Cape Town's tariffs face mounting legal challenges
The City’s budget has faced backlash over its fixed charges, namely the Cleaning Tariff, the Fixed Water Charge, and the Fixed Sanitation Charge.
Image: File
The City of Cape Town faces on ongoing headache as lobby group AfriForum has become the latest organisation to challenge its tariffs.
It follows after the SA Property Owners Association (SAPOA) launched its own legal challenge against the City’s decision to link certain fixed charges to property values in its amended Hope Budget for 2025/26.
The Cape Town Collective Ratepayers’ Association (CTCRA) has also submitted papers to join SAPOA’s case in having the City’s tariffs declared unconstitutional.
The City’s budget has faced backlash over its fixed charges, namely the Cleaning Tariff, the Fixed Water Charge, and the Fixed Sanitation Charge.
Now, AfriForum has launched its own court challenge against the City on an urgent basis arguing that it “does not have the power to use the value of a property to determine any fees, surcharges, tariffs, taxes, levies and duties other than a rate within the definition of and in terms the Local Government: Municipal Property Rates Act, 6 of 2004”.
In court papers submitted in the Western Cape High Court last week, AfriForum wants to have the budget declared invalid until the end of the 2025/26 financial year, “to allow the City to rectify the defects”.
An affidavit by AfriForum’s West Coast district coordinator Jurie Ferreira, said at the heart of their application is the City's imposition of a tariff and charges, and AfriForum's contention that the City does not have the power to use the value of property to do so.
Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis said the City cannot agree that wealthy property owners should be charged the same as lower-income or middle-class households.
Image: Supplied
Ferreira said that despite AfriForum and many others making reasonable efforts to persuade and assist the City in the public interest, the City cannot be persuaded.
“AfriForum seeks a declaration that the City does not have the power to use the value of a property to determine these or other tariffs, taxes, levies and duties, and that it can only be used to determine a rate as defined in and in terms of, the Rates Act.
“If AfriForum's contention is correct and the declaration is given in AfriForum's favour, the Honourable Court will of necessity have to declare the tariff and charges to be inconsistent with the Constitution and the legality principle,” he said.
Separately, CTCRA applied to participate as amicus curiae, a “friend of the court” in SAPOA’s case against the CoCT.
CTRCA said that both SAPOA and the City’s lawyers have indicated that they have no objection to the application.
The court case is set down for September 18 and 19.
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