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House approves package of bills on safety standards, digital records, tax and municipal measures
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Summary
The Puerto Rico House voted April 7 to approve a group of bills on tire standards, victim evidence portals, lactation law amendments, a unified digital record for people with disabilities, municipal inventory tax rules and several tax-administration reforms; most measures passed by wide margins
The Puerto Rico House of Representatives approved a multi-item legislative package on April 7, 2025, passing measures that ranged from consumer safety standards to tax and municipal-administration reforms.
Key measures approved included:
- House Bill 19 — Establishes safety and quality standards for tires sold and used in Puerto Rico and directs the Department of Transportation and Public Works, in consultation with the Department of Natural and Environmental Resources, to promulgate implementing regulations. Final vote: 48–0.
- House Bill 21 — Creates an electronic portal to track forensic evidence in cases of sexual assault (described in the calendar as a portal for victims to obtain information about the status of forensic evidence kits). Final vote: 48–0.
- House Bill 270 — Amends lactation-related provisions and adds new sections to an existing law regulating lactation periods. Final vote: 48–0.
- House Bill 387 — Establishes a unified digital record for people with functional diversity and charges Puerto Rico Innovation and Technology Services with creation and maintenance of the centralized file. Final vote: 48–0.
- House Bill 418 — Amends patient rights and related statutes (details in the calendar); final vote: 48–0.
- House Bill 420 — Amends municipal code provisions to set inventory valuation and tax rules for fiscal 2024–2028 and gives the municipal revenue center authority to request certain information from the Department of Treasury; final vote: 47–1.
- House Bill 498 — Aligns state certification with federal 501(c)(3) status for nonprofit tax exemptions and seeks to simplify duplicative state certification requirements; final vote: 48–0.
- House Bill 500 — Adds a municipal contribution exemption for prescription medicines to the municipal code (summary on calendar); final vote: 48–0.
- House Bill 504 — Introduces digital tools and updates to sections of the Internal Revenue Code related to filer information and agency data-sharing; final vote: 45–3.
- House Bill 506 — Establishes a framework for municipalities to voluntarily integrate into Puerto Rico’s SURI unified tax system and consolidate filing/payment dates; final vote: 48–0.
The House also received and approved four Senate-origin bills transmitted for concurrence: Senate Bill 1 (religious freedom amendments), Senate Bill 4 (integration of values/ethics into curriculum), Senate Bill 350 (protections for minors), and Senate Bill 386 (tax credit amendment for a cultural foundation). Recorded final results for those measures: Senate Bill 1 — 48–0; Senate Bill 4 — 44–4; Senate Bill 350 — 38–10; Senate Bill 386 — 45–3.
Most measures were introduced on the chamber calendar, underwent amendment votes where noted, and were passed by voice or roll-call votes during the session. A final voting sequence produced the tallies above; the House clerk announced that all measures on the final calendar were approved and instructed notification as required.
Because many calendar items were handled in a single final vote sequence, the chamber recorded a consolidated final roll call and asked the secretary to notify relevant agencies and the Senate when appropriate.
