The Executive Yuan Council today approved the Ministry of the Interior's draft amendment to the 37.5% Arable Land Rent Reduction Act. The draft will be sent to the Legislative Yuan for review.
The amendment proposes the following:
1. In conformity with Paragraphs 1 and 2 of Article 20 of the Agricultural Development Act (revised January 2000), farm land leases for self-cultivation signed on/before January 27, 2000 shall be governed first by the 37.5% Arable Land Rent Reduction Act, and second by the Land Act. Matters not specified in the two aforementioned laws shall be governed by other applicable laws. (Revise Article 1)
2. To protect the right to local self-governance, all occurrences of the term "Farm Land Lease Committee" should be deleted from the 37.5% Arable Land Rent Reduction Act, as central government laws are not applicable to the organization of local agencies. And after the promulgation of the Basic Code Governing Central Administrative Agencies Organizations, with the exception of the Code and organic laws and regulations of various agencies, no other laws or regulations may be used to govern the organization of agencies. (Revise Articles 3, 4, 11, 19 and 26)
3. If the farm land is owned by more than one lessor and the lessors confirm that the lessee has not cultivated or subleased the land, then the lease shall cease automatically and any one of the lessors may apply for contract termination at the agency where the lease was originally registered. (Revise Article 16)
4. If the lessor wishes to terminate the lease after the farm land has been recategorized for non-farming usage, the lessor shall compensate the lessee in a manner and amount to be mutually agreed upon. Such an amount shall fall within two-ninths and four-ninths of the difference between the publicly announced current land value at the time of lease termination and the anticipated land value increment tax. If the two parties are unable to reach an agreement, either may file for mediation. (Revise Article 17)
5. If the lessor reclaims farm land to expand the scale of his/her family's farming operations, the lessor shall no longer be required to compensate the lessee one-third of the difference between the publicly announced current land value at the time of lease termination and the anticipated land value increment tax. However, the lessor must still compensate the lessee for expenses incurred in making land improvements (limited to the portion still effective), and for the value of crops not yet harvested. To avoid disputes, the amount to be compensated should be clearly specified. (Revise Article 19)
6. Stipulations in Articles 21 to 24 concerning criminal penalties for violations by either party should be deleted.
7. Parties who are present at a dispute mediation or conciliation session will be subject to a different set of handling methods and legal consequences from parties who are absent. In addition, mediation for the same dispute may be requested only once so as not to waste public resources. If a dispute has been referred to a court for adjudication, parties should be temporarily exempt, rather than exempt, from paying the cost for adjudication. (Revise Article 26)