Pedro Pierluisi signs his first six executive orders

The Governor Pedro Pierluisi signed six executive decrees today, Saturday, among which stands out a mandate to the designated secretary of the Health Department, Carlos Mellado, to design a strategy for testing massively COVID-19.

With the Executive Order (OE) 2021-01, make sure that too Mellado has assembled a panel of experts to implement that vaccine delivery strategy. The document states that Mellado must report to Pierluisi “at all times”. on the progress of the delegated performance.

“It is imperative that the government makes more efforts to test and detect infections. Therefore, the Ministry of Health is mandated, on the advice of epidemiologists, to conduct massive testing and educational campaigns leading to the identification of contamination cases. Pierluisi said in the document.

While, OE 2021-03 recommends the application of measures of tax responsibility and cost control, and includes the withdrawal of OE 2017-001although that document maintains the reduction already applied in 2017 of 20% of the positions of trust and the reduction of 10% in the number of contracts.

The new document includes a language aimed at restricting travel abroad paid for with public funds, which may be performed only if considered essential or authorized by the Secretary or Head of the Service or the Ministry of the Interior.

OE-2021-03, meanwhile, declares a state of fiscal emergency and orders all government agencies to take measures to contain spending. For example, it stipulates that all career, temporary and irregular vacancies on this date or after the order has been signed, are subject to a needs assessment.

“No agency should fill such vacancies in any way (appointment, promotion, promotion, mobility, transfer and others) unless it understands the need to provide services to the people, and has the prior approval of the people. director of the Office of Administration and Budget (OGP), ”the document reads.

The same prohibition, with the same condition of consent from the head of the OGP, will apply to the creation of new jobs or to making appointments to temporary positions.

The head of the OGP will also need to approve any service contract worth more than $ 10,000.

The document describes so-called critical positions as those that protect the health, safety and well-being of citizens. For example teachers, police and health workers. Likewise, agencies are required to submit all of their lease contracts within a 30-day period.

In the case of public companies, they must also maintain the 20% reduction in positions of trust applied in 2017.

Another executive order was signed to designate Carmen Salgado Rodríguez as the administrator of the governor’s office and another executive order establishes the structure of the governor’s office.

Pierluisi also signed an executive order directing the Justice and Public Security services to enter into cooperative agreements with federal agencies to tackle corruption.

“Corruption in the public service is one of the major social ills affecting people’s confidence in their institutions. This government has an inescapable commitment to strengthening public order institutions and ensuring that they have strong and adequate tools to eradicate corruption, white-collar crime and crime in general. A head-to-head war on corruption and crime is declared, the Department of Public Security and the Attorney General are instructed to initiate prompt and coordinated talks with the federal prosecutor for the Puerto Rico district to establish, change or improve. any cooperation agreement for the prosecution of crimes of corruption or white collar ”, stressed the governor.

The latest executive order prohibits posting your photo to government agencies.