Moratorium proposed on gov’t intervention with street vendors in state right-of-way

Rep. Edgar Robles Rivera

By THE STAR STAFF

District 14 (Arecibo and Hatillo) Rep. Edgar Robles Rivera  requested on Monday that Transportation and Public Works (DTOP by its acronym in Spanish) Secretary Edwin González Montalvo consider “a 12-month administrative moratorium related to the processes of removal of vendors and street merchants located in areas belonging to the state right-of-way.”

The lawmaker, who chairs the Committee on Consumer Affairs in the island House of Representatives, stressed in a written statement that the request “seeks to establish a fair, uniform and humane process that allows merchants to be properly guided before taking measures that may affect the economic livelihood of numerous Puerto Rican families.”

Robles Rivera said that many of the small merchants and farmers have worked, for years, in different areas of the island under practices treated differently, so he believes that it is highly necessary to develop a transition period based on guidance, communication and viable compliance alternatives.

“We are talking about fathers and mothers who go out to work every day in an honest way to bring sustenance to their homes,” he said. “Our interest is that there can be an orderly, sensitive and responsible process that takes into consideration the economic reality in which our people live.”

The proposal includes orientation campaigns on the current legal provisions, clear definition of applicable parameters within the state right-of-way, voluntary compliance mechanisms and coordination with the municipalities and agencies concerned to identify reasonable alternatives for small merchants.

Robles Rivera noted that the request does not intend to interfere with the legal powers of the DTOP, but rather to promote a balance between the administrative order and the economic stability of hundreds of families that depend on this type of commercial activity.

“The small business deserves to be listened to, guided and treated sensitively,” he said. “The goal should be to find solutions, not to create uncertainty for those who work every day to get ahead.”