Town Councils Act 1988 · 2020 Revised Edition · Part 6 · Financial Provisions
47. Constitution of Town Council Fund
Feedback & supportLast amended by an amending law of 2021. 3 amendments in all.
For the purposes of improving, managing and maintaining the common property of the residential and commercial property in the housing estates of the Board, a Town Council must establish and maintain separate funds for improvements to and the management and maintenance of residential property and of commercial property; and such funds together constitute the Town Council Fund and are, with all property which is or may become vested in the Town Council, under the direction and control of the Town Council subject to the provisions of this Act.
common property
“common property”, in relation to any residential or commercial property in a housing estate of the Board, means so much of the land and all parts of any building of the Board as are not comprised in the flats in the building and, for any housing estate mentioned in section 77(4), in respect of which a handover notice issued under section 77 is in effect, and includes —(a)the columns, beams, supports, external walls, roofs and storage spaces, lobbies, corridors, stairs, stairways, fire escapes, entrances and exits;(b)firefighting and protection system;(c)the central and appurtenant installations for services such as power, light, sanitation and water;(d)the escalators, lifts, water tanks, pumps, motors, fans, compressors, ducts and all other apparatus and installations existing for common use;(e)the common facilities in the housing estate built for the use or enjoyment of the residents;(f)all recreational or community facilities, and gardens;(g)all directional signs and signboards;(h)the land appurtenant to the building and all other parts of the land intended for the use or enjoyment of the residents; and(i)such other property as may be prescribed,but does not include —(j)bus terminals and interchanges;(k)drains, sewers and lightings maintained by the Government;(l)swimming pools and other sports complexes;(m)public roads and parking places; and(n)such other property as may be prescribed;
All moneys received by a Town Council by virtue of this Act or any other Act must be paid into the Town Council Fund and all liabilities falling to be discharged by a Town Council must be discharged out of that Fund.
Town Council
“Town Council”, in relation to a Town, means the Town Council established under section 4 for that Town;
All moneys of the Town Council Fund that are not immediately required must be paid into the appropriate fund established under subsection (1) to which the moneys relate and be applicable only to meet such expenses and liabilities as are properly attributable to that fund.
Town Council Fund
“Town Council Fund” means the Town Council Fund constituted under section 47;
A Town Council must establish and maintain, as part of the Town Council Fund, separate sinking funds, each for residential property and for commercial property in the housing estates of the Board within the Town, to meet the expenditure and liabilities mentioned in subsection (8)(a).
From 1 April 2017, every Town Council must also establish and maintain, as part of the Town Council Fund, a sinking fund called a lift replacement fund, each for residential property and for commercial property in the housing estates of the Board within the Town —
residential property
“residential property” means any building or other premises vested in or belonging to the Board or any part of the building or premises which is permitted to be used pursuant to the Planning Act 1998 or any other written law wholly for the purpose of human habitation;
to meet the cost of —
any capital expenditure (including works, plant, equipment, appliances and insurance premiums) related to the replacement of lifts in those residential property or commercial property; or
lift upgrading works under Part 4A in those residential property or commercial property; and
to pay any principal or interest on moneys borrowed or raised by the Town Council for any capital expenditure mentioned in paragraph (a).
From 1 April 2017, every Town Council must pay into the lift replacement fund an amount out of moneys in the Town Council’s sinking funds established under subsection (4), being not less than an amount prescribed.
The Minister may, from time to time, prescribe the minimum amount of —
the conservancy and service charges which are paid, or are due and payable, or both, to a Town Council under section 53; and
any grants-in-aid made to a Town Council under section 56,to be paid or credited into the sinking funds and the lift replacement funds established under subsections (4) and (5), respectively, established for residential property and for commercial property.
A Town Council must not disburse any moneys —
from any sinking fund otherwise than for the purposes of meeting expenses or liabilities properly attributable to that sinking fund in respect of —
cyclical major repainting of any part of the common property of the residential property and commercial property in the housing estates of the Board within the Town;
renewal or replacement of any roofing system, water tanks, pumps and water supply system, electrical supply system and lightning protection system existing for common use or purposes of residents of the residential or commercial property in the housing estates of the Board within the Town;
major repairs and maintenance of the common property of the residential property and commercial property and boundary walls of the housing estates of the Board within the Town;
improvement contributions due to the Board in respect of general upgrading works carried out under Part 4A of the Housing and Development Act 1959 on any part of the common property in the housing estates of the Board within the Town; (v)any other works which may be prescribed from time to time; or
paying at the end of a financial year surpluses to any lift replacement fund as authorised by subsection (12) or by the Financial Rules;
from a lift replacement fund except for the purposes specified in subsection (5)(a) and (b); or
from the Town Council Fund except for the purpose of —
exercising its powers or carrying out its duties and functions under this Act or any other Act; (ii)paying any fine imposed on the Town Council upon its conviction for any offence; or
paying at the end of a financial year surpluses to any sinking fund or lift replacement fund as authorised by subsection (12) or by the Financial Rules.
Any Town Council which contravenes subsection (8)(a), (b) or (c) shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $5,000.
Despite anything in this section, a Town Council may, with the approval or on the direction of the Minister, disburse moneys from an operating fund of the Town Council —
to erect, install or plant (including landscaping) any facility;
to demolish and relocate any facility; or
to repair and maintain any facility erected, installed or planted,within the Town but outside of the common property of the residential and commercial property in the housing estates of the Board within the Town, provided that the owner of the property on which the facility is erected, installed or planted consents.
All payments to and out of the Town Council Fund must be made to and by the secretary who is responsible therefor to the Town Council.
secretary
“secretary” means any individual appointed by a Town Council under section 22 to be the secretary to the Town Council;
If at the end of a financial year of a Town Council, there is a surplus in an operating fund of the Town Council, or a surplus in a sinking fund of the Town Council established under subsection (4), the Town Council may do the following, whichever is applicable:
surplus
“surplus”, for any fund established under section 47, means an excess of the assets over liabilities of the fund at the end of a financial year;
transfer the whole or part of the surplus in the operating fund to a sinking fund established under subsection (4) or (5);
transfer the whole or part of the surplus in a sinking fund established under subsection (4) to a lift replacement fund established under subsection (5) to make good any deficit in the lift replacement fund.
Where an order is made under section 3(1) other than in consequence of any general election or by-election under the Parliamentary Elections Act 1954, and any residential or commercial property or any part of the common property thereof is transferred from the Town of one Town Council to the Town of another, the Town Councils may agree on the amount of the sinking fund relating to such property or such part to be transferred and paid to the Town Council to which the property or part is transferred; and in default of agreement the amount must be determined by the Minister whose decision is final.
commercial property
“commercial property” means any building or premises vested in or belonging to the Board (or part of such building or premises) which is permitted under the Planning Act 1998 to be used wholly or partly as —(a)a market, food centre, confectionery, bakery, restaurant or bar, or an eating house;(b)an office or a place of business and for conducting administrative work; or(c)a shop or premises for the carrying on of any trade or business where the primary purpose is the sale of goods by retail or the provision of services;Examples A furniture shop, department store, supermarket, dispensary, medical clinic, dental clinic, beauty salon, ticket agency, travel agency, laundry shop, dry cleaner’s shop, pet shop, video games arcade, computer gaming centre, billiard saloon, bowling alley, bank or multimedia kiosk, or an automated teller machine.(d)a place —(i)for the care or education, or care and education, of children below 7 years of age; or(ii)at which 5 or more school-going children who are 7 years of age or older but below 14 years of age are habitually received for the purposes of care and supervision before or after school hours;(e)premises —(i)for the reception, lodging and care of aged or disabled persons or persons suffering or convalescing from any sickness, injury or infirmity; or(ii)for any type of examination of the human body or of any matter derived from the human body for the purpose of providing information for the diagnosis, prevention or treatment of any disease or for the assessment of the health of any person;Examples A hospice, convalescent home or nursing home, or a dialysis centre, cancer screening centre or medical health centre.(f)a kindergarten registered under section 23 of the Education Act 1957 or an institution providing education or instruction;Examples A tuition centre, language school, computer school, music school, dance school, speech and drama school, child development centre or play school, or an art school or acting school.(g)a sports club, community centre, community club, family service centre or residents’ committee centre, or premises for community-based activities, and includes an office of such a club, centre or committee; or(h)a police post, fire station or civil defence centre,but excludes any property specified or described by the Minister, by order in the Gazette, as not to be a commercial property for the purposes of this Act;
In this section —
“commercial property” means any commercial property which does not form part of any residential property and includes any market and food centre;
“operating fund”, for a Town Council, means a fund that is established as part of the Town Council Fund of the Town Council but is not a sinking fund established by the Town Council under subsection (4) or (5).[33