P.R. Laws tit. 18, § 1511
Every economic benefit obtained from the authorized operation of an underwater archaeological site shall be fairly shared among the discoverer of the site, the person performing the operation and the People of Puerto Rico. Every contract signed pursuant to the provisions of this chapter shall stipulate that:
(1) The discoverer of a site and the holder of the permit shall obtain a fair percentage of the eventual financial benefits resulting from the operation, taking into account:
(a) The expenses incurred in the operation;
(b) the hazards faced in terms of the risk they represent to the safety of persons and the damage or loss of equipment used in the operation;
(c) the operation’s degree of difficulty;
(d) the ends pursued by the permit holder, and
(e) any other consideration that the contracting parties deem reasonable.
(2) The share of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico shall never be less than fifty percent (50%) of the market value of all the objects recovered, whether they are of a historical, cultural or archaeological value, or solely of a financial value.
(3) Once an operation has commenced, a detailed inventory of recovered and discovered objects shall be kept. As soon as they are discovered and recovered, the Council shall take possession of them after issuing the corresponding receipt to the person indicated and shall be responsible for their custody and for placing them in the appropriate place, under the proper conditions to ensure their protection until their disposition is finally determined.
The expenses involved in the protection and conservation of the objects once they are recovered shall be subject to negotiation and shall be consigned in the contract between the parties.
History —Aug. 7, 1987, No. 10, p. 630, § 11.