Cape Town ratepayers fume over City’s fixed levies on top of their usual bills

[xrapidx]

Imagine giving something to someone, and they charge you a service fee for the privilege.

 

[TEXTILE GUY]

 

[C4Cat]

Was in Cape Town last week for business.... was very impressed at how well run, clean and organised the city was. No sign of any trash, roads are painted and well maintained. Visible policing in many places, shopping and tourism was booming. In comparison Durban and Joburg are dirty $h!tholes. So my advice to Capetonians is... enjoy it.

Where about in Cape Town were you? Probably wealthier, tourist areas, I would guess?

 

[supersunbird]

Imagine giving something to someone, and they charge you a service fee for the privilege.

Yeah, one would think that you'd stop doing it, unless one is a masochist.

 

[2012]

Waiting for the levy on levies.

I can see it now "the managing and collecting of these levies needs a whole team and project onto itself, we need to fund this and thus putting in a levy on your levies. Each levy you receive will have a management fee of R10 excluding VAT"

 

[thechamp]

I am pretty sure CoJ beats them with certain fixed charges.

Someone should be a lamb and post their statement.

 

[dj2381]

Where about in Cape Town were you? Probably wealthier, tourist areas, I would guess?

I think he means city central.

 

[DeSLAM]

Since when did maintenance and expansion of infrastructure only start after fixed levies were added?
Stop believing that balderdash.

Its not like things were not maintained when water for example was a lot less costly. A cost only inflated by the municipality.

Maintenance and new infrastructure was done in Cape Town - long before anyone dreamt up a new tax...that only paying customers pay for - plus 15% VAT.

Stop believing everything you read and swallowing narratives by City spin doctors.

The price of the first 6Kl of water you consume in Cape Town has gone up by just short of 200% in 6 years.

Let that sink in.

 

[zolly]

Since when did maintenance and expansion of infrastructure only start after fixed levies were added?
Stop believing that balderdash.

Its not like things were not maintained when water for example was a lot less costly. A cost only inflated by the municipality.

Maintenance and new infrastructure was done in Cape Town - long before anyone dreamt up a new tax...that only paying customers pay for - plus 15% VAT.

Stop believing everything you read and swallowing narratives by City spin doctors.

The price of the first 6Kl of water you consume in Cape Town has gone up by just short of 200% in 6 years.

Let that sink in.

You may have not heard of this drought we had for 4 years. Or the simple reality that we get less water than we used to and this has increasingly been the case since the 90s (according to a friend of mine who farms out in Caledon). Or the fact that most people have changed their water consumption habits because of the drought and continue to maintain their good habits for the most part.

Thinking that our water supply systems should operate and be billed the way they did back in the 2010s is a bit backward.

 

[Flywheel]

a pipe levy

They should legalise all drugs and introduce taxes on them, like a "pipe levy" for crack and such.

CT will be filthy rich in a year.

 

[eehellfire]

“We left our income streams at risk. If we didn’t have a fixed component then people would end up paying very little, even wealthy residents.”
Linky

Errr... except for the municipal property taxes which are also levied monthly?

 

[Currantly]

Thinking that our water supply systems should operate and be billed the way they did back in the 2010s is a bit backward.

Will you be saying the same thing about in the 2030s wrt to billing in the 2020s? That's where we're heading, right?

 

[DeSLAM]

The drought is over - the dams cant get fuller than they are.

If the present storage capacity of the Cape Town River System dams cannot see Cape Town through at pre drought tariffs, without fixed levies; and without water restrictions this summer - let me put it to you in simple language.

The problem lies elsewhere. If the maximum supply capacity of CTRS is inadequate - the REAL problem was man made by the municipality themselves. And now water is being used coercively to fill the piggy bank to fund off budget projects, and what they feel they should get paid now. At any cost to the paying consumer.

Fresh water does not belong to the state - read the Water Act. It is merely entrusted to the state to manage in distribution and supply infrastructure we paid for long ago. And the maintenance we paid for was included in the water price BEFORE they started implementing a "supply levy" (call it by whatever name you want to - its a new tax on water). And the 2014 tariff was adequate to maintain water infrastructure very well...without the new levy.

New supply and distribution infrastructure in new suburbs are paid for by the new rate payers that move in there.

 

[Sinbad]

Someone should be a lamb and post their statement.

2.5 Availability Charges

The following availability charges shall be payable in respect where service are available:

(a) For vacant residential stands; R351.46 per month per stand
(b) For unoccupied improved residential stands; R351.46 per month per stand
(c) For improved occupied residential stands where no water supplied by Council is being consumed for any reason, including, but not restricted to stands using borehole water; R351.46 per month per stand
(d) Per occupied unmetered residential stands R351.46 per month per stand


The following charges shall be payable in respect of land having a drainage installation thereon which is connected to Johannesburg Water’s sewer network:

(a) Erf size up to and including 300 m² R 228.06
(b) Erf size from 301 m² to 1 000 m² R 443.96
(c) Erf size from 1 001 m² to 2 000 m² R 671.63
(d) Erf size larger than 2 000 m² R 967.71


Embedded generators are not allowed to feed in more than they consume, and they need to be on an 80A TOU tariff structure:





All ex vat.

 

[SeRpEnT]

You may have not heard of this drought we had for 4 years. Or the simple reality that we get less water than we used to and this has increasingly been the case since the 90s (according to a friend of mine who farms out in Caledon). Or the fact that most people have changed their water consumption habits because of the drought and continue to maintain their good habits for the most part.

Thinking that our water supply systems should operate and be billed the way they did back in the 2010s is a bit backward.

So we pay them more so that they can order (from Bon Aqua?) or produce some water for us?
LOL. Get lost.

They pleaded poverty and used reduced income from water usage as an excuse to hit us with their levy. But very conveniently ignored it all and gave their executives massive increases and had fancy schmancy new buildings built during a time of poverty... (Belville building for example).

Voetsek!

 

[Arthur]

a pipe levy

Hehe.

My local council charges a R360/month excl VAT Amp Levy ("Ampeerheffing") over and above the electricity charge.

Edit: Just checked. It's now R389.16.

And here in the WC we pay a "Riool paaiement" per WC. Mine's now R1008.94 eVAT.

 

[supersunbird]

You may have not heard of this drought we had for 4 years. Or the simple reality that we get less water than we used to and this has increasingly been the case since the 90s (according to a friend of mine who farms out in Caledon). Or the fact that most people have changed their water consumption habits because of the drought and continue to maintain their good habits for the most part.

Thinking that our water supply systems should operate and be billed the way they did back in the 2010s is a bit backward.

I'm pretty sure he also doesn't want want to pay data bundles prices from 2010 . Things change.

 

[supersunbird]

Errr... except for the municipal property taxes which are also levied monthly?

That pays for your local roads (they don't get all funds required from National for that) and other things, except if you'd prefer a levy for road usage levy say in return for reduced property taxes?

 

[eehellfire]

That pays for your local roads (they don't get all funds required from National for that) and other things, except if you'd prefer a levy for road usage levy say in return for reduced property taxes?

I pay fuel levies for road upkeep

 

[xrapidx]

That pays for your local roads (they don't get all funds required from National for that) and other things, except if you'd prefer a levy for road usage levy say in return for reduced property taxes?

How about a levy where everyone pays the same? Why must my property taxes be considerably more than a neighbour because I look after my property? We use the same services, and drive the same roads.