Local Government: Municipal Finance Management Act, 2003 (Act No. 56 of 2003)Chapter 4 : Municipal Budgets28. Municipal adjustments budgets |
| (1) | A municipality may revise an approved annual budget through an adjustments budget. |
| (2) | An adjustments budget— |
| (a) | must adjust the revenue and expenditure estimates downwards if there is material under-collection of revenue during the current year; |
| (b) | may appropriate additional revenues that have become available over and above those anticipated in the annual budget, but only to revise or accelerate spending programmes already budgeted for; |
| (c) | may, within a prescribed framework, authorise unforeseeable and unavoidable expenditure recommended by the mayor of the municipality; |
| (d) | may authorise the utilisation of projected savings in one vote towards spending under another vote; |
| (e) | may authorise the spending of funds that were unspent at the end of the past financial year where the under-spending could not reasonably have been foreseen at the time to include projected roll-overs when the annual budget for the current year was approved by the council; |
| (f) | may correct any errors in the annual budget; and |
| (g) | may provide for any other expenditure within a prescribed framework. |
| (3) | An adjustments budget must be in a prescribed form. |
| (4) | Only the mayor may table an adjustments budget in the municipal council, but an adjustments budget in terms of subsection (2)(b) to (g) may only be tabled within any prescribed limitations as to timing or frequency. |
| (5) | When an adjustments budget is tabled, it must be accompanied by— |
| (a) | an explanation how the adjustments budget affects the annual budget; |
| (b) | a motivation of any material changes to the annual budget; |
| (c) | an explanation of the impact of any increased spending on the annual budget and the annual budgets for the next two financial years; and |
| (d) | any other supporting documentation that may be prescribed. |
| (6) | Municipal tax and tariffs may not be increased during a financial year except when required in terms of a financial recovery plan. |
| (7) | Sections 22(b), 23(3) and 24(3) apply in respect of an adjustments budget, and in such application a reference in those sections to an annual budget must be read as a reference to an adjustments budget. |