Governor signs seven bills into law

The Governor also signed into law House Bill 1267 and Senate Bill 1173, which amend the Puerto Rican Veterans’ Bill of Rights for the 21st Century.

By The STAR STAFF

Gov. Pedro Pierluisi Urrutia signed into law Senate Bill 1282, which creates the Law Against Discrimination Based on Hair Styles by extending protections in the public and private sectors to people with curly hair. The law was sponsored by the Department of Justice.

This new law, which is part of the seven signed by the first executive, establishes that protective hairstyles are those used to keep hair naturally curly, including, but not limited to, tight rolls or curls, locks, braids, twists, braids, Bantu knots and afros.

By law, an employer is prohibited from suspending, refusing to hire, firing, or otherwise harming a person for having these types of protective hairstyles and hair textures.

On the other hand, and after having the endorsement of the Department of the Family (DF) and the Department of Public Safety (DSP), the governor signed House Bill 1933, which transforms the Integrated Service Centers for Minors of Victims of Sexual Abuse (CIMVAS) into the Centers for Protection, Research, Treatment and Intervention (PITI), which will have experts in sexual violence against minors and will be attached to a Regulatory Board that will be part of the Medical Sciences Campus (RCM) of the University of Puerto Rico (UPR).

PITI Centers will have the primary responsibility to intervene in those cases where suspicion exists that a sexual crime has been committed against a minor under 16 years of age or a person with cognitive disabilities, regardless of their age, which may coexist with other types of abuse or neglect. According to the law, it will not be necessary for a complaint to be filed with the Police Bureau or a referral from the DF for PITI Centers to be able to provide interdisciplinary services.

The Governor also signed into law House Bill 1267 and Senate Bill 1173, which amend the Puerto Rican Veterans’ Bill of Rights for the 21st Century. The first measure was presented to clarify what documents veteran university students, spouses, children, and dependents of veterans and military personnel killed in action must present to the University of Puerto Rico (UPR) and higher education institutions in order to receive educational benefits.

In the case of student veterans, it will be sufficient to present evidence of having served in the United States Armed Forces and of their veteran status with an identification validated by the Federal Department of Veterans Affairs (DVA). In regard to spouses and children, dependents of veterans and military personnel killed in action, some of the documents to be presented are a copy of the Birth Certificate or certified copy of the judicial resolution or decree of adoption accompanied by a certification issued by the Clerk of the Court of Appeals, a copy of the Marriage Certificate and the Death Certificate.

Senate Bill 1173 includes the U.S. Space Force in the definition of the U.S. Armed Forces in the 21st Century Veterans’ Bill of Rights. The measure passed unanimously.

Other measures signed by Pierluisi that have become law include Senate Bill 1405, Senate Joint Resolution 254, and House Joint Resolution 614. Senate Bill 1405 declares Nov. 1 of each year as Puerto Rico’s Surfing Season Kickoff Day. Meanwhile, Senate Joint Resolution 254 designates PR-647 in Vega Alta after Palmira Cabrera de Ibarra, and House Joint Resolution 614 does the same by naming PR-7733 in Cidra after Florencio Berríos.