AGRICULTURAL LAND COMMISSION ACT

[S.B.C. 2002] CHAPTER 36

Contents

HER MAJESTY, by and with the advice and consent of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of British Columbia, enacts as follows:

Definitions

1 (1) In this Act:

"agreement in principle" means a non-binding agreement, negotiated among a first nation government, the Province and Canada in accordance with a process developed under the Treaty Commission Act, that

(a) has been approved by each party in accordance with the approval process provided in the agreement in principle, and

(b) contemplates that legislative authority over all or part of the treaty settlement lands described in the agreement in principle will, under a final agreement or a governance agreement and an enactment of the Province or Canada, be provide to the first nation;

"agricultural land" means land designated as agricultural land under this Act and includes agricultural land under a former Act;

"agricultural land reserve" means agricultural land designated as an agricultural land reserve under this Act and includes an agricultural land reserve under a former Act;

"approving officer" means an approving officer as defined in the Land Title Act;

"authority" means an agent of the government, a public body or a public officer with whom the commission has an agreement under section 26 (1) (b) or 38;

"chief executive officer" means the person appointed under section 8 (1);

"commission" means the Provincial Agricultural Land Commission established under section 4;

"enactment of the Province or Canada" includes an enactment as defined in the Interpretation Act (Canada);

"farm use" means an occupation or use of land for farm purposes, including farming of land, plants and animals and any other similar activity designated as farm use by regulation, and includes a farm operation as defined in the Farm Practices Protection (Right to Farm) Act;

"fill" means any material brought on land in an agricultural land reserve other than materials exempted by regulation;

"first nation government" means

(a) in relation to treaty settlement lands, the governing body of the first nation that has legislative authority over the treaty settlement lands, and

(b) in relation to proposed treaty settlement lands, an aboriginal governing body that

(i) the first nation, in relation to which an agreement in principle applying to those lands has been entered into, has organized and established within its traditional territory in British Columbia, and

(ii) has been mandated by the members of that first nation to enter into treaty negotiations on their behalf in accordance with a process developed under the Treaty Commission Act;

"land reserve plan" means a plan, prepared under this Act, that sets out existing agricultural land reserves and the areas that may be designated by the commission or the Lieutenant Governor in Council as an agricultural land reserve and includes a land reserve plan under a former Act;

"law", in relation to a first nation government described in paragraph (a) of the definition of "first nation government", means the result of the exercise by the first nation government of legislative authority provided to the first nation under

(a) an enactment of the Province or Canada, or

(b) a final agreement or a governance agreement, negotiated among the first nation government, the Province and Canada in accordance with a process developed under the Treaty Commission Act, and an enactment of the Province or Canada;

"local government" means

(a) in relation to land within a municipality, the municipal council,

(b) in relation to land within an electoral area but not within a local trust area, the board of the regional district, and

(c) in relation to land within a local trust area under the Islands Trust Act, the local trust committee or the executive committee acting as a local trust committee for that area;

"non-farm use" means a use of land other than a farm use;

"notice to suspend negotiations" means a notice to suspend negotiations sent by one party to an agreement in principle to the other parties;

"official" means the chief executive officer and any employee of the commission or a person employed under the Public Service Act who is designated by name or title by the chief executive officer to be an official;

"owner", subject to subsection (2), means

(a) in relation to land registered in the records of the land title office, the person registered in those records as the fee simple owner of the land,

(b) in relation to treaty settlement lands,

(i) if an agreement under this Act between a first nation governemnt and the commission defines "owner" for the purposes of the application of this Act to the treaty settlement lands of the first nation, a person described by that definition, and

(ii) otherwise, the first nation government,

(c) in relation to land vested in a municipality under section 35 of the Community Charter, the municipality, and

(d) in relation to Crown land, the government;

"person" includes a first nation government;

"proposed treaty settlement lands" means land described in an agreement in principle as the land that will become, in whole or in part, the first nation's treaty settlement lands under a final agreement or a governance agreement and an enactment of the Province or Canada;

"soil" includes the entire mantle of unconsolidated material above bedrock other than minerals as defined in the Mineral Tenure Act.

"treaty settlement lands" means land, other than land located within a reserve as defined in the Indian Act (Canada), that is subject to the legislative authority of a first nation under

(a) an enactment of the Province or Canada, or

(b) a final agreement or a governance agreement, negotiated among the first nation government, the Province and Canada in accordance with a process developed under the Treaty Commission Act, and an enactment of the Province or Canada.

(2) For the purposes of an application under section 17 (3), 20 (3), 21 (2) or 30 (1) in relation to propsed treaty settlement lands, the first nation government may apply as it were the owner of those lands from the date that

(a) an agreement in principle in relation to those lands is approved by each party to it in accordance with the agreement of principle, or

(b) if a notice to suspend negotiations has earlier taken effect, an agreement among the parties to the agreement in principle to resume negotiations takes effect,

until the earlier of the following dates:

(c) the date an enactment of the Province or Canada establishes all or part of the proposed treaty settlement lands as treaty settlement lands;

(d) the date that a notice to suspend negotiations takes effect.

(3) For the period that a first nation government is authorized to make an application in relation to proposed treaty settlement lands, the owner of that land may not make an application.

Amended [2004-Jul-22 Agricultural Land Commission Amendment Act, S.B.C. 2004 c. 32]

Application of other Acts

2 (1) This Act and the regulations are not subject to any other enactment, whenever enacted, except the Interpretation Act, the Environment and Land Use Act and the Environmental Management Act and as provided in this Act.

Amended [2004-Jul-8 Environmental Management Act, S.B.C. 2003 c. 53 (B.C. Reg. 317/2004)]

(2) Despite section 14 (2) of the Interpretation Act, this Act binds the government.

Power under other Acts

3 A minister or an agent of the government must not exercise a power granted under another enactment except in accordance with this Act and the regulations.

Commission established

4 The Provincial Agricultural Land Commission is established as a corporation consisting of the members appointed under section 5.

Commission members

5 (1) The commission consists of at least 7 individuals appointed under this section who are knowledgeable in matters relating to agriculture, land use planning, local government or first nation government.

Amended [2004-Jul-22 Agricultural Land Commission Amendment Act, S.B.C. 2004 c. 32]

(2) The Lieutenant Governor in Council must

(a) appoint one individual as a member and the chair of the commission after a merit based process, and

(b) appoint one or more individuals as vice chairs of the commission after a merit based process and consultation with the chair.

(3) The minister may appoint the members of the commission other than the chair and vice chairs after a merit based process and consultation with the chair.

Amended [2004-Feb-13 Administrative Tribunals Appointment and Administration Act, S.B.C. 2003 c. 7 (B.C. Reg. 45/2004)]

(4) The chair, vice chairs and members are the board of directors of the commission.

(5) Repealed.

[2004-Feb-13 Administrative Tribunals Appointment and Administration Act, S.B.C. 2003 c. 7 (B.C. Reg. 45/2004)]

(6) Commission members must faithfully, honestly and impartially perform their duties and must not, except in the proper performance of those duties, disclose to any person any information obtained as a member.

Added [2004-Oct-15 Administrative Tribunals Act, S.B.C. 2004 c. 45 (B.C. Reg. 425/2004)]

Application of Administrative Tribunals Act

5.1 Sections 1 to 10 of the Administrative Tribunals Act apply to the commission.

Amended [2004-Oct-15 Administrative Tribunals Act, S.B.C. 2004 c. 45 (B.C. Reg. 425/2004)]

Purposes of the commission

6 The following are the purposes of the commission:

(a) to preserve agricultural land;

(b) to encourage farming on agricultural land in collaboration with other communities of interest;

(c) to encourage local governments, first nations, the government and its agents to enable and accommodate farm use of agricultural land and uses compatible with agriculture in their plans, bylaws and policies.

Commission as agent of the government

7 The commission is an agent of the government.

Staff of the commission

8 (1) The Lieutenant Governor in Council may appoint, during pleasure, a chief executive officer of the commission, establish the terms of the appointment and set the remuneration of the chief executive officer.

(2) The commission may determine the functions and duties of the chief executive officer.

(3) The commission may appoint other officers and employees necessary for the purposes of the commission, determine their duties and set their remuneration.

(4) The Public Service Act and the Public Service Labour Relations Act apply to the commission and its officers and employees other than the chief executive officer, except that the references to the agency head and a deputy minister in section 22 of the Public Service Act are to be read as references to the chief executive officer.

Amended [2003-Dec-1 Public Service Amendment Act, S.B.C. 2003 c. 88 (B.C. Reg. 443/2003)]

(5) The chief executive officer may retain consultants considered advisable and may set their remuneration.

Operation of the commission

9 The commission may pass resolutions and bylaws it considers necessary or advisable for the management and conduct of its affairs, the exercise of its powers and the performance of its duties and functions.

Executive committee

10 (1) An executive committee of the commission is established, comprised of the chair of the commission and the vice chairs.

(2) The chair of the commission is the chair of the executive committee.

(3) The commission may delegate any of its functions to the executive committee and, when it performs those functions, the actions and decisions of the executive committee are the actions and decisions of the commission.

Panels

11 (1) In this section, "panel" means a panel established under subsection (2).

(2) The chair of the commission may establish up to 6 panels comprised of 2 or more members of the commission.

(3) The panels may be established according to geographic regions of British Columbia or according to any other criteria the commission may determine.

(4) The chair of the commission may designate a vice chair of the commission to chair a panel.

(5) A panel has all the powers, duties and functions of the commission in respect of an application or other matter before the commission, and a decision of a panel is for all purposes a decision of the commission.

Financial and corporate matters

12 (1) The financial year end of the commission is March 31 and the Minister of Finance is the fiscal agent of the commission.

(2) Not later than June 30 of each financial year, the commission must submit to the minister

(a) a service plan in accordance with the Budget Transparency and Accountability Act,

(b) a report of its operations during the preceding financial year, and

(c) a financial statement showing its business for that financial year and the preceding financial year, prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles and the accounting policies and practices established by the Treasury Board.

(3) Subject to subsection (4), the Business Corporations Act does not apply to the commission.

(4) The Lieutenant Governor in Council, by order, may declare that specified provisions of the <a href="http://www.qp.gov.bc.ca/