Overview

Section 156 of the Constitution (1996) assigns executive authority to municipalities in respect of,and the right to administer the local government matter listed in Part B of Schedule 4 and Part Bof Schedule 5 and any other matter assigned to it by national or provincial government. Thisimplies that certain functions have been assigned exclusively to local government. As localgovernment comprises both district and local municipalities, it was necessary to differentiatebetween the functional competencies of district and local municipalities.

This division of functional competencies is governed by the Municipal Structures AmendmentAct, No 33 of 2000. However, many district municipalities do not have the administrativecapacity to execute their legislative powers and functions and therefore the MEC for LocalGovernment and Housing authorised local municipalities to perform certain of the districtfunctions in terms of section 18(1) of the Local Government Structures Amendment Act (No 33of 2000). The last adjustments were gazetted in Provincial Gazette No 58 Notice No 126 of 27June 2003.

Functions performed by Local Municipalities on behalf of the District

The following functions and powers of Xhariep District Municipality have beenauthorised to the respective local municipalities to perform on behalf of the district:

• Potable water supply systems
• Bulk supply of electricity which includes for the purposes of such supply, the transmission, distribution and where applicable, the generation of electricity (mention special arrangements e.g. CENTLEC)
• Domestic waste-water and sewage disposal systems
• Municipal health services

The Minister indicated in Section 84(1)(i) that the Environmental Health Function would from 1 July 2004, be no longer performed by LMs on behalf of the Districts. The district municipality started to perform the functions of Environmental Health and Disaster Management with effect from December2009.

The Municipal Structures Amendment Act (Act 33 of 2000) provides for an extensiveannual review of the division of powers and functions between Category B and Category C to ensureeffective implementation of these assigned powers following an advice provided by the MunicipalDemarcation Boarding emanating from the Boards’ annual capacity assessment report.

Xhariep District Municipality’s readjusted functions (with effect 2008) 

• Integrated development planning for the District Municipality, including developing IDP framework incorporating IDP processes of all the Local Municipalities.
• Regulation of passenger transport services
• Municipal airports serving the whole area of Xhariep
• Municipal health services serving the area of the district as a whole
• Fire fighting services serving the entire area of the DM including: planning, co-ordination and regulation of fire services, specialized fire fighting services such as mountain, veld and chemical fire services, co-ordination of the standardization of infrastructure, vehicles, equipment and procedures, and training of officers.
• Establishment, conduct and control of fresh produce markets and abattoirs serving the area of a major proportion of the municipalities in the district. (Mohokare Local Municipality may perform the function in respect of abattoirs only)
• Establishment, conduct and control of cemeteries and crematoria serving a major proportion of municipalities in the district.
• Promotion of tourism for the district municipality area
• Receipt, allocation and if applicable, distribution of grants made to the district municipality

The imposition and collection of taxes, levies and duties as related to the above functions or as may be assigned to the DM in terms of national legislation.