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Housing Act, 1997 (Act No. 107 of 1997)

Part 6 : Termination of Housing Arrangements

15. Transfer of certain property from provincial housing development boards to municipalities

 

1)
a) Any movable property that has passed to a Provincial Government in terms of section 14(1), and any rights, liabilities and obligations in respect of such movable property, must, subject to this subsection and subsection (3), be transferred not later than a date determined by the Minister after consultation with the MEC, by such Provincial Government to the municipality within whose area of jurisdiction such property is mainly utilised.
b) If any such movable property is utilised within the area of jurisdiction of more than one municipality, the head of department in the province in which the municipalities in question are situated must determine or, if such municipalities are not situated in the same province, the heads of the departments of the provinces in question, must agree on, in which municipality’s area of jurisdiction such property is mainly utilised.
c) In the absence of an agreement contemplated in paragraph (b) or (d)(i) the municipality in whose area of jurisdiction such movable property is mainly used or the payment of compensation, as the case may be, must be determined by arbitration in accordance with the Arbitration Act, 1965 (Act No. 42 of 1965).
d) To achieve an equitable adjustment of the respective financial positions of municipalities in question—
i) the head of department or heads of departments referred to in paragraph (a) may direct and agree on, respectively, the payment of compensation by one municipality to another municipality; or
ii) arbitration referred to in paragraph (c) may determine the payment of compensation by one municipality to another municipality.

 

2)
a) Any immovable property which has passed to a Provincial Government in terms of section 14(2) and has not already been sold or alienated as provided in section 14(3)(a) to (e), and any rights, liabilities and obligations in respect of such immovable property, must, subject to subsections (3) and (4), be transferred, not later than a date determined by the Minister after consultation with the MEC, by the Provincial Government to the municipality within whose area of jurisdiction such property is situated.
b) If such immovable property is situated in the areas of jurisdiction of more than one municipality, the Provincial Government in question must transfer the property to the municipality agreed upon between the MEC and the municipalities in question.

 

3) Movable or immovable property may only be transferred to a municipality in terms of subsection (1) or (2) if such municipality in the opinion of the MEC, after consultation with the municipality, has the capacity to administer such movable or immovable property in accordance with national housing policy.

 

4)
a) Section 14(3)(a) to (g) applies, with the changes required by the context, in respect of any land transferred to a municipality in terms of subsection (2).
b) Any reference in section 14(3)(a) to (g) to a Provincial Government and a provincial housing development fund must be construed as a reference to the relevant municipality and the municipality’s operating account as contemplated in subsection (5), respectively.
c) The net proceeds of any letting, sale or other alienation in terms of paragraph (a) must be utilised by the municipality for housing development in accordance with national housing policy and a housing development project approved by the MEC.

 

5) A municipality to which any movable or immovable property is transferred in terms of this section must maintain a separate operating account through which all matters contemplated in this section and section 16 must be transacted.

 

6) Section 14(2)(b), (c) and (d) applies, with the changes required by the context, to immovable property or a registerable claim or right transferred in terms of this section, and the reference to the head of department in section 14(2)(c) must be construed as a reference to the chief executive officer of the municipality in question.

 

7) The redundancy or not of any person employed in the provincial administration of a province arising out of the transfer of any movable or immovable property to a municipality as contemplated in this section must be determined in accordance with the laws governing the public service.