A/HRC/18/33 split between the national and local levels of Government, depending on the designation of revenue-raising authority and responsibilities for implementation. 56. Tariffs make up an important component in financing water and sanitation services. However, other individual contributions must also be considered. As far as piped water and sewerage systems are concerned, connection fees are common, and when relying on other forms of sanitation, such as pit latrines, the hardware as well as operation and maintenance - such as pit-emptying and disposal of faecal sludge - are commonly paid for by the users. 57. The human rights framework makes the extent to which revenue may be raised from tariffs dependent on what is affordable for the users. Subsidies play a crucial role in ensuring affordability when needed. Income support measures are one type of subsidy related to welfare systems and social assistance programmes. Some countries, such as Chile, use such general subsidies that operate on a means-testing basis. Tariff adjustment measures such as cross-subsidies can be incorporated into the tariff structure to lower the tariffs paid by low-income households for water or sewerage service provision, but only function if there is a sufficient number of better-off and paying households. 58. To gain a complete and reliable understanding of available financing, budget projections need to include anticipated revenue received from water tariffs and other charges for water and sanitation services. If revenue from tariffs does not cover all related costs, funds will need to come out of the general budgets at the national, subnational and/or local levels. General revenue is relevant both for capital investments and for subsidies that are not contained within the tariff system. 59. Often budgets are allocated along administrative lines corresponding to different ministries and departments. Due to the fragmented nature of responsibilities for water and sanitation, it is difficult to obtain a complete picture of resources for the sectors when these are combined with other budgets such as health. Moreover, in particular for rural sanitation, “off-budget” allocations are very common.36 60. A functional classification of the national budget would help to overcome some challenges. Such a classification would include all budgeting items that are going into the water and sanitation sectors across the different ministries and departments. In Nepal, civil society advocacy has been successful in securing a separate budget line for sanitation.37 A consolidated budget goes a step further by bringing in items that are not part of the central operating budget, such as the budget of separate, self-sustaining entities, for instance the regulatory authorities in some countries; budgets of subnational governments; and donor contributions, and thus provides a complete picture. 61. The same classification and comprehensiveness would be necessary for the local budget. This will often include transfers from the national to the local level. These transfers can take the form of conditional grants or block grants. Conditional grants are to be spent for specific purposes (for example water infrastructure), whereas block (or unconditional) grants are not intended to be used for a specific sector or project, but local government may decide to spend it on water and sanitation. Such transfers from the national to the local level should take account of regional disparities in terms of resources. If the national Government adopts a system of transfers, in accordance with human rights criteria it must ensure non-discriminatory distribution, including making additional resources available to regions with disadvantaged populations. Without such specific attention, Government transfers might widen regional differences and perpetuate discrimination. Furthermore, it is 36 37 UN-Water and WHO, GLAAS 2010 (note 9 above), p. 43. WaterAid, Budget Advocacy for the Water and Sanitation Sector in Nepal: A Primer for Civil Society Organizations (2010), p. 37. 15