Rik Wouters MSc Senior Expert The Netherlands Kadaster Round table Land Registration and Business Models: diversity of contexts and systems Experiences in the Context of the Administrative – Agency Model

Agenda  The land register as a tool to protect a basic right  Secondary functions of land register  Typology of land registers: administrative (including public agency), quasi-judicial, and judicial systems.  Key functions of the state on the land register that cannot be delegated  Quality requirements of any land administration system  Possibilities, limits and conditions to outsourcing register services

Land registry and cadastre: introduction  Core processes in land administration –Land registry and cadastre –Valuation –Land use planning  Typical task and services of the Agency –Register deeds –Measure parcels –Supply information

Land registry and cadastre core processes

Typical tasks and services

Agency model  Independent body from the State –Financially –Recruitment of staff –Strategy and operations  Link between Agency and the Minister: –Plans and Accounting –Control on perfomance  Legislation by the Minister –Property law; law long lease –Law on the organisation

Primary function: Legal certainty Land register Ownership rights Mortgage

System of Key registers  Status Authentic Registers to support multi-purpose functions of registers -Taxation -Privatization programmes -Land use management -Physical planning -Agriculture subsidies Land registry

Prime role of Government  Draft and maintain legislation: property law, long lease law, etc  Assure consistent link with other related laws like inheritance law, public and private law, matrimonial law, etc  Define mandate and responsibilities of Agency –Act or Ordinance on the organistion –Yearly Directive on the operation  Redefine and extend tasks and evaluates performance of Agency  Allocate budgets for agreed tasks

Publication of the instruction for 2015 In Sweden

Organisation Agency: NL case Minister Land Registry and Surveying ICT-services GEO- and Real Estate information Supervisory Board Chair of Board Corporate functions Kadaster

Organisation: Swedish case Internal Audit Board Corporate Functions Cadastral Services Metria Divisions Geodata Land Registration Director General The Director General’s staff Minister Minister approves typically Long-term policy Pricing policy Annual accounts Continuity policy Members Board Agency

Business model  Financing based on cost recovery  Cost and expenses –Human resources –IT-systems and development –Buildings –Equipment, transport  Revenues and income –Fees from registration activities and surveying services –Fees from information services –(semi-)commercial activities –Budget financing from State for specific goals NB: tariffs for services and products most important mechanism to balance costs and income

Business model (information services) Direct delivery and licensing to end user Value- added resellers End users Lantmäteriet (products) Delivery to reseller Value-added product Data sharing Delivery to 2:nd level reseller 2:nd level Value- added resellers Value- added product

Norwegian model Separate Agency to profide information

Outsourcing of work  Main goal to outsource –Concentrate on core business –Arrange for specific expertise –Reduce (financial) risks  Tendency to outsource work –IT services (infrastructure, data centre, SW-development) –Surveying works –Information supply  Tendency to reduce financial risks –Hire temporary staff –Rent or lease office space –Facility management (catering, cleaning, printing) NB 1: Ambition in many cases to “attract” new work NB 2: Difficult to draw a line: what should be in de hand of the State?

Quality of work  Agency defines quality standards  Liability is differently assured and arranged  Dispute resolution is important but to avoid court cases is better: go for maximum quality/coverage  Performance measured by –balance score card, internal quality system –But also bench marking, end user surveys –ISO, –Own standard: Good Governance Code  NB: Agency works both in deed and title system

Some critical principles  Agency is not a political instrument  Management of the Agency should be independent from political “color”: no political nominations  Agency must be aware of its position  integrity is crucial: do not spoil trust of the Minister  Agency model is efficient and flexible: acts as a business  Agency model is to be promoted but taking into account the national legal traditions and institutions, and avoiding automatic and uncritical institutional transplantation  Question remains whether the Agency works best in an “merged” organisational structure: –Land Registry and Cadastre Institutes under one roof?

Thank you for your attention