hearings. In the event of a vacancy, the Secretary shall make a new appointment for the remainder of the term of the person who has been replaced.
The Committee shall elect a chairperson from among its members.
The members of the Committee who are not public officials or employees shall receive per diems as provided in the regulations of the Department of Education for each day of session to which they attend.
(2) Functions and duties of the Consulting Committee.— The Committee shall have the following functions and duties:
(a) Evaluate the problems of the persons with disabilities and make recommendations to the Secretary and the corresponding executive agencies regarding the measures that are necessary to prevent and correct such problems.
(b) Study and evaluate all the legislation and regulations in effect that affect the sound development of the Integral Educational Services for Persons with Disabilities Act in order to recommend the legislation and regulations it deems pertinent to such ends.
(c) Promote the establishment of educational and guidance programs in benefit of persons with disabilities.
(d) Prepare and approve bylaws which establish an adequate system for the compliance of its duties, which shall be approved by the Secretary.
(e) Meet with the Secretary and with the Assistant Secretary, as established in the Committee’s regulations.
(f) Render an annual report on its activities and achievements which shall be submitted to the consideration of the Secretary, the Governor and the Legislature.
(g) Have free access, following the regulations established, to the files and studies prepared by the Department and any other government agency, department or instrumentality in order to obtain any information whose disclosure has not been restricted by express provision of law, that is needed to carry out its functions.
(h) To use the services of advisors, technicians and employees of the Department, upon notice and authorization of the Secretary for the development of its investigations, studies, programs and other functions prescribed by this section.
(3) Standing Parents Research and Scientific and Structural Support Subcommittee for Children with Disabilities.— A Standing Parents Research and Scientific and Structural Support Subcommittee for Children with Disabilities is hereby established. The same shall be attached to the Consultation Committee of the Office of the Secretary for Auxiliary Services and be responsible for supporting with recommendations and scientific evidence the work of the Consulting Committee described in subsection (1) of this section. It shall also enable the Office of the Assistant Secretary to ensure that the agencies fulfill the responsibilities set forth in this chapter.
Said representatives shall be appointed by the Secretary of Education and its members shall be two (2) representatives of organized nonprofit organizations related to the physical, mental and neurological conditions, one (1) attorney in private practice, the three (3) members of the scientific community specialized in the aforementioned disciplines and the six (6) fathers or mothers.
The members of the Subcommittee appointed shall hold office for a term of five (5) years or until their successors are appointed and take office. Should a vacancy arise, the person appointed shall hold office for the remainder of the term of the member who has been replaced. The Consulting Committee may dismiss from office any member of the Subcommittee for just cause upon prior notice and in harmony with the regulatory provisions of the Operating Regulations of the Consulting Committee.
The members of the Subcommittee who are not public employees shall receive a per diem of fifty dollars ($50) for each meeting or official activity they attend. They shall likewise be entitled to a reimbursement for the necessary expenses they may incur in the performance of their duties.
The Secretary of Education shall designate a Chairperson from among the members. Five (5) members shall constitute quorum for the meetings and they themselves may call a meeting after notice to the Secretary. All agreements shall be adopted by a majority of the members present. The Subcommittee shall hold the necessary duly summoned regular and special meetings; Provided, That it must meet at least once a month.
The Subcommittee shall adopt bylaws to govern all its work, deliberations and functions and all those matters that may be necessary to achieve the purposes of this chapter and its regulations. The Department of Education shall provide to the Subcommittee the offices, equipment, supplies, materials and human resources needed to comply with the functions provided in this chapter.
The powers granted in this subsection shall be exercised for the general purpose of implementing the public policy of the Government efficiently in order to further the rehabilitation, quality of life and development of the children who suffer disabilities due to any disability or condition which hinders the full development and comprehensive rehabilitation of children with disabilities pursuant to the provisions of this chapter.
The Subcommittee shall coordinate with the various necessary agencies, the design and development of specialized treatment and intervention projects and programs for helping the population according to its special needs due to conditions derived from physical, neurological and mental or behavioral disabilities.
The Subcommittee shall have the following duties, without it being construed as a limitation:
(a) Provide guidelines and orientation to the public agencies and private entities about the programs and projects for implementing the evaluation and therapy methods recommended according to the latest findings of the scientific community.
(b) Foster the participation of the citizens for the development and implementation of programs to promote the identification and registration of new cases of children with difficult to identify and diagnose disorders.
(c) Foster and conduct studies and research on these matters and on the scientific advances of the international medical community as well as document information as to the best way to include the interfamilial circle within the models that benefit the children with physical, neurological and mental or behavioral disorders.
(d) Evaluate the existing federal, Commonwealth and international legislation and programs for developing mass diffusion campaigns about the importance of early identification and intervention in these cases.
(e) Establish priorities and according to these, recommend to the Governor and to the Legislature of Puerto Rico the administrative decisions and measures that should be adopted to attend to the problems of the population of children with special needs.
(f) Advise and coordinate with the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Integral Educational Services for Disabled Persons and other pertinent public agencies for the development and implementation of an aggressive community education plan for the proper implementation, early intervention and therapeutic methods to achieve the effective rehabilitation of the children.
(g) Require that the public agencies provide information and collect statistics, data and any other reports on cases of persons with disabilities described in this chapter.
(h) Propitiate the exchange of information with federal, Commonwealth and local agencies and with public and private organizations in Puerto Rico or from abroad devoted to the development of programs directed to the community of children with disabilities.
(i) Propose legislation deemed pertinent to implement the public policy this chapter seeks to achieve.
(j) Prepare a study of what is needed based on the findings and conclusions of the final reports drafted by the Legislature and the most recent findings of the scientific community.
(k) Design action plans for working with the previously identified needs that include procedures for monitoring and following-up the participation of the agencies.
(l) Evaluate the degree of compliance of the agencies regarding their common and specific responsibilities as established in this chapter. Said analysis shall be referred to the Office of the Assistant Secretary for the corresponding action.
(m) Establish quality control parameters for the services which the agencies provide to the persons with disabilities.
(n) Follow-up to the Strategic Plan demanded in § 512i of Title 1, part of the act known as the “Bill of Rights of the Persons with Disabilities”.
(o) Follow-up to the recommendations made by the agencies themselves and by the Consulting Committee.
(p) Submit an annual report to the Governor and to the Legislature, through the Department of Education, about its activities, as well as any other special reports deemed convenient or that are required by the Governor or the Legislature not later than the last day of the month of January of every year.
Carry out any other function needed to achieve the purposes of this chapter.
The departments, agencies, offices and political subdivisions of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico shall submit to the Standing Subcommittee, free of charge and fees, all official information, book, pamphlet or publication, certified copy of documents, statistics and collection of data which the Subcommittee should request for official use.
History —June 7, 1996, No. 51, § 8; Dec. 18, 1997, No. 167, § 1; June 10, 2000, No. 97, § 17; Jan. 30, 2006, No. 46, §§ 1—3; Nov. 30, 2006, No. 255, § 1; Feb. 18, 2011, No. 10, § 3.