Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs Appeal Tribunal
Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs Appeal Tribunal 1 Stone Road West
Tribunal d’appel de l’agriculture, de l’alimentation et des affaires rurales 1 Stone Road West
Guelph, Ontario, N1G 4Y2 Tel: (519) 826-3433, Fax: (519) 826-4232 Email: AFRAAT@ontario.ca
Guelph (Ontario) N1G 4Y2 Tél.: (519) 826-3433, Téléc.: (519) 826-4232 Courriel: AFRAAT@ontario.ca
AGRICULTURE, FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS APPEAL TRIBUNAL
APPEAL:
National Farmers Union - Ontario
NFU-O Re-Accreditation 2018 (RE) 2018 ONAFRAAT 16
STATUTE:
Farm Registration and Farm Organizations Funding Act, 1993
HEARING:
September 28, 2018
November 6, 2018
2018-16
NEUTRAL CITATION:
2018 ONAFRAAT 16
IN THE MATTER OF: SECTIONS 4 AND 5 OF THE FARM REGISTRATION AND FARM ORGANIZATIONS FUNDING ACT, 1993.
AND IN THE MATTER OF: An application to the Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs Appeal Tribunal by the National Farmers Union - Ontario under Subsection 4(2) of the Act for renewal of its accreditation.
Before:
John O’Kane, Vice-Chair; Sarah Judd, Member and Lee Holling, Member
Appearances:
Sarah Bakker – General Manager, National Farmers Union - Ontario
Emery Huszka – President, National Farmers Union - Ontario
RE-ACCREDITATION 2018
Background
This matter was held before the Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs Appeal Tribunal (the “Tribunal”) on September 28, 2018. The National Farmers Union-Ontario (“NFU-O”) applied to the Tribunal for reaccreditation under the Farm Registration and Farm Organization Funding Act, 1993 (the “Act”). NFU-O is an accredited farm organization and must apply to the Tribunal for reaccreditation under the Act.
In addition, under the Act, a person who carries on a farming business shall file a farming business registration (“FBR”) for tax purposes and pay a prescribed fee to obtain their FBR number. The FBR fee is directed to an accredited farm organization.
The Act defines how farm organizations can be created and how they are accredited. The Act outlines that accredited farm organizations must apply for renewal of accreditation during the period prescribed. The last decision for re -accreditation dated July 10, 2015, declared that the NFU-O met the conditions and criteria for special funding and would be accredited for the following three years. The NFU-O applied to the Tribunal in spring 2018 for a hearing to extend its accreditation.
The NFU-O is a statutory party to the application hearing before the Tribunal. The Minister of Agriculture Food and Rural Affairs (the “Minister”), and all other accredited farm organizations were given notice of the hearing and are entitled to make submissions.
Ontario Regulation 723/93 (“regulation”) sets out the criteria which farm organizations must meet to be accredited under sections 5 and 6. If all conditions have been met, the Tribunal must order that the farm organization be accredited. Once accredited, the term is in effect for three years starting at the prescribed time.
The NFU-O demonstrated that they have met all of the criteria under the regulation and have been re-accredited for the 3-year term, for the reasons that follow.
The Conditions, Criteria and Evidence
The NFU-O submission and evidence was presented by Emery Huszka, NFU-O President and Sarah Bakker, NFU-O General Manager.
The Minister and all other accredited farm organizations were provided written notice of the hearing; however, no other party attended or participated in the accreditation hearing.
The NFU-O’s evidence was not challenged.
On July 10, 2015, the Tribunal issued an order that the NFU-O was “re-accredited as a
farm organization” under the Act, “for a period of three years commencing December 19, 2015.” Subsection 4(2) of the Act requires a farm organization to apply for renewal of its accreditation “during the period prescribed.”
The criteria for re-accreditation are set out in sections 5 and 6 of the regulation. Section 6 of the regulation establishes the “prescribed period” for renewal applications as “no sooner than nine months and no later than six months before the expiry of its accreditation.”
Therefore, based on the previous re-accreditation order of the Tribunal, the NFU-O’s
window to apply for renewal of its accreditation is from March 19, 2018 to June 19, 2018. The NFU-O applied to the Tribunal to renew its accreditation on May 3, 2018 and accordingly, the Tribunal determines the criterion satisfied.
The evidence in support of the criteria is summarized as follows:
The NFU-O produced Letters Patent from the Ontario Ministry of Consumer and Commercial Relations under the Corporations Act, dated May 9, 2002. The Tribunal is satisfied that this meets the incorporation requirement.
The NFU-O gave evidence and documentation regarding the democratic election of directors. NFU-O presented By-Law No. 6(2) which outlines its election policy. The NFU-O has eight directors who are elected at the Annual General Meeting, and if a position becomes vacant, a director may be appointed. At the 2018 NFU-O AGM, quorum was reached and the eight directors were elected to the NFU-O’s Regional Council. The Tribunal is satisfied that NFU-O bylaws and practices meet the conditions for democratic election of directors under the Act.
The NFU-O outlined the objects of its organization by presenting By-Law No