Cape Town - The City’s tills are ringing with festive cheer as its coffers continue to bulge from punitive levies bringing in more than R3 billion since July.
While some ratepayers are buckling under huge bills due to punitive charges meant to punish water guzzlers, the City is still coining it, despite water restrictions going down to level 3.
According to the latest financial report, of November, more than R1bn was over-recovered from water and sanitation sales.
Service charges for water revenue were over-recovered by R859.1million, and for sanitation revenue by R214.1m. According to the report, the over-recovery is due to some consumers still using more water than the restrictions allow.
“The level 6 tariffs, implemented to discourage high consumption in order to keep saving water, have escalated the ‘billed revenue’. The over-recovery on sales is not entirely cash-backed as not all billed revenue will be collected as cash. The over-recovery on ‘billed revenue’ will be offset by the provision for the non-cash portion of the amount billed,” the report states.
In October the total over-recovery for the month was R1.05bn. Service charges for water revenue were R834.4m over and sanitation revenue was R217.1m over.
September saw R821m in additional funds raked in from water and sanitation. Water revenue was R649.9m over, and sanitation revenue was R172.6m over. In August the total over-recovery from water and sanitation was R509m.
Service charges for water revenue were R404.2m over and sanitation revenue was R105.5m over.
July saw one of the smallest over-recovery amounts of R253m. Water revenue for July was R210.4m over and sanitation revenue was R43.8m over.
Mayoral committee member for water and waste, Xanthea Limberg, said the department had initiated a customer service action plan that would significantly improve debt management and increase the collection ratio in the coming year.
“The anticipated percentage spend will improve as it will be addressed in the January 2019 adjustments budget,” she said.
Limberg added that level 5 water tariffs only came into effect in October this year and prior to that Level 6 tariffs had been in place.
“Level 3 water tariffs have only been implemented as of December 1 and therefore it will take at least one municipal billing cycle to demonstrate a significant reduction in revenue.
“The department has been subsidised by more than R1bn and thus whatever is over-recovered will also be returned to the rates account to compensate for the level of subsidisation as the water and sanitation service does not operate to make a profit,” she said.
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