P.R. Laws tit. 33, § 1401
(a) Any person who places, deposits, pours, or discards or orders the placing, depositing or discarding of any paper, wrappings, cans, bottles, cigarette butts, fruit, wood, residue, ashes, or any similar matter that is harmful to public health or safety, or any type of garbage or trash, without being duly authorized by officials or representatives of the Commonwealth or municipal governments, or any of their agencies or instrumentalities shall incur a misdemeanor that entails a fine of one hundred dollars ($100).
(b) If, when committing this administrative offense the infract[or] who disposes of trash, or bags containing garbage, dead animals, automobile tire or tires, branches or trunks of tree, debris, paper, cans, fruit or waste, including one or several land, air, or marine transportation vehicles, or pieces of furniture or appliances of any type, or any similar material that is harmful to public health and safety, or any type of garbage or trash, shall be bound to pay an administrative fine of two thousand dollars ($2,000).
(c) If the corresponding fine is not paid within thirty (30) days, the infractor shall be charged with a misdemeanor and upon conviction, he/she shall be punished by a fine of not less than two thousand dollars ($2,000), nor more than five thousand dollars ($5,000). In all cases, the court shall also impose the penalty of restitution.
(d) The agents of the Puerto Rico Police, of the Municipal Guard and of the Corps of Rangers of the Department of Natural and Environmental Resources are hereby empowered to, in addition to issuing a ticket for a violation to the provisions of subsections (a) and (b) of this section, order the violator to pick up the garbage deposited. If he/she fails to do so as ordered, the [issuance] of a ticket shall be omitted and a complaint shall be filed for a misdemeanor against said person and upon conviction shall be punished with a fine of not less than two thousand dollars ($2,000) nor greater than five thousand dollars ($5,000) or the rendering of community service, through the collection of solid waste in the beaches and public thoroughfares of Puerto Rico, up to a maximum of fifty (50) hours per violation as community service through a program to be implemented and administered by the Department of Natural and Environmental Resources, or a combination of these penalties at the discretion of the court.
History —June 4, 1969, No. 21, p. 36, § 1; Aug. 14, 1991, No. 64, § 1; Jan. 19, 1995, No. 11, § 5; Dec. 25, 2002, No. 308, § 1; Jan. 20, 2006, No. 11, § 1.