Esta ley enmienda la Ley Electoral de Puerto Rico para establecer un procedimiento expedito para que la Compañía de Turismo obtenga la aprobación de sus anuncios publicitarios dirigidos al exterior durante el período de veda electoral. El objetivo es evitar el impacto negativo en la promoción turística internacional causado por las restricciones publicitarias durante los años electorales, reconociendo la importancia económica del turismo para Puerto Rico.
(N. B. 3320) (Reconsidered) (Approved February 29, 2004)
To amend Section 8.001 of Title VIII of Act No. 4 of December 20, 1977, as amended, known as the "Puerto Rico Electoral Act," to establish an expedited procedure for the Tourism Company to process the approval of its advertisements during the electoral ban period.
At present, the tourist activity is vested with great importance due to its potential economic benefits and a larger increase in the number of jobs for Puerto Rico. At present, it represents over 60,000 direct and indirect jobs, as well as more than 2,000 million dollars in expenditures by the visitors, and nearly $6.5 %$ of the gross income of the country.
The marketing plan of Puerto Rico as a destination includes long and short term strategies. Each market segment identified by its potential requires positioning and a marketing plan that must be integrated to the marketing and promotion combination. In this manner, they reinforce each other, if the characteristics of the product and services, distribution channels, price structure and advertising campaigns, public relations, promotion and sales. On this plan depends the achievement of the goals and objectives identified therein, in terms of image as well as sales, reflected in the number of hotel bookings, occupancy and visitor spending, among other indicators.
These marketing campaigns have a cumulative effect, in addition to including control mechanisms to measure their effectiveness, by means of
statistics on visitors, as well as through surveys of the tourists, that serve to identify the campaign themes.
Some of the market segments, such as conventions, are promoted two or three years in advance of the date on which they are held. Advertising campaigns combine graphics in which color, sound and movement prevail, using media such as television, along with sales campaigns based on prices. Likewise, the sale of printed media, such as "packages" published in the written press, require continuity to achieve an effective positioning.
The interruption of these efforts, as well as of the sequence of the campaigns through specialized media directed to penetrate the national and international markets, would have very negative effects that would place us at a disadvantage in view of the increasing global competition.
The detrimental effect of the Puerto Rico Electoral Act on tourist activity caused every election year, limits the advertising marketing strategy of the Tourism Company abroad for almost six months. We hereby submit this bill to prevent this situation by restricting the scope of the bill to the advertising efforts abroad, and in response to what has been the continuous plea of the private sector of the industry. It is directed to the growth and a greater development of our tourist activity to protect the best interests of Puerto Rico. To achieve this, it is necessary to legislate by exception, to allow an expedited process of regulating the public broadcasting expenses of the government in the advertising media during the election period established by law, for any promotion by the Tourism Company in the media for said period.
Section 1.- Section 8.001 of Title VIII, of Act No. 4 of December 20, 1977, as amended, is hereby amended to read as follows:
"Section 8.001.- Public Information Expenses of the Government The agencies of the Government of Puerto Rico, the Legislature of Puerto Rico and the Judicial Branch, are forbidden to incur expenses for the purchase of time and space in the public information media to expound their programs, projects, achievements, accomplishments, projections or plans, as of the 1 of January of a general election year until the day after the election is held. Those press notices and announcements expressly required by law are excluded from this provision.
Also excluded from the above provision are those notices that are used to divulge public service, urgent or emergency information, which shall only be allowed upon proper authorization of the Commonwealth Elections Commission. Provided, that when any message, notice, announcement of informational educational and promotional material, or all of the above, of the island of Puerto Rico as a tourist market in advertising campaigns, published or issued by the Tourism Company outside of the Island, the Commonwealth Election Committee shall have a term of forty eight (48) hours during working days, counted from the request for authorization to the Commission, to state its approval or objection to the approval of the message, notice or announcement, in writing. In the case that the abovementioned term elapses and the Commission has not stated its approval or objections, the message, notice or announcement in question shall be deemed as approved. In the event the Commission states an objection to the publication or issuing of the message, notice or announcement, it shall be duly supported."
Section 2.- This Act shall take effect immediately after its approval.
I hereby certify to the Secretary of State that the following Act No. 72 (H.B. 3320) (Reconsidered) of the $7^{ ext {th }}$ Session of the $14^{ ext {th }}$ Legislature of Puerto Rico:
AN ACT to amend Section 8.001 of Title VIII of Act No. 4 of December 20, 1977, as amended, known as the "Puerto Rico Electoral Act," to establish an expedited procedure for the Tourism Company to process the approval of its advertisements during the electoral ban period, has been translated from Spanish to English and that the English version is correct.
In San Juan, Puerto Rico, today $17^{ ext {th }}$ of June of 2005.
Luis E. Fusté-Lacourt Director