Bill 259.

Summary.

The bill creates a digital platform, administered by the Ministry of the Presidency (Ministerio de la Presidencia) through the National Directorate of Administrative Careers (Dirección Nacional de Carrera Administrativa, DIGECA), to publish public sector vacancies and support personnel selection and hiring. DIGECA could form partnerships with existing platforms, subject to security, confidentiality and legal requirements. Autonomous, semi autonomous, centralized and decentralized public entities would have to report their vacancies; failure to do so would be subject to penalties established under the implementing regulations.

Registration requirements would exclude posts subject to constitutional or legal restrictions, direct appointments or strictly confidential positions of trust. Publication would also exclude certain vacancies attached to senior offices whose occupants work directly with magistrates, ministers, vice ministers and executive officers of public entities. All other posts, including administrative career positions, would follow the applicable legal procedures. The bill defines a vacancy as an unoccupied post or one awaiting appointment for which the appointing entity is actively seeking a suitable candidate.

Each listing would identify the post, its duties and requirements, required experience and education, the profession where applicable, the number of positions and the appointing entity. It would also state the province, district and corregimiento (district), publication date, on site, hybrid or remote arrangement, expected deliverables, reporting level, closing date, temporary or permanent status, salary and type of working day. The listing period, set by the appointing entity, could not exceed six (6) months. Listings would follow a standardized format defined by the General Directorate of Administrative Careers (Dirección General de Carrera Administrativa) and meet transparency, accessibility and traceability requirements.

The Ministry of the Presidency, through a specialized unit of the National Directorate of Administrative Careers, would promote, publicize and monitor the vacancy register. Information on qualifications, salary and other minimum details would be available for consultation; DIGECA would assist people who needed access and lacked the means to obtain it. Appointing entities would consider résumés submitted through the platform. A scoring and merit system developed in the regulations would govern selection, with equal opportunity, transparency, consideration of applicants’ potential contribution and non discrimination. Once the selection procedure ended, entities would publish the names of those selected, their scores and the other information considered, while respecting privacy and personal data protection.

The Executive Branch (Órgano Ejecutivo), through the Ministry of the Presidency, would regulate procedures and penalties for officials who failed to report vacancies. The bill provides for commencement twelve (12) months after promulgation. DIGECA would submit an annual report on the platform’s operation, entity compliance, vacancies and hiring, for inclusion in the annual accountability report. The Office of the Comptroller General (Contraloría General de la República) and, where appropriate, the National Authority for Transparency and Access to Information (Autoridad Nacional de Transparencia y Acceso a la Información, ANTAI) could oversee the processes and access the information needed for review. The provisions concern these institutions, public sector employers and people seeking public employment.