Budget Adjustments Contradict Mayor’s Claims About Court Ruling

GOOD Statement by Sandra Dickson, GOOD City of Cape Town Councillors:

The GOOD Party notes the City of Cape Town’s revised 2026/27 Budget proposals presented by Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis following the recent Court ruling relating to the City’s budget framework.

In the days leading up to the revised budget, the Mayor repeatedly warned residents that the court ruling would result in poorer households paying more and would threaten the City’s infrastructure programme. However, the revised budget now tabled by the City appears to contradict those claims.

Based on the information currently available, the revised budget includes several important changes:

• The originally proposed 10.2% reduction in the Rate-in-Rand has now effectively been reduced to only 2%.
• The residential property rebate threshold has increased from R450 000 to R620 000 for qualifying properties up to R8 million in value.
• Residential electricity tariffs remain unchanged.
• Commercial electricity tariffs are proposed to decrease to offset increases in commercial property rates.

Importantly, the DA-led City has also confirmed that infrastructure projects will continue and that engagements are underway with National Treasury and COGTA to address funding concerns.

These developments raise serious questions about the accuracy of the Mayor’s earlier public statements.

Far from causing higher bills for poorer residents, the Court ruling appears, at least from what has been presented so far, to have contributed to changes that may reduce the impact on many lower- and middle-income households.

The Mayor further claimed that households with properties valued up to R1.8 million would experience little or no overall increase in their municipal accounts. GOOD believes this claim must still be independently tested through detailed calculations once all tariff tables and billing impacts are fully available.

GOOD rejects attempts by the Mayor to politically attack and isolate opposition parties that fulfil their constitutional oversight role. Supporting legal scrutiny of municipal decisions is not irresponsible but it is part of defending transparency, accountability, and fairness for residents.

The GOOD Party will continue to analyse the revised budget in detail and engage constructively during the public participation process. Residents deserve honest communication, affordable municipal services, and a budget that balances infrastructure investment with the realities faced by struggling households across Cape Town.

GOOD Manifesto on Public Participation: Encouraging public participation in decision-making processes.

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