Rates accounted for the highest collection per revenue stream at Sh1.87 billion followed by Single Business Permits (SBPs) at Sh1.58 billion while parking fees hit Sh1.54 billion.
The Sh8.52 collection was the lowest since the onset of devolution in March 2013 and marked the first dip below Sh10 billion, pushing City Hall to increase reliance on taxpayers to meet obligations like paying salaries.
KRA — the principal collector of City Hall’s revenues since March had earlier warned that the coronavirus disruptions will drastically hit revenues.
City Hall internal revenue from items like parking and business permits for the year ended June fell to its lowest since start of devolution on the back of the coronavirus economic disruptions.
Data from the county’s Finance department shows that the Governor Mike Sonko-led administration’s own-source revenue (OSR) stood at Sh8.52 billion in the period, a fall of Sh1.72 billion from Sh10.24 billion collected a year earlier.
Rates accounted for the highest collection per revenue stream at Sh1.87 billion followed by Single Business Permits (SBPs) at Sh1.58 billion while parking fees hit Sh1.54 billion.
The Sh8.52 collection was the lowest since the onset of devolution in March 2013 and marked the first dip below Sh10 billion, pushing City Hall to increase reliance on taxpayers to meet obligations like paying salaries.
The revenue report came in the wake of Covid-19 restrictions including ban on mass gatherings, travel curbs and closure of bars and nightclubs.
This led to closure of businesses that pay Nairobi permit fees and reduced parking revenues on reduced traffic to the city centre due to job cuts and the push to work from home.
“The global Covid-19 pandemic greatly hampered revenue collection and enhancement initiatives due to business closures and lock-downs across the county,” Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) said.
KRA — the principal collector of City Hall’s revenues since March had earlier warned that the coronavirus disruptions will drastically hit revenues.
The fall comes at a time City Hall introduced its internal collection system that was however, hit by hitches that prevented motorists and residents from paying for parking and other services leading to daily loss of millions of shillings between June and July last year.
City Hall introduced the new internal system to collect levies and fees on June 10 last year following the expiry of its five-year contract with electronic payment firm, JamboPay.
The Sonko administration had said that the move would save City Hall millions of shillings paid as commission to JamboPay, but the system hitches cost Nairobi tens of millions of shillings daily from parking and rates among others.
Failure to hit revenue targets at City Hall have also been blamed on corrupt officials who collude with motorists and businesses and weak resources to nab defaulters.
In March, KRA took over the mandate of collecting all levies and taxes paid to City Hall for a two-year period after Mr Sonko— barred from office over graft charges last December— handed over key county functions to the State.
The transferred functions are health, transport, public works, utilities and ancillary as well as the planning and development sectors.
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Note: The results are not exact but very close to the actual.
