‘Double tax’: New Tshwane levy has residents gatvol

Tshwane mayor Nasiphi Moya’s new fully funded proposed budget, along with the recent revaluation of properties to determine new rates and additional levies, has made organisations, residents and the opposition see red.

DA Tshwane caucus leader Cilliers Brink said the ANC-ActionSA budget was a new tax attack on residents.

He said on the same day that ActionSA in parliament voted to impose a value-added tax increase on already overburdened South Africans, the Tshwane mayor held a press conference on the proposed budget for the city.

Budget a tax attack on residents – DA Tshwane

“What the mayor didn’t say was that this will be achieved on the back of residents paying more for property rates due to a new valuation roll.

“As if this is not enough, Moya wants to introduce a city cleansing levy. This is in addition to the waste collection charge.

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“While the mayor says the levy will only apply to properties that do not pay a waste collection charge, that distinction is not clear from the wording of the proposed budget,” he said.

Brink said last year, his mayoral committee rejected the idea of a city cleansing levy because “we understood that we could not tax the city out of financial distress”.

He said Moya blames past administrations for Tshwane’s failures, including the one in which she served as deputy mayor, but took credit for the successes.

Environmental charge is an unfair double taxation – AfriForum

AfriForum’s local government affairs advisor Deidré Steffens said the new environmental charge being considered by the city was unfair double taxation.

“Although the metro has the authority to levy taxes and tariffs, there are specific measures that protect owners,” she said.

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Steffens said Section 74(2) of the Municipal Systems Act stipulates that tariffs must reflect the costs reasonably associated with service rendered.

“It further stipulates that the amount individual users pay should be in proportion to their use of that service.

“The proposed levy, which is labelled in the metro’s documentation as an environmental charge or a city cleansing waste charge, contradicts these principles of the law. It envisages a fixed levy per property and not a usage-based fee as required by law.”

Complaints on excessive increases

AfriForum has had several complaints from residents on the excessive increases in property valuations in the metro.

“In one case, a property’s value, previously R1.2 million, has increased by about 100% to R2.3 million, while another property, previously valued at R900 000, is now valued at R1.6 million.”

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Kleinfontein residents are also unhappy after the High Court in Pretoria ruled last August that the exclusive Afrikaner township was illegal and the city should enforce all relevant planning and building laws in the area. It recategorised four Kleinfontein properties as non-permitted use.