Draft bill 176.

Summary.

The draft bill proposes free, unlimited access to Panamá Conecta for users of public telecommunications services and mobile internet access. Article 1 places that obligation on the concession holders providing those services. The free and unlimited access concerns the platform itself. The statement of reasons describes the measure as allowing users to browse and use services available through Panamá Conecta without drawing on their contracted data plan, prepaid balance, or package. Access to the digital services brought together on the platform would therefore fall within the obligation assigned to the concession holders.

Article 2 requires all State platforms to be incorporated into Panamá Conecta. It sets a deadline of no more than one year from promulgation of the proposed law for that incorporation. The statement of reasons links this measure to bringing public entities’ digital platforms, procedures, and services together at a single digital access point. The provision covers State platforms generally and designates Panamá Conecta as the platform into which they must be incorporated. This integration requirement operates alongside the free access requirement: one concerns the availability of public platforms through Panamá Conecta, while the other concerns users’ access to it through services provided by concession holders.

Article 3 assigns the Executive Branch (Órgano Ejecutivo) responsibility for issuing regulations to implement the proposed law and sets a deadline of no more than six months for that task. This provision gives the Executive Branch responsibility for developing the rules that will give effect to the obligations in the bill. Article 4 provides that the proposed law would take effect upon its promulgation. Promulgation thus serves as the reference point both for commencement and for calculating the deadline to incorporate State platforms. The draft bill establishes these obligations directly and contains no amendment, addition, or repeal of another legal instrument.

In its statement of reasons, the draft bill refers to the Political Constitution of the Republic of Panama (Constitución Política de la República de Panamá) and Articles 108 and 109 of the Organic Rules of Procedure of the National Assembly (Reglamento Orgánico del Régimen Interno de la Asamblea Nacional) as the framework for its introduction. The public bodies connected with its provisions are the Executive Branch and State institutions that operate digital platforms. The proposal also concerns concession holders providing public telecommunications services and mobile internet access, as well as people who use Panamá Conecta to reach public procedures, services, and information.