The Government published in the Gazette today (October 24) the Waterworks (Amendment) Regulation 2014 to adjust 25 fees for services specified under the Regulation.
The revision covers the following categories:
(a) fees for making a connection to the water mains and installing a fire service or inside service on land held by the Government, including reinstatement of the ground surface;
(b) the fee for reconnecting a fire service or inside service;
(c) the fee for providing and installing a meter;
(d) the fee for providing a meter;
(e) the fee for resealing a fire service or meter;
(f) fees for testing a meter or a private check meter (including removal and refixing);
(g) the fee for plumber's licence issuance, renewal and examination;
(h) the fee for fishing licence issuance;
(i) fees for examination of a water sample;
(j) the fee for each attendance for collection of any water sample or samples; and
(k) the fee for providing an additional copy of an examination report.
"In line with the 'user pays' principle, it is the Government's policy that fees and charges should in general be set at levels sufficient to recover the full cost of providing the services. In order to achieve full cost recovery gradually and avoid a steep fee increase, the existing 25 fees for services that are non-livelihood related will be increased by about 4.6 per cent to 20.8 per cent," a spokesman for the Development Bureau said.
The Regulation will be tabled at the Legislative Council on October 29. Subject to approval by negative vetting, the revised fees will come into effect on January 1, 2015.
Ends/Friday, October 24, 2014
Issued at HKT 11:01
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