{"id":510364,"date":"2021-08-02T17:05:14","date_gmt":"2021-08-02T15:05:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/?p=510364"},"modified":"2021-08-02T17:05:14","modified_gmt":"2021-08-02T15:05:14","slug":"how-much-money-government-makes-from-traffic-fines","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/government\/510364\/how-much-money-government-makes-from-traffic-fines\/","title":{"rendered":"How much money government makes from traffic fines"},"content":{"rendered":"

Statistics South Africa has published its financial census of local municipalities for the year ending June 2020, providing a general breakdown of their financial health, along with wider insights into how self-efficient they may or may not be.<\/p>\n

The stats body said that the country’s municipalities are becoming marginally more self-sufficient, with a greater portion of revenue coming from their own sources. However, this is not true across the board – and particularly not in rural areas.<\/p>\n

“If we consider all 257 municipalities, 71% of total income in 2020 was self-generated. The remaining share (29%) was from government grants and subsidies, as well as from donations and contributions,” the group said.<\/p>\n

“The figure of 71% might seem relatively high, but \u2013 as is often the case with data analysis \u2013 the devil is in the details.”<\/p>\n

According to Stats SA, South Africa\u2019s eight largest cities dominate the municipal financial landscape, accounting for almost 60% of total municipal income. These urban centres generate a large proportion of their own income, skewing the national picture.<\/p>\n

In 2020, metropolitan councils self-generated 81% of their income, compared with 28% recorded by rural municipalities. The general picture, however, remains positive, Stats SA said.<\/p>\n

Most municipalities have increased their share of self revenue generation since 2017, albeit marginally (71% in 2021, vs 70% in 2017). A deeper analysis of municipalities on a granular level is needed to better determine the financial health of each region, it said.<\/p>\n

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Where is the money coming from?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Breaking down municipal revenue sources, grants and subsidies from the national government still accounts for the largest portion of municipal revenue, though this is closely followed by electricity sales.<\/p>\n

Property rates are the third-largest revenue source, followed by water sales, sewerage and sanitation charges and refuse removal. ‘Other’\u00a0 revenue encompasses a wide variety of sources, including fines, licences and permits, public contributions and donations, etc.<\/p>\n

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In monetary terms, the total revenue collected by municipalities in 2020 was R421.4 billion. ‘Other’ revenue accounts for approximately R45.5 billion of this.<\/p>\n

Aside from interest earned on investments and outstanding debtors, fines are one of the largest sources of ‘other’ revenue for municipalities. In 2020, municipalities pulled in R5.9 billion in fines – though this was down from R6.3 billion the year before (less R344 million).<\/p>\n

Of the fine revenue, traffic fines make up the biggest portion – R4.6 billion in fines were paid in 2020<\/strong>, up from R4.34 billion the year before, representing 1.1% of total revenue.<\/p>\n

Municipalities also made R185 million from issuing traffic-related licences and permits in 2020.<\/p>\n

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A provincial breakdown of the R5.9 billion in fine revenue collected in 2020 is as follows:<\/p>\n