Esta ley enmienda la "Ley de Administración de Documentos Públicos de Puerto Rico" para hacer obligatorio que las grabaciones, fotografías y videos de las sesiones legislativas y audiencias públicas sean remitidos al Archivo General de Puerto Rico después de diez años para su conservación permanente.
(Approved January 8, 2004)
To amend the first paragraph of Section 4 of Act No. 5 of December 8, 1955, as amended, known as "Puerto Rico Public Documents Administration Act," in order to make it mandatory that all recordings of legislative sessions and public hearings, photographs and videos produced during the same are remitted to the Puerto Rico General Archive after ten years of the end of every Legislature, for their permanent conservation.
The Legislature of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, as the Branch of Government with greatest representation in the Island, has not established the pertinent controls to preserve its passage through our history as a people. It is necessary that the Legislature establish mechanisms to preserve recordings, photographs and videos produced during its march through history.
We cannot allow that one more piece of history is lost for the failure to conserve documents in the form of recordings, photographs or videos that constitute the collective memory of this people.
Section 1.- The first paragraph of Section 4 of Act No. 5 of December 8, 1955, as amended, is hereby amended, to read as follows: "Section 4.- Public Documents Administration Program in the three Branches of Government and the Office of the Controller.
a. The General Services Administrator or his authorized representative in the Executive Branch; public corporations and municipalities; the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court or his authorized representative in the Judicial Branch; the President of the Senate or his authorized representative; the Speaker of the House or his authorized representative; the Controller or his authorized representative are hereby authorized to administer the Public Documents Administration Program established by virtue of this Act in the dependencies under their jurisdictions, subject to what is hereinafter provided. Provided that the President and Speaker Bodies of the Legislature, or their authorized representatives, shall remit the original of the recordings of legislative sessions and public hearings, photographs and videos, as well as any other analogous document related to the process of legislative measures, after ten years have elapsed from the closing of the Legislature where they have been produced for their permanent conservation at the General Archive. Each Body of the Legislature shall regulate, through written regulations, all that pertains to the orderly transfer of said documents to the General Archive.
Section 2.- This Act shall take effect thirty (30) days after its approval.
I hereby certify to the Secretary of State that the following Act No. 16 (H.B. 2595) (Conference) of the $6^{ ext {th }}$ Session of the $14^{ ext {th }}$ Legislature of Puerto Rico:
AN ACT to amend the first paragraph of Section 4 of Act No. 5 of December 8, 1955, as amended, known as "Puerto Rico Public Documents Administration Act," in order to make it mandatory that all recordings of legislative sessions and public hearings, photographs and videos produced during the same are remitted to the Puerto Rico General Archive after ten years of the end of every Legislature, for their permanent conservation, has been translated from Spanish to English and that the English version is correct.
In San Juan, Puerto Rico, today $11^{ ext {th }}$ of April of 2005.
Luis E. Fusté-Lacourt Director