Bill 188.

Summary.

The bill amends Law 33 of April 25, 2013 to expand the matters handled by the National Authority for Transparency and Access to Information (Autoridad Nacional de Transparencia y Acceso a la Información). These include the right to petition, access to information, open data, personal data protection, conflicts of interest, and corruption prevention, in relation to the Political Constitution of the Republic and commitments undertaken by the Republic of Panama. It allows obligated entities to consult the Authority and propose measures for their projects. The Authority’s objectives would also include overseeing those commitments, encouraging public participation, publishing indicators, digitizing public information, and providing training. The bill also provides for proposals on educational content and support for the Interinstitutional Public Ethics Network (Red Interinstitucional de Ética Pública), coordinated by the Office of the Attorney General for Administration (Procuraduría de la Administración).

The text redefines personal data and confidential information and expands the category of obligated entities to include government agencies, the Panama Canal Authority (Autoridad del Canal de Panamá), local governments, and organizations receiving state resources or property, among others. It links the Transparency Law to Law 6 of January 22, 2002 and personal data protection to Law 81 of March 26, 2019. It defines public funds, open government, and open data, along with the characteristics of open data. It expands the Authority’s functions to oversee compliance, provide information and training, handle complaints, guide the publication of information, promote digital means of submitting requests, and order declassification when information may affect human rights. It also allows the Authority to propose initiatives to the Executive Branch (Órgano Ejecutivo) and recommend regulatory changes.

Each obligated entity would have a liaison unit headed by an information officer, and a vacancy in that position would have to be filled within 60 calendar days. Failure to comply would result in recurring fines of 25% to 50% of the monthly salaries of the legal representative and the person in charge of human resources. Obligated entities would cooperate in continuing training and submit annual reports. The information officer would receive and track petitions, requests, and complaints, assist individuals, promote accessibility, and oversee the publication of reusable data. These duties relate, among other cited provisions, to Law 6 of January 22, 2002, Law 81 of March 2019, and Law 316 of August 2022.

The Authority would have a Director General, a Deputy Director General, and a Secretary General. The Executive Branch would appoint the first two, and the National Assembly (Asamblea Nacional) would ratify them for five-year terms. The bill regulates the delegation of duties, the replacement of the Director, restrictions on holding incompatible positions applicable to both offices, precautionary measures concerning their assets, and conditions applicable to the Authority’s staff. It authorizes inspections of obligated entities and requests for documents; after being informed of the findings, those entities would implement corrective measures within no more than 60 days. It also allows analyses of procedures and final decisions to be disclosed and provides for a budget allocation no lower than the previous year’s.

For admitted complaints, it sets a 30-day period for resolution and penalizes failure to comply with an order with a fine equal to twice the monthly salary; a repeat violation would result in dismissal. It adds grounds for sanctions for failures to comply with transparency, petition, access to information, and open data requirements, including rules for obligated entities that are not public servants. It protects reasonable, good-faith conduct in exercising rights under the Law. Fines would follow a summary administrative procedure involving a response to the allegations, evidence, a decision, and reconsideration. Finally, it instructs the National Assembly to prepare a consolidated text for publication in the Official Gazette (Gaceta Oficial) and provides that the law would take effect upon promulgation. The content is relevant to public institutions, organizations receiving state funds, public servants, information requesters, and sectors that handle personal data.