BILL 21
An Act Respecting Agricultural Associations
Her Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick, enacts as follows:
Agricultural Associations Act
1 The Agricultural Associations Act, chapter 104 of the Revised Statutes, 2011, is repealed.
Regulations under the Agricultural Associations Act
2( 1) New Brunswick Regulation 82-55 under the Agricultural Associations Act is repealed.
2( 2) New Brunswick Regulation 82-231 under the Agricultural Associations Act is repealed.
2( 3) New Brunswick Regulation 83-5 under the Agricultural Associations Act is repealed.
Assessment Act
3( 1) Section 1 of the Assessment Act, chapter A-14 of the Revised Statutes, 1973, is amended
(a) by repealing the definition “agricultural fair association” and “agricultural society”;
(b) by adding the following definitions in alphabetical order:
“agricultural fair association” means an agricultural fair association as defined in the Companies Act; (association de foires agricoles)
“agricultural society” means an agricultural society as defined in the Companies Act; (société agricole)
“Minister of Aquaculture and Fisheries” includes any person designated by the Minister of Aquaculture and Fisheries to act on his or her behalf for the purposes of paragraph 4(1)(f); (ministre de l’Aquaculture et des Pêches)
3( 2) Section 4 of the Act is amended
(a) by repealing paragraph (1)(f) and substituting the following:
(f) subject to the approval of the Director, real property or any portion of real property owned and occupied by an agricultural society or an agricultural fair association that is to be used primarily for exhibition purposes in a particular year if the Minister of Aquaculture and Fisheries determines for the year immediately preceding the particular year that the society or association complied with the criteria prescribed by regulation, but not including real property or any portion of real property that the Director determines is used for commercial purposes or that the Director determines is residential property referred to in paragraphs (a) to (f) of the definition “residential property”;
(b) by adding after subsection (9) the following:
4( 10) The Director’s decision to approve or to refuse to approve an exemption under paragraph (1)(f) is final and may not be questioned or reviewed in any court.
4( 11) Sections 25, 27, 28 and 37 do not apply to the Director’s decision to approve or to refuse to approve an exemption under paragraph (1)(f).
4( 12) The Director’s determination under paragraph (1)(f) that real property or any portion of real property is used for commercial purposes or is residential property referred to in paragraphs (a) to (f) of the definition “residential property” is final and may not be questioned or reviewed in any court.
4( 13) Sections 25, 27, 28 and 37 do not apply to a determination of the Director under paragraph (1)(f).
3( 3) Section 40 of the Act is amended
(a) by adding after paragraph (1)(e.32) the following:
(e.33) prescribing the criteria that the Minister of Aquaculture and Fisheries shall consider to make a determination under paragraph 4(1)(f);
(b) by adding after subsection (1.27) the following:
40( 1.28) A regulation made under paragraph (1)(e.33) may be retroactive in its operation to January 1, 2018, or to any date after January 1, 2018.
Business Corporations Act
4 Subsection 2(2) of the Business Corporations Act, chapter B-9.1 of the Acts of New Brunswick, 1981, is amended by striking out “the Agricultural Associations Act or”.
Companies Act
5( 1) Section 1 of the Companies Act, chapter C-13 of the Revised Statutes, 1973, is amended by adding after paragraph (a) the following:
(a.1) all companies referred to in section 1.01; and
5( 2) The Act is amended by adding after section 1 the following:
Existing agricultural associations
1.01 If an agricultural association was incorporated under the Agricultural Associations Act, chapter 104 of the Revised Statutes, 2011, before the commencement of this section and it was not dissolved or its incorporation was not revoked or cancelled before the commencement of this section, the agricultural association is continued as a company under this Act.
5( 3) Subsection 2(1) of the Act is amended
(a) in the French version in the definition « lettres patentes supplémentaires » by striking out the period at the end of the definition and substituting a semicolon;
(b) by adding the following definitions in alphabetical order:
“agricultural association” means an agricultural fair association or an agricultural society; (association agricole)
“agricultural fair association” means an organization of district, county or provincial scope whose purpose is to hold exhibitions of livestock, poultry, agricultural produce and the products of kindred agricultural and homemaking arts; (association de foires agricoles)
“agricultural society” means a community group of farmers organized for the general promotion of agriculture within that community; (société agricole)
5( 4) Section 18 of the Act is amended
(a) in subsection (1) by adding “or an agricultural association” after “project company”;
(b) in subsection (2) in the portion preceding paragraph (a) by adding “or an agricultural association” after “project company”.
5( 5) Subsection 126(1) of the Act is amended by striking out “the Agricultural Associations Act,”.
Loan and Trust Companies Act
6 Paragraph 6(a) of the Loan and Trust Companies Act, chapter L-11.2 of the Acts of New Brunswick, 1987, is amended by striking out “the Agricultural Associations Act or”.
Commencement
7 This Act comes into force or shall be deemed to have come into force on January 1, 2018.