Bensafrim Parish Assembly
17 July of 2026
POINT 6 – Draft Regulation and Table of Fees and Licenses
The Movement Lakes with Future recognizes that the Parish Council must have Regulations and a Table of Fees and Licenses that ensure the legal framework for the provision of its services and allow for balanced financial management.
However, We understand that the document submitted today for consideration by this Assembly presents significant weaknesses that justify our vote against.
Right away, the justification note is limited to stating that the rates were calculated based on economic-financial criteria, but does not present any technical study or concrete demonstration that allows us to understand the formation of the proposed values. It is not enough to invoke calculation formulas; it is necessary to justify, transparently, why each rate assumes the fixed amount.
Furthermore, several values in the table appear clearly high to us, not being demonstrated that they fully respect the principles of proportionality and legal equivalence that should guide the setting of fees by local authorities. In particular, there are very significant differences in relation to the values practiced by the Municipality of Lagos in comparable services, without the regulation providing any justification for these discrepancies.
We also understand that the Parish Council should have better considered the economic impact of these taxes on citizens, the families, local traders and associations, seeking a balance between the financial sustainability of the municipality and the contributory capacity of the population.
We also have reservations about the fact that the regulation allows future updates of rates whenever the Board deems it convenient, without defining objective criteria or limits that guarantee predictability and legal security for citizens.
In the same sense, the rules regarding exemptions and reductions remain excessively dependent on the executive's case-by-case assessment, when they should be based on criteria previously defined and uniformly applicable to all interested parties.
The value of fees applicable to cemetery services also deserves special concern.. From the comparison made with the Fee Table of the Municipality of Lagos, verify that, in several cases, the values now proposed by the Bensafrim Parish Council are around four times higher than those practiced in municipal cemeteries. This difference appears to be manifestly disproportionate and is not, in the regulations or in the respective justification note, any technical or economic-financial basis that explains it. It is not acceptable for parish residents to bear significantly higher charges for services of the same nature, especially at a particularly sensitive time for families, What is it like when a family member dies?. We understand, that's why, that rates should be revised downwards, approaching the values practiced by the Municipality of Lagos and respecting the principles of proportionality, justice and the contributory capacity of citizens.
The Movement Lakes with Future considers that a regulation of this nature must be based on three fundamental principles: transparency in the formation of rates, proportionality of the amounts charged and fairness in their application.
Unfortunately, We understand that the document presented today does not fully guarantee these principles, opting for a table of values that, in several cases, we consider it excessively and insufficiently substantiated.
For the reasons explained, the Lagos com Futuro Movement votes against the Draft Regulation and Table of Fees and Licenses of the Bensafrim Parish Council.