P.R. Laws tit. 16, § 4111
The following provisions shall constitute the essential principles of any aspiration to a candidacy whereby a person may become an aspirant:
(a) Political parties shall establish the requirements for aspirants to qualify for elective public office, except in the case of independent candidacies.
(b) The State Election Commission shall establish the requirements for an aspirant to become a candidate, which shall include:
(1) The aspirant’s intent to become a candidate by completing, under oath, the Commission’s information form for the purpose of initiating the candidacy process. Likewise, said aspirant shall file his candidacy electronically if so provided by the State Election Commission through resolution or regulations for such purposes.
(2) A certified copy of the income tax returns or a copy stamped by the Department of the Treasury filed during the preceding five (5) years, as well as a certification from the Secretary of the Treasury attesting to the person’s compliance with his obligation to file income tax returns for the past ten (10) years, and any outstanding debts in connection therewith, if any; in the event of an outstanding debt, the certification shall state that the aspirant has availed himself of a payment plan and is complying with the same. Candidates for municipal legislators shall meet the requirement of having filed income tax returns for the past five (5) years by furnishing an electronic filing certification (Form SC 2903). In the case of aspirants to Governor, Resident Commissioner, State Legislators, and Mayors, they shall submit certified copies of the income tax returns or a copy stamped by the Department of the Treasury for the last ten (10) years. The Secretary of the Department of the Treasury shall issue said copies and certifications free of charge. In the case that the required certification states that the person has failed to file income tax returns because such person did not earn any income nor resided in Puerto Rico during any of the years covered in the preceding five (5)-year or ten (10)-year period, in the case of aspirants to Governor, Resident Commissioner, State Legislators, and Mayors, such person shall also be required to file a sworn statement attesting to such circumstances. The five (5)-year or ten (10)-year period, as the case may be, shall be the taxable years preceding the date on which the period to file candidacies for the corresponding General Election begins. In the case of the existence of pre-nuptial agreements, only the tax returns of the aspirant shall be filed, except in the case of aspirants to Governor who shall file the income tax returns of both spouses. In the case of community property both returns, the spouse’s and the aspirant’s, shall be submitted, even if they file separately. If the aspirant has created a trust, or is a shareholder, partner, or director of any corporation or partnership, he shall be required to report the total amount of assets and the administrator thereof. The Commission shall not accept nor file the nomination if the aspirant fails to comply with this provision.
Persons required to submit income tax returns shall redact any information that may lead to identity theft. Said information shall include social security number, employer identification number, bank accounts numbers, street address, name of dependents, and any other information that the State Election Commission deems could lead to identity theft.
(3) A certification from the Municipal Revenue Collection Center stating that the person has no debts on account of real or personal property taxes. If the person has an outstanding debt, the certification shall state that he/she has availed him/herself of a payment plan and is complying with the same.
(4) The person has received the orientation given by the Election Comptroller, as provided in the “Puerto Rico Political Campaign Financing Oversight Act”.
(5) The person has undergone drug testing for the detection of controlled substances in accordance with the directives established by the Commission at the request of the political party to which the aspirant belongs. In all other cases, the State Election Commission shall establish the specifics of this requirement through regulations.
(6) The person has filed with the State Election Commission a certification stating that he/she has no criminal record and has not been convicted of a felony or misdemeanor involving moral turpitude, as well as a sworn statement stating that he/she has not been convicted of such offenses in any other state or federal jurisdiction.
(7) Any aspirant to an elective public office who holds an office as head or appointing authority of an agency, department, government entity, or public corporation in the Executive Branch, except for the Governor, shall tender his/her resignation to said office thirty (30) days before the beginning of the term to file candidacies. This provision shall, likewise, be extensive to the following officials: the Comptroller of Puerto Rico, the Ombudsman, and the Administrative Director of the Courts, when he/she has not been appointed as judge.
The Department of the Treasury and the Municipal Revenue Collection Center shall issue any copies and certifications required by this subtitle, free of charge, within thirty (30) days after the same have been requested. In order to strictly comply with the provisions of this section, the heads of the agencies concerned shall designate an official to coordinate with the Chair the processing and issuance of the copies and certifications required under this subtitle.
If a person does not receive such copies and certifications at the time of filing his candidacy, such person shall present evidence issued by the appropriate agencies of having requested such copies and certifications. Nonetheless, the person must submit such copies and certifications on or before forty-five (45) days following the deadline for filing candidacies.
Any person who wishes to appear as an aspirant to and candidate for elective public office shall be a qualified voter at the time of filing his candidacy.
Any person who aspires to become a political party candidate for an elective public office shall also meet the requirements established by said political party. These requirements shall be equally applicable to and enforceable on all persons who express their intent to run for office under said political party, and said requirements may not be altered retroactively after the term to file candidacies has begun, nor be inconsistent with the provisions of this subtitle.
No person shall aspire to run for more than one elective public office on the same General Election, primary, or special election.
A party may ban or disqualify a person who aspires to run for candidate for an elective public office if it deems that such candidate has failed to comply with any of its party’s regulations.
History —June 1, 2011, No. 78, § 8.001; Nov. 21, 2011, No. 230, § 18; Jan. 3, 2012, No. 5, § 1; Dec. 22, 2014, No. 239, § 27.