KZN Public Works and Infrastructure MEC Martin Meyer wants public schools to be exempted from property rates.
Image: Supplied
In a push for the exemption of public schools from paying property rates, KwaZulu-Natal Public Works and Infrastructure MEC Martin Meyer will soon meet Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs Department (CoGTA), as well as the South African Local Government Association (SALGA), to discuss the matter.
A few weeks ago, Meyer presented his plan to SALGA and now wants to take the issue forward with CoGTA.
Speaking to the residents of Phoenix, north of Durban, on Tuesday evening, Meyer reported that he was continuing with his campaign to free schools from the burden of paying property taxes, arguing that it was not a good idea in the first place to bill public schools on commercial rates, let alone billing them at all, since education is a public good.
Meyer announced that his department has undertaken to report back to the communities what the department has been doing and hear the concerns of the people. Phoenix’s public engagement was the first of a series of meetings to come.
He told the community that his department would save around R300 million if schools were exempted from paying rates. The initial campaign was to convert commercial to residential rates; however, Meyer pushes for total exemption.
“We are happy to report that we have made good progress in this, and we have already met SALGA, which supported our call. In a few days to come, we will meet CoGTA and SALGA to finalise the issue, so we are hoping that in a month or two we will reach an agreement,” said Meyer.
There has been an outcry over the government's decision to allow municipalities to charge public schools commercial rates while not making a profit, particularly those that were declared no-fee because of their poor status.
However, University of KwaZulu-Natal-based local government expert, Professor Sivanarain Reddy, said that, as much as it is an ideal solution, exempting schools from property rates will cripple municipalities financially since they heavily rely on property rates for their revenue.
Reddy said he would agree with the zero rating of poor schools from indigent communities; however, that must be cross-subsidised by the National Treasury because local governments need the money to continue meeting their constitutional obligations to bring services to the people.
“70% of the municipalities' revenue collection comes from property taxes, so exempting schools from paying for those taxes would lead to the dysfunctionality of many municipalities. The best solution would be for the national government to fund that decision, like it did when declaring poor schools no-fee-paying,” said Reddy.
willem.phungula@inl.co.za