GOOD Statement by Anton Louw,
GOOD City of Cape Town Councillor
01 May 2025
GOOD has submitted its formal response to the City of Cape Town’s Draft Budget for public comment, raising serious concerns about above-inflation tariff hikes, new fixed charges, and last-minute amendments that threaten to undermine the integrity of the entire consultation process. The proposed increases, which will result in a double-digit increase for some households, come at a time when inflation stands at just 2.7% and salary growth remains constrained. These increases are not only excessive but also regressive in structure, punishing households based on property values rather than actual utility usage.
City-Wide Cleaning Tariff
Of particular concern is the City’s handling of the controversial “cleaning levy”, a new standalone fee that duplicates services previously funded by property rates. Although the City says this “utility reform programme” is enforced by the National Treasury, we see no reduction in the Property Rates that justifies the ringfencing of this fee. While the City has recently announced it will “soften” this charge, the move comes at the 11th hour, without clarity or public consultation on how such changes will be implemented or funded. This kind of last-minute adjustment highlights the City’s lack of transparency and accountability.
Electricity Tariff
Electricity users are told they are getting a “break,” when in fact the City is merely complying with national regulations after two years of unlawfully charging above guideline levels. In the 2022/23 financial year, NERSA approved a 7.4% tariff increase, but Cape Town implemented a 9.6% increase. In the 2023/24 financial year, NERSA approved a 15.1% increase, but the City implemented a 17.6% tariff hike on top of its hiked price from the previous year. This issue is still playing out in court, with the residents paying the City’s legal fees.
Fixed Charges Based on Property Value
Fixed service charges for electricity, water, sanitation, refuse, and the cleaning levy, are linked to the market value of a property, rather than actual usage. This is an illogical and regressive mechanism. Utility charges should reflect actual consumption, not property ownership.
Cape Town Property Inflation Deepens Inequities
Cape Town’s property values are among the most inflated in the country, with market-based increases often outpacing household incomes. Many residents, including those in older suburbs or inherited homes, now face service charges disconnected from both usage and affordability.
Comparing property values across metros is misleading: a R3 million home in Johannesburg and a R3 million home in Cape Town are not equal in size or lifestyle, but the City uses a uniform value-based system that doesn’t reflect these realities.
To restore fairness and financial discipline, GOOD recommends the following:
- Audit of Municipal Salaries: Salaries in the City far exceed private sector norms. Salary brackets should be brought in line with industry standards.
- Review Ward Allocations: The City’s 116 wards receive R1 million per ward (R116 million), despite services already being centrally budgeted. Allocations should be needs-based, not location-based.
- Subcouncils to be scrapped: The City’s 20 subcouncils receive nearly R2 million per subcouncil (R39.1 million). They have no meaningful decision-making powers, with the Chairperson earning the equivalent of an MMC. GOOD believes they are an expensive form of political patronage and wasteful expenditure.
GOOD is calling for the immediateextension of the public participation deadline. Substantive changes have been proposed to the draft budget since it was first tabled, and residents must be given sufficient time to review and respond. Anything less renders this consultation process meaningless.
Further, GOOD is demanding:
- Align tariff increases with inflation;
- Scrap regressive fixed charges based on property value;
- Expand indigent household support in line with cost increases;
- Raise the rates exemption threshold to protect lower and middle-income households.
Cape Town deserves a budget that is honest, inclusive, and accountable. Right now, this draft reflects financial sleight of hand and policy repackaging, not real reform. The City must go back to the drawing board, meaningfully engage with its residents, and put fairness first.
Media enquiries: media@forgood.org.za