Tuesday, 1 April, 2025
Budget and Appropriations Committee concludes public hearings on the Division of Revenue Bill, 2025𝐅𝐫𝐢𝐝𝐚𝐲, 𝐌𝐚𝐫𝐜𝐡 𝟐𝟖, 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟓.
The Budget and Appropriations Committee, chaired by Hon. Samuel Atandi (Alego Usonga), has concluded receiving submissions from stakeholders and members of the public regarding the Division of Revenue Bill, 2025.
During the hearings, the Council of Governors (CoG) proposed an increase of Kshs. 131.78 billion in the County Equitable Share for the Financial Year 2025/26. This would raise the allocation from the Treasury's proposed Kshs. 405.1 billion to Kshs. 536.88 billion.
According to Hon. Fernandes Barasa, the Kakamega County Governor and Chairperson of the CoG Finance Committee, the proposed allocation does not align with the growth trends in both Ordinary Revenues and GDP."Between the FY 2020/21 and 2024/25, counties' equitable share has grown by a marginal Kshs. 70.9 billion.
During the same period, ordinary revenue has grown from Kshs. 1.8 trillion to Kshs. 2.6 trillion and is now projected at Kshs. 2.8 trillion for FY 2025/26. We therefore urge the National Assembly to review the resource allocation framework to align with macroeconomic and growth trends," argued Governor Barasa.
Accompanied by Nandi County Governor Hon. Stephen Sang, Governor Barasa also decried the reliance on outdated audited accounts for revenue-sharing."For instance, the Equalization Fund allocation is directly affected by the last audited accounts, which are now five years behind.
The Council, therefore, calls upon the National Assembly, which is constitutionally mandated to approve the accounts, to fast-track consideration and approval of audited accounts as submitted by the Office of the Auditor-General," he added.
The Budget Committee Vice-Chairperson, Hon. (Dr) Robert Pukose (Endebess), raised concerns over the persistent delays in payments to Community Health Promoters (CHPs). Governor Barasa noted that the challenge varies across counties.
"I think this is country-specific. In some counties, the national government is behind, while in others, the county government is behind schedule in terms of payments. That is why I am proposing a neater way where one CHP gets his or her allowance at once from the same source, with signatories from both levels of government," he explained.
The Commission on Revenue Allocation (CRA), led by Vice-Chairperson Commissioner Koitamet Olekina and Commissioner Hon. Fatuma Gedi, proposed an increase of Kshs. 12.3 billion to county allocations, bringing the total to Kshs. 417.4 billion. They also recommended a reduction of the National Government's allocation from Kshs. 2.419 trillion to Kshs. 2.410 trillion.
"The decline in the share of allocations to County Governments negatively impacts their ability to improve service delivery and amounts to a clawback on the objectives of devolution," stated Commissioner Olekina.
The CRA was also questioned about the formula used in the Equalization Fund and delays in implementing public participation projects. Commissioner Gedi attributed the delays to court challenges by some counties and political interference in project selection.
"We want to correct that mess by conducting proper public participation, assessing the status of initial projects, and using that information to develop better criteria moving forward," said Commissioner Gedi.
The Committee is set to table its report on the Division of Revenue Bill, 2025, on Tuesday next week when the House resumes sittings after a short recess.