Division of Revenue Act, 2023 (Act No. 5 of 2023)Chapter 5 : Duties and Powers of Municipalities, Provincial Treasures and National Treasury29. Duties and powers of provincial treasuries |
| (1) | A provincial treasury must reflect allocations listed in Part A of Schedule 5 to the province separately in the appropriation Bill of the province. |
| (2) |
| (a) | A provincial treasury must not later than seven working days after this Act takes effect, publish by notice in the Gazette— |
| (i) | the indicative allocation per municipality for every allocation to be made by the province to municipalities from the province’s own funds and from conditional allocations to the province; |
| (ii) | the indicative allocation to be made per school and per hospital in the province in the format determined by the National Treasury; |
| (iii) | the indicative allocation to any national or provincial public entity for the implementation of a programme funded by an allocation in Part A of Schedule 5 on behalf of a province or for assistance provided to the province in implementing the programme; |
| (iv) | the envisaged division of the allocation envisaged in subparagraphs (i) and (ii), in respect of each municipality, school and hospital, for the 2024/25 financial year and the 2025/26 financial year; and |
| (v) | the conditions and other information in respect of the allocations, referred to in subparagraphs (i), (ii) and (iii), to facilitate performance measurement and the use of required inputs and outputs. |
| (b) | The allocations referred to in paragraph (a) must be regarded as final when the provincial appropriation Act takes effect or, if published on a later date, on the date of publication of the notice. |
| (c) | If the provincial legislature amends its appropriation Bill, the provincial treasury must publish amended allocations and budgets, by notice in the Gazette, within 14 working days after the appropriation Act takes effect, and those allocations and budget must be regarded as final. |
| (d) | Allocations to municipalities in terms of subsection (2)(a) must be consistent with the terms of any agreement concluded between the province and a municipality. |
| (3) |
| (a) | Despite subsection (2) or any other legislation, a provincial treasury may, in accordance with a framework determined by the National Treasury, amend the allocations referred to in subsection (2) or make additional allocations to municipalities that were not published in terms of subsection (2). |
| (b) | Any amendments to the allocations published in terms of subsection (2)(a) or (c) must be published, by notice in the Gazette, not later than 2 February 2024 or such later date as approved by the National Treasury and takes effect on the date of publication. |
| (4) | A provincial treasury must, as part of its report in terms of section 40(4)(b) and (c) of the Public Finance Management Act, in the format determined by the National Treasury, report on— |
| (a) | actual transfers received by the province from national departments and actual expenditure on such transfers, excluding Schedule 4 allocations, up to the end of that month; and |
| (b) | actual transfers made by the province to municipalities and public entities and actual expenditure by municipalities and public entities on such transfers, based on the latest information available from municipalities and public entities at the time of reporting. |
| (5) |
| (a) | A provincial treasury must— |
| (i) | ensure that a payment schedule, or any amendment thereof, is agreed between each provincial department and receiving institution envisaged in subsection (2)(a); |
| (ii) | ensure that transfers are made promptly to the relevant receiving officer in terms of the agreed payment schedule; and |
| (iii) | submit the payment schedules to the National Treasury within 14 days after this Act takes effect and any amended payment schedule, agreed to, within 14 days of it being agreed to. |
| (b) | If a provincial department and receiving institution do not agree to a payment schedule in time for submission to the National Treasury, the provincial treasury must, after consultation with the transferring officer, determine the payment schedule. |
| (6) | If a provincial treasury fails to make a transfer in terms of subsection (5)(a), the relevant receiving officer may request the provincial treasury to immediately make the transfer or to provide written reasons, within three working days, as to why the transfer has not been made. |
| (7) | If a provincial treasury fails to make the transfer requested by the receiving officer or provide reasons in terms of subsection (6), or the receiving officer disputes the reasons provided by the provincial treasury as to why the transfer has not been made, the receiving officer may request the National Treasury to investigate the matter. |
| (8) | On receipt of a request in terms of subsection (7), the National Treasury must— |
| (a) | consult the transferring officer on the matter; |
| (b) | investigate the matter, assess any reasons given by the provincial treasury as to why the transfer was not made; |
| (c) | direct the provincial treasury to immediately effect the transfer or provide reasons to the receiving officer, confirming why the provincial treasury was correct in not making the transfer; and |
| (d) | advise the provincial treasury and the receiving officer as to what steps must be taken to ensure the transfer. |