ATC220916: Report of the Portfolio Committee on Social Development on the Fund-Raising Amendment Bill [B29 – 2020] (National Assembly – sec 76)], dated 14 September 2022

Social Development

Report of the Portfolio Committee on Social Development on the Fund-Raising Amendment Bill [B29 – 2020] (National Assembly – sec 76)], dated 14 September 2022
 

The Portfolio Committee on Social Development, having considered the subject of the Fund-Raising Amendment Bill [B29 – 2020] (National Assembly – sec 76)], referred to it and classified by the Joint Tagging Mechanism as a section 76 Bill, reports the Bill with amendments [B29A – 2020]. 

 

The Committee wishes to report as follows:

 

  1. Context and background

The Fund-Raising Act No 107 was an old piece of legislation from 1978. It had been largely replaced by the Non-Profit Organisation (NPO) Act of 1997 as much of the disaster management work of the Department of Social Development (DSD) was rendered through the NPO sector.  In terms of the contextual background, the Fund-Raising Act was promulgated in 1978 to provide control over collections of contributions from the public and to set up the following funds: Disaster Relief Fund, State President’s Fund, Refugee Relief Fund, Social Relief Fund and the South African National Defence Force Fund.

 

The implementation of the Act, has however encountered a number of challenges. These included; some of the funds have become dormant, presently relief services as contained in the Fund Raising Act are fragmented and costly to administer due to lack of consistency in the application and implementation, the institutional arrangements as contained in the Fund Raising Act No.107 of 1978 are not conducive to respond immediately on issues of emergency, in most cases the Act’s  provisions duplicated relief services that are catered for by the Social Assistance Act No.13 of 2004, when disaster occurs.

Furthermore, the amounts of money lie locked in three (3) different dormant funds, making it difficult to address wide-ranging emergency situations affecting vulnerable communities.  

 

 

 

  1. Parliamentary process

The Fund-Raising Amendment Bill [B29 - 2020] was introduced to Parliament and referred to the Committee through Announcements, Tablings and Committee Reports (ATC) on 20 November 2020.  On 02 June 2021, the Committee received a briefing from the Department of Social Development on the Bill.  As part of public participation process in compliance with the Constitution, the Committee advertised the Bill in the national, local and regional newspapers and requested public comments on the Bill.  The Committee received only one submission, Western Cape Government, which was analysed and presented to the Committee and the department provided a response to the issues raised.   

 

The objectives of the Bill are  to amend the Fund-Raising Act, 1978, so as to amend certain definitions; to effect certain textual amendments to provide greater clarity; to provide for the discontinuation of certain funds and for the dissolution of any boards responsible for those funds; to establish the Disaster Relief and National Social Development Fund and to transfer any amounts remaining in the discontinued funds to the Disaster Relief and National Social Development Fund; to empower the Minister to make regulations in respect of the financial year of a fund; and to provide for matters connected therewith.

 

The Committee proposed the following amendments:

                                    CLAUSE 2

1. On page 2, in line 23, to omit ‘‘nine’’ and to substitute ‘‘ten’’.

 

CLAUSE 3

1. On page 3, in line 21, after ‘‘identify’’ to insert ‘‘the prescribed’’.

 

CLAUSE 4

1. On page 3, in line 52, after ‘‘done’’, to insert ‘‘within a reasonable time’’.

2. On page 3, in line 52, to omit ‘‘accordance with any written directions of’’ and to substitute ‘‘consultation with’’.

3. On page 3, from line 52, to omit ‘‘and with due adherence to ethical principles’’ and to substitute ‘‘in line with section 50 of the Public Finance Management Act (Act No. 1 of 1999)’’.

CLAUSE 9

1. On page 5, in line 29, after ‘‘Amendment Act,’’, to omit ‘‘2020’’ and to substitute ‘‘2022’’.

The Committee unanimously agreed to the Bill with amendments. The amended Bill was then adopted by the Committee on 09 September 2022.

 

Recommendation

The Portfolio Committee on Social Development recommends that the House adopts this report and approves the second reading of the Fund-Raising Amendment Bill [B29B -2020].

 

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Report to be considered.