Article 1.　The purpose of this Law is to contribute to laying ground for economic autonomy of Japan through promotion of agricultural and fishery industries by reconstruction and rehabilitation of agricultural and fisheries cooperative associations.

Article 2.　In this Law, the term "agricultural or fisheries cooperative association" shall mean the agricultural cooperative association or federation of agricultural cooperative associations, or fishermen's cooperative association or federation of fishermen's cooperative associations.

2　In this Law, the term "own capital" shall mean the sum total of the paid-in capital investment (including the deposits received under contract to be appropriated for increase of capital investment;hereinafter the same) and reserves ( "jumbi-kin" (reserved money), "tsumitate-kin" (reserved money) and any other money reserved from the savings and belonging to the capital account, irrespective of the name used).

3　In this Law, the term "deficits" shall mean the sum total of the deficits listed in the balance sheet and those brought forward from the previous business year.

Article 3.　Any agricultural or fisheries cooperative association which can not perform the obligations without causing extraordinary difficulties in its continuance of the business and which wants to make reconstruction and rehabilitation in accordance with the provisions of this Law shall draw up a reconstruction and rehabilitation plan on the basis of the balance sheet to be made as of the day designated by the Minister of Agriculture and Forestry (hereinafter referred to as "the designated day" ).

2　In making the balance sheet mentioned in the preceding paragraph, the agricultural or fisheries cooperative association shall make an appropriate valuation of its credits and inventory of goods according to the provisions to be established by order and shall, if a loss is incurred as a result of such valuation, include such loss in the deficits.

3　The attendance of one-half or more of association members or federation members (exclusive of associate members) at the general meeting and a vote by the majority of the two-thirds or more of the voting members present shall be required to approve the reconstruction and rehabilitation plan under the provision of paragraph 1. The same shall apply in case the plan is to be changed.

Article 4.　An agricultural or fisheries cooperative association under paragraph 1 of the preceding Article shall carry out the reconstruction and rehabilitation by meeting the following itemized requirements within five years counting from the first day of the business year beginning on or after the designated day:

Article 5.　The reconstruction and rehabilitation plan shall provide for the matters stated below:

Article 6.　An agricultural or fisheries cooperative association may request the administrative agencies for advice concerning the reconstruction and rehabilitation plan.

Article 7.　The administrative agencies may, in case an agricultural or fisheries cooperative association is in need of reaching an agreement with a creditor of altering elements of the obligations in order to carry out its reconstruction and rehabilitation, offer good offices for so doing at the request of the agricultural or fisheries cooperative association concerned.

Article 8.　The administrative agencies may, at the request of an agricultural or fisheries cooperative association, dispatch a special advisor to give technical advice regarding the reconstruction and rehabilitation of the agricultural or fisheries cooperative association concerned.

Article 9.　An agricultural or fisheries cooperative association which may not be able to attain the goal prescribed in Article 4 within the period specified in the same Article unless it receives an encouragement loan from the Government, may apply for the delivery of an encouragement loan to the Minister of Agriculture and Forestry, with the written reconstruction and rehabilitation plan, in accordance with the procedures to be established by order.

2　The Minister of Agriculture and Forestry may, at the request of an agricultural or fisheries cooperative association made in accordance with the preceding paragraph, deliver an encouragement loan to it every year, in accordance with the procedures to be established by order and within the limit of budget, on condition that the said agricultural or fisheries cooperative association shall meet the requirements specified in each of the following items:

3　When an agricultural or fisheries cooperative association whose area does not exceed the area of To, Do, Fu or prefecture intends to make the application referred to in paragraph 1, such application shall be made through the governor of To, Do, Fu or prefecture concerned.

Article 10.　The encouragement loan delivered in accordance with the provisions of the preceding Article shall be grouped into two, the loan encouraging the increase of capital and the loan for interest payment on frozen capital.

2　The Government loan for encouraging the increase of capital shall be made for the increased amount of paid-in capital investment of an agricultural or fisheries cooperative association on and after the designated day (exclusive of the increase of capital investment caused directly as a result of amalgamation by the said association of other associations), and the Government loan for interest payment on frozen capital shall be made based upon the sum total of the credits of an agricultural or fisheries cooperative association which are one year or more overdue out of the credits of which reasonable valuation has been made in accordance with the provision of Article 3 paragraph 2 (including those provided for by order such as credits the term of payment of which provided for by the initial contract has been extended afterwards;hereinafter referred to as "frozen credits" ) and inventories of goods held one year or more from the date of purchase out of those of which reasonable valuation has been made in accordance with the provision of the same paragraph (hereinafter referred to as "frozen inventories" ).

Article 11.　The Government encouragement loan delivered in accordance with the provision of Article 9 paragraph 2 shall be available during the period ending the fiscal year 1955-56 and the amount to be loaned for each year to one agricultural or fisheries cooperative association shall be the amount obtained by multiplying the amount which serves as a basis of the computation of loan by the rate of loan, as shown in the following table:

Article 12.　The Minister of Agriculture and Forestry may, in case an agricultural or fisheries cooperative association which is receiving or is to receive an encouragement loan happens to come under any one of the following categories, suspend the delivery of the encouragement loan to the said association:

Article 13.　The Minister of Agriculture and Forestry may, in case an agriculture or fisheries cooperative association which has received an encouragement loan happens to come under any one of the following categories, order the said association to refund the loan received to the Government:

Article 14.　An agricultural or fisheries cooperative association which has received an encouragement loan shall, in accordance with the provisions to be established by Cabinet Order, repay to the Government the sum total of the amount corresponding to what it has received and the amount corresponding to its interest, and time after the lapse of one year from the day of its sufficing the requirements regarding reconstruction and rehabilitation as itemized in Article 4.

Article 15.　An agricultural or fisheries cooperative association which is receiving or is to receive an encouragement loan shall, in case it intends to make a change in the reconstruction and rehabilitation plan, obtain an approval by the Minister of Agriculture and Forestry.

2　The provision of Article 9 paragraph 3 shall apply mutatis mutandis to the case of the preceding paragraph.

Article 16.　An agricultural or fisheries cooperative association which has received an encouragement loan shall submit to the administrative agencies a report on the progress of its reconstruction and rehabilitation plan as of the end of each business year and an enforcement program of the reconstruction and rehabilitation for the following business year, in accordance with the provisions to be established by order.

Article 17.　The administrative agencies shall make auditing once or more in each year of the business result and accounting of an agricultural or fisheries cooperative association which is receiving or is to receive the encouragement loan.

Article 18.　In case an agricultural or fisheries cooperative association receiving an encouragement loan dissolves as a result of amalgamation, if the agricultural or fisheries cooperative association which comes into existence as a result of the amalgamation or which continues to exist after the amalgamation cannot, unless it continues to receive the encouragement loan from the Government, attain the goal prescribed in Article 4 by the end of the business year during which the day of expiry five years from the designated day falls, the agricultural or fisheries cooperative association concerned may apply for the delivery of that loan to the Minister of Agriculture and Forestry with the written reconstruction and rehabilitation plan, in accordance with the procedures to be established by order.

2　The provisions of Article 9 paragraphs 2 and 3, Article 10 and Article 11 shall apply mutatis mutandis to the case of the preceding paragraph. In this case, in Article 10 paragraph 2 "the increased amount of paid-in capital investment of an agricultural or fisheries cooperative association on and after the designated day" shall read "the sum total of the increased amount of paid-in capital investment on and after the designated day of the agricultural or fisheries cooperative association which has dissolved as a result of amalgamation and either the increased amount of paid-in capital investment of the agricultural or fisheries cooperative association which has come into existence as a result of the amalgamation or the increased amount of paid-in capital investment after the amalgamation of the agricultural or fisheries cooperative association which continues to exist after the amalgamation (inclusive, if the agricultural or fisheries cooperative association concerned was receiving or was to receive an encouragement loan prior to the amalgamation, of the increased amount of paid-in capital investment on and after the designated day up to the time of amalgamation)" , and "the Government loan for interest payment on frozen capital...... of an agricultural or fisheries cooperative association......" shall read "the Government loan for interest payment on frozen capital...... of an agricultural or fisheries cooperative association which was receiving or was to receive an encouragement loan prior to the amalgamation......" .

Article 19.　In case an agricultural or fisheries cooperative association which has received an encouragement loan dissolves as a result of amalgamation, the agricultural or fisheries cooperative association which comes into existence as a result of the amalgamation or continues to exist after the amalgamation shall be deemed that which has dissolved as the result, and the provisions of Articles 13, 14 and 16 shall apply to that association.

Article 20.　In this Law, the term "administrative agencies" shall mean the Minister of Agriculture and Forestry in the case of an agricultural or fisheries cooperative association the business area of which is To, Do, Fu or prefecture or larger area, and the governor of To, Do, Fu or prefecture in the case of the other agricultural or fisheries cooperative associations.

Article 21.　The Minister of Agriculture and Forestry shall consult with the Minister of Finance before he makes the designation under Article 3 paragraph 1, the delivery of encouragement loans under Article 9, the suspension under Article 12, the order of refundment under Article 13 and/or the approval under Article 15.