While the City of Cape Town’s draft budget for the new financial year, starting July 1, seeks to invest in hope, some have taken issue with how it plans to do that - namely the introduction of fixed charges.

The budget, which was tabled at last month’s Council meeting, and is now open for public comment and seeks to prioritise cleaner vleis, resilient coastline, and upgrade public places.

Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis said the “Invested in Hope Budget” considers the implications of climate change, population growth, in-migration, surge in informality, and the escalating need for indigent support and financial sustainability of City budgets.

GOOD councillor, Anton Louw, said that the draft budget signals a sharp increase in costs for many residents, “despite the city’s attempts to downplay the increases”. Louw highlighted that 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.

“So yes, this budget only has a 2% electricity tariff instead of the 12.74% NERSA approved for Eskom (corresponding municipal tariff increase of 11.32%), but residents are not getting the deal they are being sold,” Louw said.

“The new cleaning tariff is linked to property values, which have been seen to be skyrocketing in Cape Town. Stats SA’s residential property price index released in 2023 determined ‘since 2010, residential property prices have grown by 141% in the City of Cape Town’.”

“This is not a budget invested in hope, it is full of despair and concern for Cape Town residents who are struggling to make ends meet. Cape Town is becoming unaffordable to Capetonians,” Louw said.

He also urged residents to use the city’s rates calculator to better understand the impact of the new draft budget.

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Cape Town's draft Budget sparks debate over rising fixed charges