Local Government: Municipal Finance Management Act, 2003 (Act No. 56 of 2003)Chapter 12 : Financial Reporting and Auditing133. Consequences of non-compliance with certain provisions |
| (1) | If the accounting officer of a municipality or municipal entity fails to submit financial statements to the Auditor-General in accordance with section 126(1) or (2), or if the mayor fails to table the annual report of the municipality or a municipal entity in the council in accordance with section 127(2)— |
| (a) | the mayor must promptly table in the council a written explanation setting out the reasons for the failure; |
| (b) | the Auditor-General, in the case of any failure to submit financial statements for auditing, must promptly— |
| (i) | inform the speaker of the council, the National Treasury and the MEC for local government and the MEC for finance in the province of such failure; and |
| (ii) | issue a special report on the failure to the relevant provincial legislature; and |
| (c) | the municipal council— |
| (i) | must request the speaker or any other councillor to investigate the reasons for the failure and report to the council; |
| (ii) | must take appropriate steps to ensure that the financial statements are submitted to the Auditor-General or that the annual report, including the financial statements and the audit report on those statements, is tabled in the council, as the case may be; and |
| (iii) | may order that disciplinary steps be taken against the accounting officer or other person responsible for the failure; |
| (d) | the provincial executive may intervene in the municipality in terms of section 139 of the Constitution; |
| (e) | the National Treasury may take appropriate steps against the municipality in terms of section 5(2)(e); and |
| (f) | the provincial treasury may take appropriate steps against the municipality in terms of section 5(4)(d). |
| (2) | The Auditor-General must submit to Parliament and the provincial legislatures— |
| (a) | by no later than 31 October of each year, the names of any municipalities or municipal entities which have failed to submit their financial statements to the Auditor-General in terms of section 126; and |
| (b) | at quarterly intervals thereafter, the names of any municipalities or municipal entities whose financial statements are still outstanding at the end of each interval. |