The public has until Sept. 13 to file comments to the
Ontario Ministry of Agriculture and Food about the Farm Registration and Farm
Organizations Funding Act.
Frankly, I think the whole act is a travesty of justice. Any self-respecting organization ought to be able to generate its own revenues to support its activities and services.
The Ontario Federation of Agriculture and the Christian Farmers Federation of Ontario lobbied for the annual government fee to support themselves because they said it was taking too much time, trouble and money to solicit membership fees.
Tough!
What other organizations in all of Canada can call on governments to collect their revenues for them? What's so special about the OFA and CFFO? Or farmers, for that matter? Why not a general organization for convenience store operators?
The system is under review following a difficult
re-accreditation process under the OMAF Appeal Tribunal that stretched out for
more than a year.
The National Farmers Union, Ontario branch, never did
achieve re-accreditation and says it will file a court appeal in Ottawa to
challenge the legality of the tribunal decision.
The Ontario Federation of Agriculture and the Christian
Farmers Federation of Ontario were re-accredited, but only after the
agriculture minister intervened to temporarily change the standards for
re-accreditation.
The key issue the tribunal identified was no clear
indication from farmers that they really want to belong to any of the general
farm organizations.
They must pay an annual registration fee of $195 plus HST
and indicate which accredited general farm organization they want to benefit
from that fee.
Having named an organization, they can apply to it for a
refund.
Only registered farms qualify for many government programs
and services, including a reduction in municipal property taxes on farmland. That, too, is just plain wrong.