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

Assessment Act

1 Section 1 (1) of the Assessment Act, R.S.B.C. 1996, c. 20, is amended by adding the following definitions:

"agricultural land reserve" has the same meaning as in the Agricultural Land Commission Act;

"spouse" means

(a) a person who is married to another person, or

(b) a person who

(i) is living with another person in a marriage-like relationship, and

(ii) has been living in that relationship for a continuous period of at least 2 years; .

2 Section 23 is amended

(a) by adding the following subsection:

(0.1) In this section:

"owner's dwelling" means the dwelling referred to in subsection (3.1) (a) (iii);

"retire" means retire from being actively involved in the day-to-day activities on a farm;

"retired farmer" means an individual

(a) who, at all times during a prescribed period or periods of time,

(i) occupied, as the individual's principal residence, a dwelling that was owned by the individual or the individual's spouse and was located on land that was

(A) owned by the individual or the individual's spouse,

(B) used for the dwelling, and

(C) classified as a farm, and

(ii) was actively involved in the day-to-day activities on land that was

(A) owned by the individual or the individual's spouse,

(B) classified as a farm, and

(C) part of the parcel or adjacent to the parcel on which the dwelling was located, and

(b) who has retired. , and

(b) by adding the following subsections:

(3.1) Despite this Act and any regulations made under this Act except a regulation made under subsection (3.2), the assessor must, on receipt of an application from an owner of land in respect of a taxation year, classify the land as a farm for the taxation year if the following requirements are met:

(a) when the application is made, the owner

(i) is

(A) a retired farmer,

(B) the spouse of a retired farmer, or

(C) a person who was the spouse of a retired farmer at the time of the retired farmer's death,

(ii) has reached the prescribed age, and

(iii) owns a dwelling on the land and occupies the dwelling as the owner's principal residence;

(b) if the owner is a person referred to in paragraph (a) (i) (B) or (C), the owner meets the prescribed requirements, if any;

(c) when the application is made, the land is used for the owner's dwelling;

(d) when the retired farmer retired,

(i) the retired farmer or the retired farmer's spouse owned the owner's dwelling,

(ii) the owner occupied the owner's dwelling as the owner's principal residence,

(iii) the land was classified as a farm, and

(iv) the retired farmer met the prescribed requirements, if any;

(e) the land is in an agricultural land reserve on October 31 of the year preceding the taxation year in respect of which the application is made;

(f) the owner's dwelling is located

(i) on a parcel of land that, under subsection (2), is classified in whole or in part as a farm for the taxation year in respect of which the application is made, or

(ii) on a parcel of land adjacent to a parcel of land

(A) that is owned by the owner or the owner's spouse, and

(B) that, under subsection (2), is classified in whole or in part as a farm for the taxation year in respect of which the application is made;

(g) the application is

(i) in the form prescribed by the assessment authority, and

(ii) received by the assessor on or before October 31 of the year preceding the taxation year in respect of which the application is made;

(h) the requirements, if any, prescribed by regulation.

(3.2) The Lieutenant Governor in Council may make regulations respecting classification of land as a farm under subsection (3.1), including, without limitation, for the purposes of subsections (0.1) and (3.1).

(3.3) In making regulations under subsection (3.2), the Lieutenant Governor in Council may make different regulations for different classes of persons, classes of land, classes of places or classes of things.

Community Charter

3 Section 220 (1) (n) of the Community Charter, S.B.C. 2003, c. 26, is amended

(a) by striking out "up to but not exceeding an assessed value of $50 000;" and substituting "up to but not exceeding the greater of the following:", and

(b) by adding the following subparagraphs:

(i) 87.5% of the assessed value;

(ii) an assessed value of $50 000; .

4 Section 222 (1) (b) is amended by adding "or (f.1)" after "section 15 (1) (f)".

5 Section 280 (2) is amended by adding "this or" after "Despite".

Local Government Act

6 Section 799.2 (2) of the Local Government Act, R.S.B.C. 1996, c. 323, is amended by adding "this or" after "Despite".

7 Section 813.07 is amended by adding the following subsections:

(3) At any time after receiving a notice under section 813.04 [initiating a service review], the minister may specify a time period within which the parties must conclude negotiations.

(4) The minister may extend a time period established under subsection (3) before or after it has expired.

8 Section 813.08 is amended by adding the following subsection:

(4.1) Despite Division 4.1 of this Part or the establishing bylaw, at any time after receiving a notice under subsection (3) of this section, the minister may determine that a part of the service must be considered a separate service for the purposes of sections 813.09 to 813.19.

9 Section 813.09 is amended

(a) in subsection (1) by adding the following paragraph:

(a.1) direct the parties to engage in further negotiations respecting continued participation in the service, specifying a time period within which the parties must conclude negotiations; ,

(b) in subsection (1) (b) by striking out "further negotiations," and substituting "negotiations respecting the terms and conditions for withdrawal,",

(c) in subsection (1) (c) by striking out "under section 813.12 [mediation]," and substituting "under section 813.12 [mediation] respecting the terms and conditions for withdrawal,",

(d) in subsection (1) (d) by adding "(a.1)," after "paragraph (a),",

(e) in subsection (2) by adding "(a.1)," after "subsection (1)", and

(f) by adding the following subsection:

(2.1) If no agreement is reached from negotiations under subsection (1) (a.1) within the applicable time period, the minister must take one of the actions set out in subsection (1) (b) to (d).

10 Section 813.19 (2) is repealed and the following substituted:

(2) Regulations under this section may be different for

(a) final proposal arbitration, full arbitration and arbitration directed under section 813.15 [direction to further arbitration in certain cases],

(b) different regional districts, and

(c) different circumstances.

11 Section 814 is amended by adding the following subsection:

(5) Despite subsection (4) (a) and (b), section 189 (4.1) and (4.2) of the Community Charter [use of money in a reserve fund for the purposes of another reserve fund] applies to reserve funds established by a board for capital purposes for the same service or for different services.

Municipal Finance Authority Act

12 Section 5 of the Municipal Finance Authority Act, R.S.B.C. 1996, c. 325, is repealed and the following substituted:

Head office

5  The head office of the authority must be in the Capital Regional District.

Vancouver Charter

13 Section 396 of the Vancouver Charter, S.B.C. 1953, c. 55, is amended

(a) in subsection (1) by adding the following paragraphs:

Farm improvements

(h) improvements, other than dwellings and the fixtures, machinery and similar things mentioned in paragraph (i), erected on farm land and used exclusively to operate a farm, up to but not exceeding the greater of the following:

(i) 87.5% of the assessed value;

(ii) an assessed value of $50 000;

(i) fixtures, machinery and similar things located on farm land and used exclusively to operate the farm that, if erected or placed in or on land, a building or fixture or structure in or on it, would, as between landlord and tenant, be removable by the tenant. ,

(b) in subsection (4) by adding the following definition:

"farm land" means land classified under the Assessment Act as a farm; , and

(c) in subsection (5) (b) by striking out "or" at the end of subparagraph (v) and by repealing subparagraph (vi) and substituting the following:

(vi) under subsection (1) (c) (iv),

(vii) under subsection (1) (h), or

(viii) under subsection (1) (i) .

 
Related Amendments

School Act

14 Section 131 (4) (a) and (b) of the School Act, R.S.B.C. 1996, c. 412, is repealed and the following substituted:

(a) a dwelling referred to in section 15 (1) (f) or (f.1) of the Taxation (Rural Area) Act;

(b) farm improvements, other than a dwelling referred to in paragraph (a), that are exclusively used to operate a farm but only to the extent that the aggregate of their assessed values exceeds the greater of the following:

(i) 87.5% of the aggregated assessed value;

(ii) $50 000.

Taxation (Rural Area) Act

15 Section 15 (1) of the Taxation (Rural Area) Act, R.S.B.C. 1996, c. 448, is amended by adding the following paragraph:

(f.1) an owner's dwelling as defined in section 23 (0.1) of the Assessment Act on land that is classified as a farm under section 23 (3.1) of that Act; .

 
Transitional Provisions

Local Government Act transition

16  Section 813.07 of the Local Government Act, as amended by this Act, applies to a service review as defined in section 813 of the Local Government Act even if the service review is initiated before the amendment to section 813.07 of the Local Government Act by this Act comes into force.

Local Government Act transition

17  Sections 813.08, 813.09 and 813.19 of the Local Government Act, as amended by this Act, apply to a service withdrawal as defined in section 813 of the Local Government Act even if the service withdrawal is initiated before the amendments to sections 813.08, 813.09 and 813.19 of the Local Government Act by this Act come into force.

Commencement

18  The provisions of this Act referred to in column 1 of the following table come into force as set out in column 2 of the table: