The ActionSA Johannesburg Caucus has resolved to reject the City’s 2025/26 Final Budget, a fiscal plan that continues to fail the more than six million residents of our city. It is a budget that clings to old habits while ignoring growing public frustration and the urgent need for pro-poor reform.
The City’s R84.8 billion operating revenue and R80.7 billion expenditure projections are based on flawed assumptions, including unjustifiable tariffs and underperformance in collections. Rather than cut waste and inefficiency, this administration chooses to shift the financial burden to already struggling communities.
Why We Reject This Budget
Prepaid Electricity Surcharge Retained
Despite public outcry, the flat R200 prepaid electricity surcharge remains in the budget. This charge punishes low-income residents who rely on prepaid meters to avoid debt, with no published cost-of-supply to justify it. While the proposed increase to R270 was dropped, the core injustice persists.
ActionSA presented a fully costed alternative to City leadership. Our model shows that R2.7 to R4.4 billion can be recovered without burdening prepaid customers, through:
- A tiered surcharge model based on verified income and usage,
- Aggressive revenue collection from illegal connections and defaulters,
- Enhanced compliance in property and business licensing,
- Expansion of solar energy wheeling revenue, and
- Cuts to non-core, wasteful expenditure.
Infrastructure Crisis Ignored
The City faces a R27 billion water infrastructure backlog, worsening outages and leaks. Yet underfunding continues. Additionally, R2.5 million in critical road infrastructure funding has been cut, as potholes and traffic light failures worsen daily.
Institutional Paralysis and Staff Cost Bloat
The long-overdue institutional review has not been completed, leaving duplication and blurred accountability. Employeerelated costs now exceed R21.6 billion, more than a quarter of the City’s entire budget, without service improvements.
ActionSA Demands Immediate Action
We call on the City to:
- Freeze non-essential hiring
- Remove unfilled funded posts
- Introduce performance-based pay
- Resolve billing queries within legislated timeframes
- Strengthen revenue collection
- Enforce consequences for corruption
- Ensure monitoring and full accountability on all capital projects
What We Support
Ne welcome the allocation for Red Fleet fire engine procurement, which is a necessary step toward restoring emergency response capability.
ActionSA’s participation in the current administration is not based on convenience – it is grounded in unwavering principles.
We will never vote in favour of a budget that sustains unjust charges on the poor, enables financial mismanagement, or ignores basic service delivery failures. We stand with the people of Johannesburg, and we vote accordingly.
ActionSA Rejects the Final Budget on Grounds of Principle and People-Centred Governance
The ActionSA Johannesburg Caucus has resolved to reject the City’s 2025/26 Final Budget, a fiscal plan that continues to fail the more than six million residents of our city. It is a budget that clings to old habits while ignoring growing public frustration and the urgent need for pro-poor reform.
The City’s R84.8 billion operating revenue and R80.7 billion expenditure projections are based on flawed assumptions, including unjustifiable tariffs and underperformance in collections. Rather than cut waste and inefficiency, this administration chooses to shift the financial burden to already struggling communities.
Why We Reject This Budget
Prepaid Electricity Surcharge Retained
Despite public outcry, the flat R200 prepaid electricity surcharge remains in the budget. This charge punishes low-income residents who rely on prepaid meters to avoid debt, with no published cost-of-supply to justify it. While the proposed increase to R270 was dropped, the core injustice persists.
ActionSA presented a fully costed alternative to City leadership. Our model shows that R2.7 to R4.4 billion can be recovered without burdening prepaid customers, through:
Infrastructure Crisis Ignored
The City faces a R27 billion water infrastructure backlog, worsening outages and leaks. Yet underfunding continues. Additionally, R2.5 million in critical road infrastructure funding has been cut, as potholes and traffic light failures worsen daily.
Institutional Paralysis and Staff Cost Bloat
The long-overdue institutional review has not been completed, leaving duplication and blurred accountability. Employeerelated costs now exceed R21.6 billion, more than a quarter of the City’s entire budget, without service improvements.
ActionSA Demands Immediate Action
We call on the City to:
What We Support
Ne welcome the allocation for Red Fleet fire engine procurement, which is a necessary step toward restoring emergency response capability.
ActionSA’s participation in the current administration is not based on convenience – it is grounded in unwavering principles.
We will never vote in favour of a budget that sustains unjust charges on the poor, enables financial mismanagement, or ignores basic service delivery failures. We stand with the people of Johannesburg, and we vote accordingly.