Governor Signs Five Measures on Education, Agriculture and Utilities, Vetoes Driving School Bill
Jenniffer González Colón approved laws expanding military student protections, broadening farm labor programs, defining political propaganda and creating exceptions for medical cannabis users in sensitive transport jobs, while ordering utility connections for a Toa Baja community.
File photoThe short version
- Primera Hora reported that Governor Jenniffer González Colón signed five measures and vetoed Senate Project 759 on Sunday, Oct. 11
- NotiCel reported the vetoed bill would have given DTOP exclusive authority to license Category 3 driving schools and removed them from Public Service Commission oversight
- The governor signed a law expanding academic and economic protections for military students to include U.S. Space Force members and activations for natural emergencies, humanitarian reasons and public health contingencies
- She also approved measures broadening the Manos Pa’l Campo program to all agricultural activities, defining political propaganda in the Electoral Code and allowing exceptions to medical cannabis workplace protections for sensitive transport roles
Signed Laws and Veto
Governor Jenniffer González Colón signed four laws and one joint resolution on Sunday, Oct. 11, according to Primera Hora. The measures address education, agriculture, elections and basic services. She vetoed Senate Project 759 without detailing her reasons, Primera Hora reported.
NotiCel reported that the vetoed bill, sponsored by Sen. Héctor Joaquín Sánchez, would have amended the Vehicle and Traffic Law to grant the Department of Transportation and Public Works (DTOP) exclusive power to regulate and license Category 3 driving schools. It would also have excluded those schools and instructors from the definition of rental vehicle companies under public service law, removing oversight by the Transportation and Other Public Services Bureau. NotiCel reported.
Military Students and Farm Labor
Law 201-2026 expands protections for military students at postsecondary institutions to include members of the U.S. Space Force. It broadens the definition of activation to cover natural emergencies, humanitarian reasons and public health contingencies, including refund, credit, accommodation and priority mechanisms, Primera Hora and NotiCel reported.
Law 203-2026 extends the Manos Pa’l Campo program beyond coffee harvesting to all agricultural activities. It requires the departments of Agriculture, Labor and Corrections to coordinate on labor needs per municipality, prioritizing local workers and including correctional inmates. NotiCel reported that the Department of Correction and Rehabilitation would retain 20 percent of participants’ earnings for administrative and security costs. The law also contemplates temporary foreign workers when local and correctional labor is insufficient.
Elections, Cannabis and Community Services
Law 202-2026 adds a definition of political propaganda to the Electoral Code. It covers signs, stickers, audio, images, electronic screens and other media used in public places to influence elections or promote or oppose parties, candidates, ideologies or electoral issues, according to both outlets.
Law 204-2026 creates an exception to workplace discrimination protections for authorized medical cannabis patients when they perform or seek to perform sensitive transport functions such as driving trucks, school buses, taxis or app-based transport vehicles, if the employer establishes it by a preponderance of the evidence, Primera Hora reported. NotiCel described the functions as including truck drivers, school bus drivers, taxi drivers and digital platforms.
Joint Resolution 64-2026 orders LUMA Energy, the Aqueduct and Sewer Authority (AAA) and DTOP to begin within 30 days the steps needed to legally connect the 176 families of Villas del Sol in Toa Baja to electricity, potable water and sewer service, and to address road deficiencies. The agencies must submit a report to the Legislature within 60 days, NotiCel reported. Primera Hora reported the same order without specifying the number of families.
Where the sources differ
Both Primera Hora and NotiCel agree on the governor signing four laws and one joint resolution while vetoing Senate Project 759, and on the core content of the military-student, farm-labor, political-propaganda and medical-cannabis measures. NotiCel provides additional details on the vetoed bill’s intent to remove driving schools from Public Service Commission regulation and on the 20-percent earnings retention by the Department of Correction. NotiCel also specifies 176 families in Villas del Sol, while Primera Hora does not give a number. Primera Hora lists five measures signed plus the veto; NotiCel explicitly counts four laws plus one resolution.
What the reports do not say
The reports do not state when the bills reached the governor’s desk, whether she issued a formal veto message with written reasons, or what the next steps are for the vetoed driving-school legislation. They also do not indicate the effective dates of the new laws, any estimated costs of connecting Villas del Sol, or how many municipalities or workers might be affected by the expanded agricultural labor program.
Sources
Every link below was opened and checked when this story was published. Official means a government body, agency or the organization itself; Reporting means a news outlet.
- Official Gobernadora convierte en ley cinco medidas y veta una: estas son
- Reporting Gobernadora convierte en ley cinco medidas y veta una: estas son
- Reporting Gobernadora firma varias medidas y veta una
How we checked this
Primera Hora and NotiCel both covered the governor’s actions on the same day. Details on the vetoed bill’s regulatory impact and the exact number of families in Villas del Sol rest solely on NotiCel’s account.
Compiled by the PuertoRico.com News Desk from the reports and statements listed above, and checked against them before publishing. It does not include original interviews. Spot an error? Email support@puertorico.com with a link to this story.