Mangaung Metro residents need to brace themselves for more than just a cold winter as a higher-than-inflation increase in rates and taxes is coming their way. The proposed increases, as set out in the budget for Mangaung Metro Municipality for the 2016/17 financial year, is likely to make residents dig deeper into their cash flow.
Assessment rates, which will affect property tax, will increase by 8% on average across the board. Water tariffs will increase by 8%, sewerage tariffs by 8.2% for both residential and non-residential consumers and refuse removal by 7.8% for the next financial year. Electricity tariffs will increase by 11,29% on average, while other tariffs will be increased by an average of 10%, with effect from July.
These announcements were made by the Executive Mayor of the Mangaung Metro, Thabo Manyoni. He indicated that the city’s assessment rates for residential properties remain the lowest among the country’s metros at 0.6621 cents.
Bloemfontein Courant asked Freedom Front+ councillor, Elizabeth Snyman-Van Deventer, to demonstrate how these proposed increases are going to impact her family’s finances. She says residents should bear in mind that their municipal account is calculated on the water use and whether residents are taking water restrictions into account and their rates and taxes are influenced by their neighbourhood.
Snyman-Van Deventer says she stays in Pellissier and her rates and taxes – including water – amounts to approximately R1500. “This, however, excludes my electricity because I am using a pre-paid meter,” she explains.
She says she buys approximately R1400’s worth of electricity a month. “I do not buy it all at once. During the first week of each month, I spend R700,” says Snyman-Van Deventer. Around the 20th she spends another R700 and gets much less units for the same amount.
With the new proposed increases, Snyman-Van Deventer says she would pay approximately R400 more on all municipal services and would need to budget more than R150 extra for electricity and more than R250 on the rates and taxes account.
This, Snyman-Van Deventer says, is despite several measures taken to save water. “I have a swimming pool that has not been filled up for months. We put in a system that allows for all grey water to flow to our garden and we put bricks in our toilets to limit water use during flushing,” she explains.
Manyoni said during his budget speech that even with the increases announced, the Mangaung Metro remains the cheapest city compared to other metros. But, says Snyman-Van Deventer, if Mangaung is compared to other metros it might be cheaper on municipal services, but the income ratio of families is much lower than that of other metros. She says with a lower household income, these increases place much more financial pressure on paying consumers.
Meanwhile, DA councillors also criticised the budget as a big chunk – more than 40% is allocated for salaries and payment to contractors and service providers. “This, says DA councillor, Hans Brits, leaves only 60% for service delivery and projects.” The council is expected to vote on the metro budget on Thursday. – Cathy Dlodlo & André Grobler
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