Bill 521.

Summary.

The bill creates the Patronato de la Biblioteca Nacional «Ernesto J. Castillero R.» as an autonomous, nonprofit private entity serving the public interest and capable of assuming obligations. It grants the Patronato use and administration of the building on vía Porras, in corregimiento San Francisco, within Parque Recreativo y Cultural Ornar, district of Panamá, province of Panamá, and allows offices in other cities. Its purposes include research, access to knowledge, and the organization, preservation, and dissemination of Panamá’s bibliographic record. It would also administer adjoining spaces, promote reading and the arts, and develop inclusive cultural and educational programs.

Its objectives include coordinating with the public library network, providing space for students, teachers, and researchers, cataloguing works, and forming partnerships with public bodies, universities, municipalities, and private and civil society organizations. It may organize activities that generate revenue, participate in cultural policy, and coordinate building works. Operating facilities for literary content requires authorization from the Ministry of Culture (Ministerio de Cultura); maintenance, development, and construction works must be planned by the Board of Directors of the Patronato (Junta Directiva de El Patronato) and approved by that ministry. The Ministry of Culture represents it before the Executive Branch (Órgano Ejecutivo), while the Office of the Comptroller General of the Nation (Contraloría General de la Nación) oversees it.

The Patronato includes the Ministry of Culture, which chairs its board, two (2) business representatives, and two (2) civil society representatives connected with bibliographic preservation; each principal member has an alternate. It may seek state funding, set its budget, charge for services and events, and receive contributions and donations. It must safeguard assets, submit an Annual Management Plan to the Ministry of Culture, cooperate with oversight by that ministry and the Office of the Comptroller General of the Republic (Contraloría General de la República), set fees—including ISBN and ISSN fees—and publish its calendar and budget execution. The Board of Directors directs the Patronato; members serve without pay but may recover mission expenses. Certain decisions require a quorum and an absolute majority, including votes from state representatives. Only 30% of the approved state contribution may fund payroll, subject to the authorization specified in the bill.

An Executive Director selected by public competition would manage and supervise the entity for five years, renewable for one additional term. The director must meet nationality, Library Science education, professional qualification under Law 20 of October 9, 1984, and experience requirements; the bill sets further incompatibilities and selection conditions. The Board of Directors may establish advisory councils. The Patronato’s assets and resources comprise state budget appropriations, donations, inheritances, revenue from its activities, and rental income. Its allocation in the General State Budget may not fall below the previous year’s allocation; individual and corporate contributions are deductible for income tax purposes under the Tax Code (Código Fiscal). Assets under its administration belong to the state, must be inventoried where applicable, and generally may not be disposed of, subject to the stated exception for operational assets. The Patronato would be exempt from national taxes and charges and must submit an audited annual report within three months after the fiscal year closes.

The Board of Directors may dissolve the Patronato if it considers fulfillment of its purposes impossible. Administration of its assets would then return to the state through the Ministry of Culture or pass to a successor patronato with similar functions. The bill concerns cultural institutions and libraries, Library Science professionals, the education and publishing sectors, cultural organizations, donors, and users of the National Library.