Cheruiyot’s Bold Move: New Bill Aims to Curtail Powers of Governors
On Wednesday, June 14, Senate Majority Leader Aaron Cheruiyot introduced a bill to limit the authority of county governments to enforce taxes and levies.
The County Governments (Revenue Raising Process) Bill of 2023 proposes the establishment of a four-member Inter-Agency Committee.
Each of the Cabinet Secretary of the National Treasury (currently Njuguna Ndung’u), the Intergovernmental Relations Technical Committee, the Council of Governors, and the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) will have the opportunity to nominate a member of the committee.
According to the senator, the committee will be responsible for evaluating and approving all county taxes and fees.
“Within three months of receiving the proposal under subsection (1), the Committee shall review the proposal and notify the County Executive Committee member in writing of its decision,” the bill stated.
At the same time, Cheruiyot proposed prohibiting the county government from issuing tax or licensing fee exemptions, including fines and penalties.
However, where statutes permit the exemption of any tax or licensing fee, the county treasury will be required to keep a record of each exemption, along with the reason for the exemption.
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In addition, the bill stipulated that the County Executive Committee member must report the waiver and the reason for the waiver within three months to the Auditor-General.
“When the federal government and a county government cannot agree on the proposed imposition or revision of a tax, fee, or charge, the federal government and county government shall follow the dispute resolution provisions of the Intergovernmental Relations Act.
“Any county tax or revenue-raising measure imposed by county governments before the effective date of this Act, including waivers and variations, shall be deemed to have been imposed, waived, or varied by this Act,” added Cheruiyot.
The bill, according to a lawmaker, will prohibit counties from exercising their revenue-raising authority in a manner that affects national economic policies, economic activities across county lines, or the national mobility of goods, services, capital, or labor.
Members of County Assemblies across the nation went on strike after the National Treasury ignored their demands, which included granting them financial autonomy to aid in the effective execution of their mandate.
In addition, the MCAs complained that they were being treated unfairly and that their pay packages and allowances were insufficient.
“We have sought a resolution, but none has been forthcoming. Francis Wambua, then-representative of the Kinani ward and chairman of the newly established Members of the County Assembly Congress, stated at the time, “We have no choice but to call on our members across all 47 counties to cease work immediately.”
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Cheruiyot’s Bold Move: New Bill Aims to Curtail Powers of Governors
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