Part 5: Regulations and guidelines

94. Regulations and guidelines

  1. The Minister may for the purposes of this Chapter make regulations or issue guidelines in accordance with section 120 to provide for or regulate the following matters:
    1. The preparation, adoption and implementation of a municipal tariff policy;
    2. the subsidisation of tariffs for poor households through-
      1. cross-subsidisation within and between services;
      2. equitable share allocations to municipalities; and
      3. national and provincial grants to municipalities;
    3. limits on tariff increases;
    4. criteria to be taken into account by municipalities when imposing surcharges on tariffs for services and determining the duration thereof;
    5. incentives and penalties to encourage-
      1. the economical, efficient and effective use of resources when providing services;
      2. the recycling of waste; and
      3. other environmental objectives;
    6. criteria to be taken into account by municipalities when assessing options for the provision of a municipal service;
    7. measures against malpractice in selecting and appointing service providers, including measures against the stripping of municipal assets;
    8. mechanisms and procedures for the co-ordination and integration of sectoral requirements in terms of legislation with the provisions of this Chapter, and the manner in which municipalities must comply with these;
    9. standard draft service delivery agreements;
    10. performance guarantees by service providers; and
    11. any other matter that may facilitate-
      1. the effective and efficient provision of municipal services;
      2. the application of this Chapter.
  2. The Minister may make regulations and issue guidelines contemplated in paragraphs (a), (b), (c), (d) and (e) of subsection (1) only after consultation with the Minister of Finance.
  3. When making regulations or issuing guidelines in terms of section 120 to provide for or to regulate the matters mentioned in subsection (1) of this section, the Minister must-
    1. take into account the capacity of municipalities to comply with those matters; and
    2. differentiate between different kinds of municipalities according to their respective capacities.
  4. The Minister, by notice in the Gazette, may phase in the application of the provisions of this Chapter which place a financial or administrative burden on municipalities.
  5. A notice in terms of subsection (4) may-
    1. determine different dates on which different provisions of this Chapter becomes applicable to municipalities;
    2. apply to all municipalities generally;
    3. differentiate between different kinds of municipalities which may, for the purpose of the phasing in of the relevant provisions, be defined in the notice 55 in relation to categories or types of municipalities or in any other way; or
    4. apply to specific kind of municipality only, as defined in the notice.