Checked 18 October 2026
Where the facts in this claim come from
Every fact on the claim page, with the sources we used. We save a copy of each source on the day we read it.
What does the evidence show?
Why it is Verified
The court's order says the charges are inconsistent with (go against) the Constitution, national law and the City's Tariff By-law. GroundUp and TimesLIVE report the same. On 4 May the City said it was considering an appeal. An appeal asks a higher court to change the ruling. In late May 2026 it said it would not appeal. Instead, it proposed changes to its 2026/27 budget.
Western Cape High Court. Published 30 April 2026.
Where to look: Page 2: 'Delivered: 30 April 2026'. Page 45, paragraph [148], order 3: the charges 'in its 2025/2026 budget in respect of city-wide cleaning, water and sewerage, are unlawful and invalid insofar as they are inconsistent with the Constitution, national legislation and the City's Tariff By-law. Such charges are set aside with effect from 30 June 2026'; order 4: the City's counter-applications dismissed; order 1: the GOOD Party joined as a party (scanned PDF, read as page images)
GroundUp. Published 30 April 2026.
Where to look: Paragraphs 1 and 3 (fixed charges for water, sanitation and cleaning imposed from July 2025 declared invalid and unlawful, set aside from 30 June 2026); paragraph 5 (cases brought by SAPOA and AfriForum; GOOD joined as an intervening party); paragraph 13 (the City used property value bands)
TimesLIVE. Published 4 May 2026.
Where to look: Paragraph 1 (the City is considering an appeal); paragraph 2 (fixed charges for city-wide cleaning, water and sewerage in the 2025/26 budget found unconstitutional and invalid); paragraph 4 (Hill-Lewis: the City is modelling the impact); paragraph beginning 'Political fallout has been swift' (GOOD's Brett Herron reacts)
EWN. Published 23 May 2026.
Where to look: Paragraph 1 (Hill-Lewis 'has said the city of Cape Town has opted not to appeal a high court ruling which deemed its new municipal tariff's structure unlawful'); paragraph 2 ('On Friday, the City announced amendments to its 2026/2027 budget following the court's decision'; Friday was 22 May 2026); paragraph 4 (instead of appealing, the City will approach national government)
What did the council do, and when?
Who ran the council
Mayor: Geordin Hill-Lewis (DA). Council run by DA. From Nov 2021 to present.
SABC News. Published 18 November 2021.
Where to look: Paragraph 1 (the City elected Hill-Lewis as mayor); paragraph 4 (141 votes out of 224 councillors present in the 231-seat council); paragraph 5 (embedded City post: 'today, 18 November 2021, during a full Inaugural Meeting of the Council')
Daily Maverick. Published 19 November 2021.
Where to look: Paragraph 1: Hill-Lewis 'was on Thursday elected Cape Town's executive mayor by 141 votes out of 224 ballots returned'
Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC). Published 23 May 2022.
Where to look: Page 4 of 6, 'Total Party Seats' table: DEMOCRATIC ALLIANCE 135 (83 ward, 52 PR); page 6 of 6: total 231 seats (no printed date; date is the PDF creation date, 23 May 2022)
Auditor-General of South Africa. Published 24 June 2026.
Where to look: PDF page 182 (printed page 178), table 'Instability in key leadership positions': City of Cape Town, mayor incumbents over the past four years: 1
EWN. Published 20 August 2026.
Where to look: Headline ('... in final council address') and paragraph 3 ('In his final address to council for the term on Thursday, Hill-Lewis ...')
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