Draft amendment to the Farmhouse Construction Regulations announced, farmers' groups urge enforcement, Yilan real estate operators oppose

After a long delay, the Ministry of the Interior quietly gave advance notice on its website last night of the amendment to the "Regulations for Building Farmhouses on Agricultural Land," stipulating that both the builders and buyers of farmhouses (excluding inheritance) must have farmer qualifications. However, the actual date of the advance notice is subject to the Executive Yuan Gazette updated today. The comment collection period runs until the 27th of this month. The Yilan County Government, where the farmhouse problem is most severe, as well as farmer groups, have expressed support, but also called for enforcement to be truly implemented and not reduced to a mere formality; real estate agents in Yilan County, however, worry that farmland prices will fall and will collect opposing opinions to submit to the Ministry of the Interior.

Ten days of comment collection starting today, timetable undecided

The amendment to the "Regulations for Building Farmhouses on Agricultural Land" has had a bumpy ride. The Council of Agriculture originally planned to give advance notice by the end of 56614).

In response, Lin Ping-hsun, head of the Comprehensive Planning Division of the Construction and Planning Agency of the Ministry of the Interior, said it may have been public relations putting the advance notice online early, but the actual advance notice must be based on today's Executive Yuan Gazette. The ten days counted from then constitute the comment collection period, running until the 27th of this month. When it will take effect "cannot be estimated," and depends on the subsequent compilation of opinions and the Council of Agriculture's working schedule. The Ministry of the Interior is merely cooperating with the legal procedure, "supporting the Council of Agriculture's approach, which conforms to the spirit of farmhouses being used for farming under the Agricultural Development Act."

Council of Agriculture Minister Chen Bao-ji had repeatedly stressed to the public since 5 that the farmhouse construction regulations absolutely must be changed, saying "land speculation has now gone so far that young people cannot afford to buy or rent farmland." Yet in early 6 it was abruptly postponed. After confirming the Ministry of the Interior's advance notice, he simply said "very good," and stressed that communication with all sectors had continued throughout, that the aim was not to suppress farmland but to restore farmland to normal use, and that the coming ten days would be used to widely solicit outside opinions, though he did not yet dare set a timetable.

Civil groups call for enforcement

According to the draft given advance notice by the Ministry of the Interior, the new version revises one article and adds two new articles, clearly specifying that builders and recipients of farmhouses (excluding inheritance) must have farmers' insurance or Category 3 health insurance (fishing and animal husbandry), or present proof related to agricultural operation. Although it was delayed for some time, the Agricultural Affairs Division of the Yilan County Government, farmer groups and some farmers' associations still gave it their approval.

In recent years in Meinong, Kaohsiung, speculators have driven up land prices, with each hectare soaring to over ten million. Chung Ching-hui, director-general of the farmers' association, believes that revising the farmhouse construction regulations is a good thing and can achieve a deterrent effect, but enforcement on the back end must be carried out. For example, actually determining whether there is agricultural operation could let those with ulterior motives exploit loopholes, and he hopes it will not be reduced to a formal review.

Chen Ping-hsuan, a researcher at the Taiwan Rural Front, also gave his approval. Although the advance notice is too slow, it is better than doing nothing, and he hopes it will take effect as soon as possible. However, amending the law is only the first step. Some builders already plan to use modular houses to circumvent the regulations, and the Council of Agriculture needs to require local governments to enforce the regulations, while also reviewing the results and amending the law further if necessary.

In the long term, he believes the Council of Agriculture needs to clearly define the purpose of farmhouses and the substantive standards for building them. Farmhouses are built for the needs of agricultural operation, but if a farmer grows 5 fen of organic vegetables and has a self-use residence 15 minutes from the field, an application to build a farmhouse can still pass, even though in practice some vegetables do not require large farm machinery and there is no need to build a farmhouse. "Farmland fundamentally should not have houses on it. Farmhouses are permitted to be built for agricultural operation, and in the future the government will inevitably have to categorize farmhouse types into law, for example, no farmhouse may be built if there is a self-use residence within a certain distance of the farmland."

Yilan agriculture chief: judging actual farming is not difficult

Yang Wen-chuan, director of the Agriculture Department of Yilan County, strongly supports the Council of Agriculture and the Ministry of the Interior. Although Yilan was the first to enact self-governing ordinances related to farmhouse construction, the requirement for farmhouse recipients needed to be amended by the central government. Now that this piece has been filled in, the law is more complete.

He believes local governments are very clear about local affairs. When a farmer submits a qualification review application, reviewers can check whether he has joined a production and marketing group, verify with neighbors and the farmers' association, and compare sales records and operation plans. Enforcement is not difficult.

Yilan real estate operators to submit opposing opinions

Some also hold opposing views on this law. Li Cheng-hsien, chairman of the Yilan County Real Estate Brokers Association, said that as long as existing laws are enforced, the problem of excessive farmhouse construction can be solved, and there is no need to amend the law at all. "Once qualifications are restricted, farmland will be like Indigenous Reserved Land, with its value halved." Amending the law will only make people anxious, and farmland prices will slide. Almost no farmland transactions have been heard of closing now, and written opinions will be submitted to the government for reference.