How we judge
Every council and councillor page answers a short list of plain questions. Each answer is judged against a norm that government itself published, never against our opinion, and the site never adds the answers up into one score.
Three bands, one norm each
Each yardstick has a norm with a citation. A result either Meets the norm, is short of it, or is well short. Where the data is missing the card says so. Bands always come with an icon and a label, so they do not depend on colour. The trend compares the latest period with the one before it.
Council yardsticks
| Question | Measured as | Meets | Short | Well short | Norm and source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Clean books? | Auditor-General audit outcome, latest financial year | Unqualified, no findings | Unqualified with findings | Qualified, adverse, disclaimed or outstanding | Auditor-General MFMA audit outcomes |
| Money in the bank? | Cash coverage: months of operating spending held in cash | 3 months or more | 1 to 3 months | Under 1 month | MFMA Circular 71: norm 1 to 3 months, we use the upper bound |
| Collects what it bills? | Current debtor collection rate | 95% or more | 85% to 95% | Under 85% | MFMA Circular 71: norm 95% |
| Looks after what it owns? | Repairs and maintenance as a share of property, plant and equipment | 8% or more | 5% to 8% | Under 5% | MFMA Circular 71: norm 8% |
| Spends the building budget? | Capital spending against the capital budget | Within 10% | 10% to 20% off plan | More than 20% off plan | Treasury reports to Parliament; the 10% band is ours, stated here |
| Wastes money? | Unauthorised, irregular, fruitless and wasteful expenditure as a share of operating spending | 1% or less | 1% to 5% | Over 5% | MFMA Circular 71: target is zero; the 1% and 5% bands are ours, stated here |
Figures come from National Treasury's Municipal Money, which publishes the councils' own audited and reported numbers, and from the Auditor-General's MFMA reports. Financial years end in June. The provincial comparison under each card ranks every metro and local council in the province on the same measure.
Councillor yardsticks
| Question | Measured as | Meets | Short | Well short | Norm and source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shows up? | Absences without leave as a share of council meetings held while in office, from the published minutes; leave granted by council does not count against the councillor | Absent without leave at 1 meeting in 10 or fewer, and fewer than 3 times | Up to 1 in 4, and fewer than 5 times | More than 1 in 4, or 5 or more times | Code of Conduct for Councillors, Municipal Structures Act Schedule 7, item 4: three consecutive unexcused absences is a ground for removal; the 1-in-10 and 1-in-4 lines are ours, stated here |
| Still there? | Whether the person still holds the seat they were elected to, for the same party | Yes | Changed party or seat | Left before the end of the term | Municipal Structures Act, s27 (vacancies) |
Attendance is parsed automatically from each council's own minutes and spot-checked. It exists only for councils that publish minutes; the councillor page says so when they do not. If a name was misread, use the correction form on the page.
What we refuse to do
No composite score, no stars, no league table of councillors. Councils are compared on each measure separately, against the published norm and against the other councils in the same province. Thresholds change only with a note on this page.