Bill 86.

Summary.

The bill proposes officially declaring the aquatic festival on the banks of the Santa María River. The declaration concerns the festival identified in the bill and locates it at that site. Its purpose is official recognition of the festival: the declaring article sets no date for its celebration and establishes no program of activities.

The bill presents the festival as contributing to recreational tourism. It also links the event to the local population’s economy and to the recognition of traditions and customs. These are the matters that the text expressly associates with the declared festival. The reference to recreational tourism describes the activity to which the festival would contribute, while the references to the population’s economy and to traditions and customs express the effects and cultural content that the bill attributes to it.

On labor matters, the bill provides that the proposed law would entail no obligations concerning the Labor Code (Código de Trabajo) of the Republic of Panama (República de Panamá). This provision addresses the labor implications of declaring the festival. The bill does not amend the articles of the Labor Code; it refers to that code to define the obligations associated with the event. The proposed official recognition, together with the references to tourism and cultural activity, is therefore accompanied by an express provision on its relationship to that code.

For implementing regulations, the bill assigns responsibility to the Executive Branch (Órgano Ejecutivo), acting through the Ministry of Culture (Ministerio de Cultura) together with the Panama Tourism Authority (Autolidad de Turismo de Panamá). The arrangement brings together the executive authority, the cultural institution, and the tourism body named in the text. The mandate concerns the law that would result if the bill were enacted and follows the provisions declaring the festival, identifying its stated contributions, and addressing its relationship to the Labor Code.

Finally, the bill provides that the law would take effect on the day following its promulgation. That rule sets the commencement of the declaration and the other proposed provisions. The text directly concerns the Executive Branch, the Ministry of Culture, and the Panama Tourism Authority, which would be responsible for implementing regulations, and it refers to the Labor Code of the Republic of Panama. Given its subject, the bill could be of interest to or affect people involved in cultural activities and recreational tourism on the banks of the Santa María River, as well as the population connected with the festival’s economy, traditions, and customs.