Farm Improvement Loans Regulations

Regulations Respecting Loans Under the Farm Improvement Loans Act These Regulations may be cited as the Farm Improvement Loans Regulations. In these Regulations, Act means the Farm Improvement Loans Act; (Loi) averaging period[Revoked, SOR/78-138, s. 1] interest period[Revoked, SOR/78-138, s. 1] owner means a person who has either an equitable or legal interest in a farm or is a veteran having a subsisting contract under the Veterans’ Land Act in respect of a farm. (propriétaire) For the purposes of the Act and these Regulations, addition means the addition to a building or equipment and includes the addition of one or more rooms or storeys, construction of an attached garage or outbuilding, installation and construction of foundations and basements for buildings or equipment and the purchase of materials for any such purpose, and purchase of plumbing, heating, ventilating or air conditioning systems or parts thereof; (rajout) alteration means the structural alterations to the exterior or interior of any building or structure that are designed to improve or modernize or increase the usefulness of any building or structure on a farm and includes the purchase of material for any such purpose, relocation of any equipment, and alteration of plumbing, heating, ventilating, sewage disposal, water supply, farm electrical or air-conditioning systems or parts thereof; (modification) major means, in relation to repair and overhaul, a cost of not less than $400 as estimated by the borrower; (majeurs) repair means the repair and the material required for the repair of any building, structure, implement or equipment for use in the business of farming and includes the painting of any farm building, the interior decorating of the farm home and repair to the family dwelling and outbuildings, a separate house for farm help, a summer cottage or tourist cabin, if erected on a farm upon which a dwelling is situated and operated as an enterprise incidental to the farmer’s business of farming, a barn, stable, silo or granary, plumbing, heating, ventilating, sewage disposal, water supply, farm electrical or air-conditioning systems or parts thereof, and wells, dug-outs or fencing; (réparation) responsible officer of the bank means the manager or assistant manager of the bank or a branch thereof, the person for the time being acting as the manager or assistant manager of the bank or a branch thereof, the credit committee of the bank or a branch thereof, or any person duly authorized by the bank to supervise the granting of loans; (fonctionnaire responsable de la banque) works for drainage means ditches, tiling and drainage installations, pumping and diking installations and works for the conservation of soil against water erosion. (ouvrages de drainage) These Regulations apply to a guaranteed farm improvement loan authorized under the Act. The following are designated as works for the improvement or development of a farm for which farm improvement loans may be made: the construction, installation, repair, alteration or improvement of a sewage disposal system or any part thereof; the sinking, construction, installation, repair, alteration or improvement of wells, dug-outs and all types of water supply systems; the clearing, breaking, irrigating and reclaiming of land; the conservation of soil, prevention of erosion and the planting of trees and shelter belts; the purchase, moving to and installing on the farm of complete or partially complete buildings or structures and, where necessary, the completing of the buildings or structures; the repair, alteration or improvement of fencing; the purchase and planting of fruit trees; and the construction of a road or driveway on a farm. Every applicant for a loan shall submit to the bank a signed application, in the form set out in Schedule I, containing the required information. The following are the classes of loans prescribed for the purposes of the Act and these Regulations: agricultural implement loans, being loans made for the purpose of financing the purchase of agricultural implements, and equipment for bee-keeping; livestock loans, being loans made for the purpose of financing the purchase of livestock or bee-stock but excluding livestock of the kind commonly known as short-term feeder steers; agricultural equipment loans, being loans made for the purpose of financing the purchase or installation of agricultural equipment or a farm electric system; building loans, being loans made for the purpose of financing the construction, renovation, alteration, repair or extension of any building or structure on a farm; additional land loans, being loans made for the purpose of financing the purchase by the owner of a farm of additional land; improvement or development loans, being loans made for the purpose of financing any alteration or improvement of a farm electric system, works for drainage, the erection or construction of fencing or any work designated in section 5 for the improvement or development of a farm; and major repair or major overhaul loans, being loans made for the purpose of financing the major repair to or major overhaul of agricultural implements or equipment, equipment for bee-keeping or a farm electrical system. Subject to the Act and these Regulations, an agricultural implement loan or an equipment for bee-keeping loan is a guaranteed farm improvement loan if the loan is made to the owner or tenant of the farm; the loan is made in an amount not greater than 75 per cent of the cost price of the agricultural implement or equipment for bee-keeping, as set out in the relevant contract or other written evidence of the sale; and [Revoked, SOR/78-138, s. 2] the bank has required, in accordance with normal banking requirements, and the borrower has provided evidence that the funds advanced in respect of the loan were expended for the purpose set out in the application for the loan. Subject to the Act and these Regulations, a livestock loan or a loan for bee-stock is a guaranteed farm improvement loan if the loan is made in an amount not greater than 75 per cent of the estimated cost of the purchase of the livestock or bee-stock, as set out in the application for the loan; [Revoked, SOR/78-138, s. 3] Subject to the Act and these Regulations, an agricultural equipment loan or a farm electric system loan is a guaranteed farm improvement loan if the loan is made to the owner of the farm; the loan is made in an amount not greater than 75 per cent of the estimated cost of the equipment or farm electric system, including the cost of installation but excluding the cost of any labour of the borrower, as set out in the application for the loan; [Revoked, SOR/78-138, s. 4] Subject to the Act and these Regulations, a building loan is a guaranteed farm improvement loan if the loan is made in an amount not greater than 90 per cent of the estimated cost of the construction, renovation, alteration, repair or extension of any building or structure, excluding the cost of any labour of the borrower, as set out in the application for the loan; [Revoked, SOR/78-138, s. 5] Subject to the Act and these Regulations, an additional land loan is a guaranteed farm improvement loan if the loan is made in an amount not greater than 90 per cent of the market value of the land, and any buildings used for the purpose of farming; [Revoked, SOR/78-138, s. 6] Subject to the Act and these Regulations, an improvement or development loan is a guaranteed farm improvement loan if the loan is made to the owner of the farm, or to the tenant of the farm if the tenant has a right of tenancy extending at least two years beyond the repayment period of the loan; the loan is made in an amount not greater than 90 per cent of the estimated cost of the alteration or improvement of a farm electric system, works for drainage, the erection or construction of fencing or any work for the improvement or development of a farm, excluding the cost of any labour of the borrower, as set out in the application for the loan; [Revoked, SOR/78-138, s. 7] Subject to the Act and these Regulations, a major repair or major overhaul loan is a guaranteed farm improvement loan if the loan is made to the owner or tenant of the farm who is the owner of the agricultural implement or equipment or equipment for bee-keeping in respect of which the proceeds of the loan are to be expended; the loan is made in an amount not greater than 75 per cent of the estimated cost of the major repair to or major overhaul of the agricultural implement or equipment or equipment for bee-keeping, excluding the cost of any labour of the borrower, as set out in the application for the loan; [Revoked, SOR/78-138, s. 8] A bank shall, at the time of making a loan of any prescribed class, take security for the repayment thereof under section 88 of the Bank Act; by way of chattel mortgage or commercial pledge; by way of a mortgage or hypothec on real property; by way of an assignment of any rights and interest of the borrower under an agreement for sale; or by way of a written undertaking by the borrower to give security as required under paragraph (a), (b), (c) or (d) as the case may be. A responsible officer of a bank may, whenever he deems it appropriate, release any security taken pursuant to subsection (1), but every bank shall, throughout the term of a loan, maintain adequate security in accordance with normal banking practice in a manner prescribed by subsection (1) for the repayment of the balance of the loan outstanding at any time. Where, in the opinion of a responsible officer of a bank, security additional to the security taken pursuant to subsection (1) or (2) is deemed necessary, the bank may take such additional security for the repayment of the loan as the responsible officer considers appropriate. Every bank shall, at the time of making a loan, require the borrower to give to the bank, in addition to any security taken pursuant to subsection (1) or (2), a written promise to repay the loan signed by the borrower and setting forth the principal amount of the loan, the basis for establishing the rate of interest and the repayment terms. Repayment of a loan shall be made in instalments that are payable at least annually but, at the option of the bank, repayments may be scheduled more frequently than annually. Subject to paragraph 3(1)(e) of the Act, the terms of repayment of a loan shall be set out in the agreement in connection with the loan and the repayment period and the amount and frequency of instalment payments shall conform to the probable ability of the borrower to pay, having regard to the type of farming carried on by him, the relevant marketing conditions, the repayment of other obligations and to any other relevant circumstances. Where a borrower is in default in respect of the repayment of a loan or advises the bank that some of the terms of the agreement in connection with the loan are such that he may have to default, or where a borrower wishes to take out additional loans, and the bank is of the opinion that it would be appropriate in the light of the borrower’s total repayment obligations to alter or revise the terms of the loan or any agreement in connection therewith, the bank may, with the approval of the borrower, alter or revise the terms of the loan or agreement by extending the term for repayment of the loan within the maximum terms specified in the Act; changing the amount of the periodic instalments; or changing the periods between instalments, but in no case shall instalments be due less frequently than annually. [Revoked, SOR/78-138, s. 10] The terms of a loan or any agreement in connection therewith may not be altered or revised in a manner that would result in longer terms for repayment of the loan than the terms prescribed by paragraph 3(1)(e) of the Act or paragraph 8(d) of these Regulations unless the Minister approves the alteration or revision. Where the Minister approves the alteration or revision of the terms of a loan or any agreement in connection therewith in accordance with subsection (5), the alteration or revision shall not discharge the liability of the Minister to the bank under the Act. Subject to subsection (4), the maximum rate of interest per annum payable to a bank incorporated by or under the provisions of the Bank Act or established pursuant to the Treasury Branches Act of the Province of Alberta in respect of a loan is the aggregate of one per cent per annum and the prime lending rate in effect at that bank on the date the agreement in connection with the loan was signed. Subject to subsection (4), the maximum rate of interest per annum payable to a bank other than a bank incorporated by or under the provisions of the Bank Act or established pursuant to the Treasury Branches Act of the Province of Alberta in respect of a loan shall be determined by the Minister for each month prior to the first day of that month and shall be the aggregate of one per cent per annum and the average of the prime lending rates in effect at the following chartered banks on the third Wednesday of the month preceding the month for which the rate is determined: the Bank of Montreal, the Bank of Nova Scotia, the Royal Bank of Canada, the Toronto Dominion Bank, the Banque Canadienne Nationale, the Banque Provinciale, and the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce, rounded to the nearest one-eighth of one per cent or, if the result would be equidistant from two multiples of one-eighth of one per cent, to that multiple thereof that is the lower. When the rate of interest determined by the Minister for a month pursuant to subsection (2) is a different rate from the rate in effect for the previous month, the Minister shall forthwith advise the banks to which subsection (2) applies of the new rate by such means as he sees fit. The rate of interest payable to a bank in respect of a loan shall be revised in the case of a bank incorporated by or under the provisions of the Bank Act or established pursuant to the Treasury Branches Act of the Province of Alberta, whenever the prime lending rate of that bank changes; and in the case of a bank other than a bank incorporated by or under the provisions of the Bank Act or established pursuant to the Treasury Branches Act of the Province of Alberta, on the first day of each month. Where a borrower is in default in respect of any payment on a loan, the entire amount of the balance outstanding on the loan shall, at the option of the bank, become due and payable. Where a borrower is convicted of an offence under the Act, the entire amount of the balance outstanding on a loan shall become due and payable. Where a bank discovers that any statement in an application for a loan is false in any material respect or that a borrower has used or is using the proceeds of a loan otherwise than for a purpose specified in the application for the loan, the bank may take any action it considers proper in the circumstances and shall immediately make a full report in respect of the matter to the Minister who may request the bank to take such action or further action as he may require. Where a borrower is in default in respect of any payment on a loan and the entire amount of the balance outstanding on the loan becomes due and payable pursuant to section 18, the bank may take such action, whether by legal proceedings or otherwise, as it considers advisable in the circumstances to effect collection of the loan; obtain additional security; realize upon any or all of the security it has taken; or effect any compromise with or grant any concession to any person other than the borrower. Any action taken by the bank pursuant to subsection (1) shall not discharge the liability of the Minister to the bank under the Act. A claim for loss by a bank in respect of a loan shall not be made to the Minister until 90 days have elapsed after the entire amount of the loan becomes due and payable. Where a loan has been in default for a period of 18 months, a bank shall forthwith submit a claim for loss unless the bank has corresponded with the Minister in respect of the loan prior to the expiration of that period. The claim for loss submitted by a bank in respect of a loan shall include the unpaid principal amount of the loan; the uncollected earned interest outstanding at the time the claim is approved for payment by the Minister at the full rate of interest specified in the written promise to repay the loan for a maximum period of 180 days unless, in the opinion of the Minister, a longer period is justified for reasons beyond the control of the bank, and thereafter at half the rate of interest specified in the written promise to repay the loan; any uncollected taxed costs for or incidental to legal proceedings in respect of the loan; legal fees, legal costs and legal disbursements, whether taxable or not, actually incurred by the bank, with or without litigation, in collecting or endeavouring to collect the loan or in protecting the interests of the Minister but only to the extent that the Deputy Minister of Justice taxes or allows; and any other disbursements actually incurred by the bank in collecting or endeavouring to collect the loan or in protecting the interests of the Minister but only to the extent that the Minister allows. A claim for loss by a bank in respect of a loan shall be submitted to the Minister by the bank together with a copy of the borrower’s application form. A claim for loss by a bank in respect of a loan shall be approved for payment by the Minister within 60 days after receipt by the Minister of the claim and shall thereupon be paid forthwith. Where a claim for loss by a bank has been paid pursuant to subsection (4), the bank shall execute a receipt in the form set out in Schedule II; send the receipt and the written promise to repay the loan by post to the Minister; and deal with any security held by it for the loan in such manner as the Minister may direct. Any expense incurred by the bank in dealing with any security pursuant to paragraph (5)(c) shall be paid by the Minister to the bank. [Revoked, SOR/78-138, s. 13] When acting on behalf of the Minister, a bank shall, notwithstanding that its claim for loss in respect of a loan has been paid, take such reasonable steps as the Minister considers necessary to collect payments of principal and interest due by the borrower under the terms of the loan; and realize upon any security taken under these Regulations. Any amount that is collected or realized pursuant to subsection (1) shall be remitted forthwith to the Minister. Any actual expenses of the bank incurred under subsection (1) shall be paid by the Minister to the bank. Any bank that has made a loan under these Regulations shall furnish to the Minister such reports or information as the Minister may from time to time require. The registry established by the Minister pursuant to the Farm Improvement Loans Regulations, made by Order in Council P.C. 1969-592 of 25th March, 1969, for the purpose of recording loans made under the Act is hereby continued. Any provision of these Regulations requiring security to be taken under section 88 of the Bank Act shall be deemed to have been satisfied if a document purporting to give such security is signed and delivered, notwithstanding that the security is not effective in respect of some or all of the property to which the document relates by reason of any statute exempting property from seizure under writs of execution that was in force on September 1, 1944. Where a borrower has made a false material statement in any application that has been scrutinized and checked by a responsible officer of the bank with the care required of him by the bank in the conduct of its ordinary business, or has used the proceeds of any loan otherwise than for the purpose specified in the application for the loan, the liability of the Minister to the bank under the Act shall not for such reason be discharged to any extent. Where a bank, under the terms of a loan or any agreement in connection therewith, pays the premiums under a policy of insurance on property under which any amount is or may become payable to the bank, the bank may charge the amount of the premiums to the borrower. FORM: LOAN APPLICATION GRAPHIC IS NOT DISPLAYED, SEE C.R.C., C. 645, PP. 4263 TO 4266; SOR/78-138, S. 15 FORM: RECEIPT GRAPHIC IS NOT DISPLAYED, SEE C.R.C., C. 645, P. 4271