AS AMENDED IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES THE STATE LAND (REGULARISATION OF TENURE) (MISCELLANEOUS AMENDMENTS) BILL, 2015 EXPLANATORY NOTE (These notes form no part of the Bill, but are intended only to indicate its general purport) This Bill seeks to amend the State Land (Regularisation of Tenure) Act, Chap. 57:05 (hereinafter referred to as “the Act”) and the State Land (Regularisation of Tenure) (Certificate of Comfort) Regulations, Chap. 57:05 and to revoke Legal Notice No. 151 of 1999, Legal Notice No. 134 of 2000 and Legal Notice No. 135 of 2000 Clause 1 of the Bill would provide the short title and commencement of the Bill. Clause 2 of the Bill seeks to provide for the interpretation of the Bill. Clause 3 of the Bill seeks to provide for amendments to the interpretation section of the Act to – (a) change the appointed day from 1st January, 1998 to 13th June, 2014; (b) include designated areas in the definition of “Land Settlement Agency”; (c) to define Minister as the Minister with responsibility for the Land Settlement Agency; and (d) to include State Land vested in the Land Settlement Agency in the definition of “State Land”. Clause 3A of the Bill seeks to amend Section 3 of the Act. Clause 4 of the Bill seeks to provide that applications for Certificates of Comfort may be made within three years after the commencement of the proposed Act and shall be in the form prescribed by the Minister by Order. Clause 5 of the Bill seeks to repeal section 12 of the Act which allows for the making of late applications. Clause 6 of the Bill seeks to provide for a consequential amendment arising out of the repeal of section 12. Clause 7 of the Bill seeks to provide that Designated Areas are to be deemed as Land Settlement Areas and to empower the Minister to vest State Land in the Land Settlement Agency for the purposes of the Act. The vesting of any interest in land in the Land Settlement Agency would also be exempt from stamp duty. Clause 8 of the Bill seeks to delete and substitute the Schedule to the Act which contains the list of Designated Areas. Clauses 9 of the Bill would amend the State Land (Regularisation of Tenure) (Certificate of Comfort) Regulations, Chap. 57:05, to allow the Land Settlement Agency to refer to the 2014 aerial photography, instead of the 1998 aerial photography, for the purposes of determining the occupation of lands by applicants. Clause 10 of the Bill would revoke the forms relating to applications for Certificates of Comfort in Legal Notices No. 151 of 1999, 134 of 2000 and 135 of 2000. 2 A BILL An Act to amend the State Land (Regularisation of Tenure) Act, Chap. 57:05 and the State Land (Regularisation of Tenure) (Certificate of Comfort) Regulations, Chap. 57:05 and to revoke Legal Notice No. 151 of 1999, Legal Notice No. 134 of 2000 and Legal Notice No. 135 of 2000 Enactment Enacted by the Parliament of Trinidad and Tobago as follows: Short title and 1. This Act may be cited as the State Land (Regularisation of Tenure) commencement (Miscellaneous Amendments) Act, 2015 and comes into operation on such date as is fixed by the President by Proclamation. Interpretation 2. In this Act, “the Act” means the State Lands (Regularisation of Chap. 57:05 Tenure) Act. Section 2 amended 3. Section 2(1) of the Act is amended- (a) in the definition of “appointed day”, by deleting the words “1st January, 1998” and substituting the words “13th June, 2014”; (b) in the definition of “Land Settlement Area”, by inserting after the word “VII”, the words “or a Designated Area”; (c) in the definition of “landless”, by deleting the words “who falls within a category designated as disadvantage by the Minister to whom responsibility for Social Development is assigned and”; (d) in the definition of “Minister”, by deleting the word “settlements” and substituting the words “ the Land Settlement Agency”; and (e) in the definition of “State Land”, by inserting after the word “Assembly” the words “or the Land Settlement Agency”. Section 3 amended 3A. Section 3 of the Act is amended by deleting paragraph (b). Section 11 amended 4. Section 11 of the Act is amended – 3 (a) in subsection (2), by deleting the words “one year after the commencement of this Act” and substituting the words “ three years from the commencement of the State Land (Regularisation of Tenure) (Amendment) Act 2015; and (b) in subsection (3), by inserting after the word “prescribed” the words “by the Minister by Order”. Section 12 repealed 5. Section 12 of the Act is repealed. Section 13 amended 6. Section 13 of the Act is amended by deleting the words “or 12”. Section 25 amended 7. Section 25 of the Act is amended by inserting after subsection (4), the following subsections: “(5) Notwithstanding subsections (1), (2) and (3), Designated Areas are deemed to be Land Settlement Areas. (6) For the purposes of this Act, the Minister may, by Vesting Order, vest State Land in the Land Settlement Agency for a term not exceeding nine hundred and ninety-nine years on such terms and conditions as are specified in the Vesting Order. (7) The Stamp Duty Act shall not apply to the vesting of any interest in land in the Land Settlement Agency under subsection (6) or otherwise.”. Schedule deleted 8. The Act is amended by deleting the Schedule and substituting the and substituted following Schedule: “SCHEDULE (Section 17) DESIGNATED AREAS North Trinidad Site Area 6mm - 8mm Mathura Sangre Grande Ackbaralli Trace Malabar Acono Road (from Belle View Santa Cruz 4 to Caurita Road) Agostini Street St. Joseph Albert Trace Mathura Alexander Trace Valencia Alexis Street Morvant Alfred Richards St. POS South Port of Spain South Alta Garcia, Maracas, St Joseph Maracas, St. Joseph Andrew Trace, Toco Main Road Toco Anglais Road Cumana Annisette Street, POS South Port of Spain South Arima By-Pass Road Calvary Hill ext. Ashing Road Valencia Assam Private Road Laventille Bagatelle Central Diego Martin Bagatelle South Diego Martin Bain Quarry Laventille Balizer Road, Smith Lands Valencia Bamboo #1 Valsayn Bamboo Settlement #2 Valsayn Bamboo Settlement #3 Valsayn South Bangladesh St. Joseph Base Road, Arena Arena Beetham Estate Port of Spain Beggs Trace, Toco Toco Belle Vue Diego Martin Benny Road Valencia Big Yard Carenage Blake Avenue Guaico Blue Basin etc Diego Martin Bois Bande Sangre Grande Boissiere Maraval Bon Air North Arouca Cadet Hill Diego Martin Calvary Hill Arima Cashew Lane Valencia Celina Circular, Damarie Hill, Sangre Grande Guaico Cemetery Street Mathura Chenenay Trace, Cumana (off Toco Toco Main Road) Chinapoo Morvant Church Hill Mathura Church Street, Turure Village Sangre Grande 5 Churchill-Roosevelt Highway D'Abadie Churchill-Roosevelt Highway, Old Piarco Road Area Clarence Trace Valencia Clifton Circular Road Clifton Clifton Lane, East Dry River East Dry River Clifton Street, POS South Port of Spain South Community Drive St. Joseph Cordec Drive Valencia Cordia Drive Ext Valencia Crapo Alley Tunapuna Cumaca/Platanal/Pomponette Road Valencia Cunaripo Sangre Grande Curepe Curepe Damien Bay Maracas Bay Demerara Road Wallerfield Dinsley Tunapuna Dookiesingh Street St. Augustine Dundonald Hill Port of Spain Eastern Quarries Laventille El Carmen Street Valencia El Socorro South El Socorro Emon Lane Valencia Factory Road Diego Martin Farm Road St. Joseph Farm Road, Bois Bande Village, Sangre Grande Ojoe Road Farmlands Turure Fern Trace Valencia First and Second Street, Maingot Tunapuna Five Rivers Arouca Five Rivers North Spring Road Flag Road, Sahadeen Trace off Sangre Grande Toco Road Flamboyant Creent, Valencia Valencia Gardens Fletcher Avenue, Benny Road Valencia Four Roads Tamana George Street, San Souci Toco Gill Street Valencia Gonzales St. Ann's Graham Trace Sangre Grande Graham Trace Extension Sangre Grande 6 Gray Trace, Salybia Salybia Guaico Tamana Hambug Trace Toco Heights of Aripo Aripo Herman Scott Street, POS South Port of Spain South Irving Lane, East Dry River East Dry River Jacob Hill Wallerfield Jean Avenue Diego Martin John Boodoo Road Brazil Jones Town Arima Jones Town Bamboo #1 Joropo Drive, Upper Sam Boucoud St. Ann's Kangalee Street Valencia Kelly Village, Eastern Quarry Laventille Khalay Village St. Augustine Khandahar Five Rivers KP Lands Valencia La Guaya Trace Mathura La Guira, Mathura via Savannah Mathura Drive La Guira, Toco Main Road Mathura La Platta Extension, K.P Lands Valencia La Platta Gardens Valencia La Retraite Dump Road Heights of Guanapo La Seiva Village St. Joseph La Sieva Road Sangre Grande Lady Chancellor Hill Port of Spain Lance Noir, Paria Main Road Toco L'Anse M'tan Carenage Las Cuevas Estate Las Cuevas Las Lomas Caroni Lean Hill St. Ann's Lilly Lane Ext, Pine Settlement Sangre Grande Lobin Trace, Fishing Pond Sangre Grande Lodge Place, POS South Port of Spain South Long Stretch Forest Reserve, east of Turure Farms Valencia Ma Jack Hill Valencia Macoya Tunapuna Madoosingh Drive Sangre Grande Madras Settlement Cunupia Mahogany Cresent Valencia Malick, Barataria Barataria 7 Mango Drive, New City Valencia Maracas Royal Road, Maracas Valley, South of La Grind Road Maracas Maracas Valley, St. Joseph St. Joseph Maraval Maraval Marcus Avenue Valencia Marcus Lane, Valencia Stretch Valencia Marie Road Morvant Marigold Drive, Pine Settlement Sangre Grande Mark Trace Valencia Marlon Trace, El Reposo Road, Sangre Grande Toco Road Marry Road St. Ann's Mary Land St. Ann's Matelot Booster Station Sangre Grande Mathura Block 1 Valencia Mathura Village off Toco Main Toco Road Maturita Triangle Arima Maycock Street Valencia Melajo Village, off Toco Main Toco Road Mickie Lands Port of Spain Minos Trace Mathura Mon Repos Morvant Mondo Nuevo Toco Monrepo St.