PARLIAMENT: SPECIAL APPROPRIATION, GENERAL FINANCE BILLS OPEN FOR SUBMISSIONS

PARLIAMENT: SPECIAL APPROPRIATION, GENERAL FINANCE BILLS OPEN FOR SUBMISSIONS

• 16 September 2026
• Parliament
• SA Legal Academy

Please note: 1) On 25 September 2026, the National Assembly Appropriations Committee issued a notice announcing that parliamentary hearings on the Second Special Appropriation (2025/26 Financial Year) Bill are scheduled to take place on 30 September 2026 – in anticipation of which submissions are sought by close of business the previous day. No explanation has been provided for this exceptionally short public commentary period. 2) On 18 September 2026, a backdated National Treasury media statement was published quoting Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana as having ‘noted’ the 17 September 2026 Constitutional Court judgment nullifying the 2024 Public Procurement Act on the grounds of insufficient public participation in the parliamentary process. According to the statement, in consultation with the National Assembly Speaker and NCOP Chair – and with the support of the National Treasury – the Minister will determine a ‘way forward’ in ongoing government efforts to advance public procurement legislative reform, guided by the Constitutional Court ruling. Against that backdrop, Public Procurement Act-related provisions in the General Finance Laws Amendment Bill may fall away.

The National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Finance and NCOP Appropriations Committee have issued notices calling for written submissions on two Bills:

• the Second Special Appropriation (2025/26 Financial Year) Bill (input deadline 6 October 2026, with parliamentary hearings expected to take place two days later), and
• the General Finance Laws Amendment Bill (input deadline 12 October 2026, with parliamentary hearings scheduled for the following day).

Providing for the allocation of an additional R10 bn to the Department of Mineral & Petroleum Resources for the 2025/26 financial year, the Second Special Appropriation (2025/26 Financial Year) Bill seeks to ensure adequate budgetary support for the Equalisation Fund, which was established under the 1977 Central Energy Fund Act to stabilise the cost of fuel to consumers. SA Legal Academy reported on the Bill in more detail when it was tabled in July 2026.

The General Finance Laws Amendment Bill seeks to:

• insert a chapter in the 2017 Financial Sector Regulation Act to provide for benchmark replacement and related matters, and
• extend the timeframe within which the Minister is required to review and report on the implementation of the yet-to-be-commenced 2024 Public Procurement Act.

SA Legal Academy also reported on this Bill in more detail when it was tabled in August 2026.

• NCOP Appropriations Committee notice
• National Assembly Finance Committee notice
• SA Legal Academy report on Second Special Appropriation (2025/26 Financial Year) Bill
• SA Legal Academy report on General Finance Laws Amendment Bill

Published by SA Legal Academy Policy Watch

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