As expected, the Saskatchewan government will tighten farmland ownership rules.
Agriculture minister Lyle Stewart introduced amendments to the Farm Security Act yesterday to clarify who can own and finance farmland.
When passed, the amendments will make pension plans, administrators of pension fund assets and trusts ineligible to buy farmland. All financing will have to be through a financial institution registered to do business in Canada or a Canadian resident.
The amendments also clarify that a person receiving the benefits of ownership, such as capital appreciation, is considered the owner, Stewart said.
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The Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, which touched off debate when it purchased 115,000 acres, will be allowed to retain that land because the purchase was deemed legal at the time, he said.
Stewart would not comment on how the changes would affect Skyline Agriculture, a registered financial institution that wants to use money from foreign investors to help farmers buy land, because Skyline appealed a court ruling against it and the matter hasn’t yet been resolved.
The amendments give more power to the Farm Land Security Board to enforce the legislation. They include: requiring potential purchasers to complete a statutory declaration, placing the onus to prove compliance with the law on the potential purchaser, increasing fines for those contravening the law from $10,000 to $50,000 for individuals and from $100,000 to $500,000 for corporations, and authorizing the board to impose administrative penalties up to $10,000.
Earlier this month, Stewart released the results of online consultations that suggested people wanted the laws tightened up and said he has had no pushback since.
The new legislation and regulations would come into force in 2016.
Contact karen.briere@producer.com
