On the recommendation of the undersigned, the Lieutenant Governor of Ontario, by and with the advice and concurrence of the Executive Council of Ontario, orders that:

Whereas the Government of Ontario recognizes the important economic and social contribution agriculture plays within Ontario;

And Whereas accurate Premises verification and identification is critical to the strength of our agriculture and food industries;

And Whereas Premises identification is the first step in establishing a traceability system that can lead to many business advantages, including improving operational efficiencies and increasing market access;

And Whereas capturing Premises information is necessary for the Ministry to prepare for, and respond to, agri-food incidents and emergencies in Ontario;

And Whereas section 4 of the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs Act provides the Minister with the authority in relation to the administration of laws relating to agriculture and food and all of their branches as well as such other powers and requires the Minister to perform such other functions and duties as are assigned to the Minister by the LGIC;

And Whereas subsection 7(1) of the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs Act requires an Order in Council to be passed before a program within the Ministry can be established;

Now therefore and pursuant to sections 4 and 7 of the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs Act, the

Provincial Premises Registry Program

is hereby created for the encouragement of agriculture and food within Ontario, effective as of July 22, 2011.

Part I – Interpretation and Purpose

Interpretation

  1. For the purpose of interpreting this OIC:
    1. Words in the singular include the plural and vice versa;
    2. Words in one gender include all genders;
    3. Headings are for reference purposes only and do not form part of the OIC;
    4. Any reference to dollars or currency will be in Canadian dollars or currency;
    5. Any reference to a statute is to that statute and to the regulations made pursuant to that statute as they may be amended from time to time and to any statute or regulations that may be passed that have the effect of supplanting or superseding that statute or regulation unless a provision in this OIC provides otherwise;
    6. The words “include”, “includes” and “including” denote that the subsequent list is not exhaustive.
  1. For the purposes of this OIC, including its recitals, the terms below shall have the following meanings:
    •  
    • “Guidelines” means any written documents, in print or electronic form, setting out the criteria governing the operation of the Program and posted on the Ministry’s website;
    • “Minister” means the Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs or such other Minister who may be designated from time to time as the responsible Minister in relation to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs Act or the Program, as the case may be, in accordance with the Executive Council Act or any other Act of the Legislature that allows another Minister to be designated as the responsible Minister, unless the context indicates otherwise;
    • “Ministry” means the ministry of the Minister;
    • “Ontario” means Her Majesty the Queen in Right of Ontario, unless the context indicates otherwise;
    • “Person” includes:
      1. an agri-business owner, operator, lessor or tenant operating as a sole proprietor, corporation, partnership or unincorporated association; or
      2. such other person as the Minister may designate in the Guidelines;
    • “Premises” means a parcel of land defined by a legal land description or, in its absence, by geographical coordinates, on which, or any part of which, animals, plants, agri-food based products, inputs or food are grown, kept, assembled or disposed of;
    • “Premises Identification Number” means the unique identifier that the Minister or the third party that the Minister has selected to deliver the Program assigns to a Premises once the Premises has been registered in the Provincial Premises Registry, characterized to identify the activities occurring on the Premises and validated to verify the legal land description of the Premises;
    • “Program” means the Provincial Premises Registry Program;
    • “Provincial Premises Registry” means the database where the Premises information of Registrants is recorded and maintained by the Minister or the third party that the Minister has selected to deliver the Program;
    • “Registrant” means a Person in Ontario that has or has had its Premises registered in the Registry and has been assigned a Premises Identification Number and certificate;
    • “Registry” means the Provincial Premises Registry;
    • “Requirements of Law” includes all applicable requirements of law, as may be set out in statutes, regulations, by-laws, codes, rules, ordinances, approvals, licenses, authorizations, decrees, injunctions, orders and declarations or any other similar requirement of law that could be imposed on a Person from authorities having jurisdiction over that Person;
  1. For the purposes of this OIC, including its recitals, the acronyms below shall have the following meanings:
    •  
    • “FIPPA” means the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act;
    • “LGIC” means the Lieutenant Governor in Council; and
    • “OIC” means Order-in-Council.

Purpose

  1. The purpose of this Program is to create a voluntary Provincial Premises Registry where Premises are recorded and maintained in a Registry in order to prepare for and respond to incidents and emergencies.

Part II – Commencement, Transition, Termination and Review

Commencement

  1. This OIC comes into effect on July 22, 2011.

Termination

    1. The Minister may, without liability, cost or penalty to Ontario, terminate this Program at any time if the Minister determines that the Program should not continue.
    2. Where the Minister terminates the Program pursuant to section 6(1), the Minister shall immediately post a notice on the Ministry’s website indicating the Program has been terminated.
    1. This Program shall terminate, without liability, cost or penalty to Ontario, in the event there is an insufficient appropriation for the Program.
    2. Where the Program is terminated pursuant to section 7(1), the Minister shall immediately post a notice on the Ministry’s website indicating the Program has been terminated.

Review

    1. The Minister shall conduct a review of this OIC no later than November 30, 2017 and thereafter, at least once every five (5) years, to confirm that the Program is continuing to meet its objectives.
    2. Despite section 8(1), the Minister may review the Program at any time to confirm the Program is continuing to meet its objectives.

Part III – Funding for the Program

  1. Funding of the Program shall be from the monies allocated to the Ministry for the purpose of the Program. The Minister may provide any funding that is required, contemplated or permitted under the Program including any administrative costs that the Minister determines are reasonable or prudent for the administration and delivery of the Program.

Part IV – Administration of the Program

The Minister

    1. The Minister shall be responsible for all aspects of the administration and delivery of the Program, including the Provincial Premises Registry.
    2. The Minister may select a third party to deliver the Program. Where the Minister selects a third party to deliver the Program, the Minister shall enter into an agreement with the third party that provides, at a minimum, the following:
      1. The roles and responsibilities of the third party regarding the delivery of the Program on behalf of the Minister;
      2. The costs to deliver the Program on behalf of the Minister;
      3. The administrative fees, if any, the third party may charge Registrants under the Program in order to deliver the Program;
      4. A requirement that the third party is to indemnify Ontario, including its officers, employees and servants, and have appropriate insurance to support the indemnity;
      5. Reporting requirements;
      6. Record-keeping requirements;
      7. Audit requirements;
      8. Performance requirements;
      9. Right to recover payments made;
      10. Anything else the Minister believes is prudent for the successful delivery of the Program.
    3. The Minister or a third party selected by the Minister, as the case may be, has all necessary authority to deliver the Program.
    4. When exercising any powers granted under or complying with requirements set out in this OIC, the Minister or a third party service delivery agent, as the case may be, shall do so in compliance with any Requirements of Law, including the requirements set out in this OIC and the Guidelines.

Guidelines

    1. The Minister shall create Guidelines for the Program. These Guidelines shall not conflict with anything contained in this OIC. For the purposes of determining whether the Guidelines conflict with the OIC, a conflict will be found if the Guidelines provide for something that is prohibited under this OIC or if the Guidelines provide that something is not needed which is strictly required under this OIC. A conflict shall not, however, exist if the Guidelines set out additional requirements, including for a Registrant under the Program, or the Minister is using any other authority under the OIC to supplement certain aspects of this Program.
    2. The Guidelines required under section 10(5) shall be posted on the Ministry’s website.

Part V – General

  1. As a condition to registering a Premises and obtaining a Premises Identification Number, Registrants must consent to:
    1. update their Premises information or confirm their Premises information is correct in the Registry;
    2. audits conducted to verify the Premises information;
    3. their information being shared for the purposes of incident and emergency management; and
    4. any other conditions that the Minister may designate in the Guidelines, including related to the use and disclosure of their information.
    1. Should the Minister designate a natural Person as a Registrant in the Guidelines, the collection of personal information within the meaning of FIPPA will be necessary for the proper administration of the Program and the Minister or a third party delivering the Program will:
      1. collect the minimum personal information required to meet Program objectives;
      2. collect personal information by consent; and
      3. set out the terms of the consent in the Guidelines, including the use and disclosure of the personal information.
  1. Any information provided to the Minister or a third party delivering the Program may be subject to disclosure in accordance with FIPPA and other Requirements of Law.
Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs

Approved and Ordered: May 01, 2017