January 3, 2006
By Ndaba Dlamini
THE cut-off date for Joburg residents needing to apply to have services arrears written off is drawing near. Those who qualify for the Municipal Services Subsidy scheme have until 3.30pm on 31 January to register.
The decision to end the write-off of arrears, part of the subsidy scheme since its inception in May last year, is as a result of the "excellent subscription to the Municipal Services Subsidy", according to the member of the mayoral committee for finance, strategy and economic development, Parks Tau.
"When we launched the registration programme for the subsidy, we estimated that around 100 000 households in the City would qualify for the scheme, and that we could write-off around R1,5-billion in total," Tau said.
By October 2005, the City had already registered more than 88 000 households and written off more than R1,1-billion in arrears, according to Tau.
The daily average of people registering for the subsidy dropped from a high of just over 1 000 people a day in June to 161 people a day in October. "This is a key indication that we have almost reached our limit in terms of the number of people who qualify for the scheme and who have or want to register for it," Tau said.
The introduction of the arrears write-off as part of the Municipal Services Subsidy scheme was "a deliberate attempt to incentivise customers who had long been frustrated by their inability to pay off large debts that had accumulated over long periods of time, and, as a result, were subject to credit control action by the City," Tau added.
The City's revenue department also realised that it would not be possible to collect the debt owed by the city's indigent. "It was going to cost the City more money if there was any attempt to recover these debts," said Mandy Jean Woods, the department's director of marketing and communication.
However, registering people for the Municipal Services Subsidy scheme itself will continue after 31 January.
Johannesburg provides free basic municipal services to the city's poorer residents. It provides six free kilolitres of water and 50 free kilowatts of electricity a month to all residents. There are also no charges for assessment rates for properties valued at under R20 001.
The Municipal Services Subsidy scheme covers the remaining charges of refuse removal and sanitation.
Pensioners, people with disabilities who are beneficiaries of a National Social Security Grant, and breadwinners with HIV/Aids and/or their orphans who are City account holders, qualify to apply for the scheme.
People can apply at any municipal pay point where registrations are being done. To apply, residents must have original or certified copies of their:
- South African identity book
- Copy of latest municipal account
- Proof of earnings
- Affidavit from the South Africa Police Service confirming employment status if unemployed
- National Social Security Grant card (if applicable)
- Letter from South African Revenue Service confirming tax status
- Copy of the death certificate of the account holder (where applicable)
The subsidy is valid for 36 months after which the account holder will have to reapply. Applicants are also obliged to immediately report any change in their status during this period.
Those found abusing the scheme will face legal action. They will have their applications reversed and compelled to pay all arrears immediately. They will also not be allowed to reapply for the subsidy for five years.
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