The House has adopted a report by the Committee of Finance to boost revenue collection at Mai Mahiu Cess for the County. The Committee, chaired by Hon John Maritim (Kamara), visited the Cess barrier on a fact-finding mission, with the objective of making recommendations on how to restructure Cess collection to enhance more revenue for the County.
During the fact-finding mission, the committee found that there were no proper records at the Cess barrier, no floodlights for night operations, and a poor Safaricom network, leading to delayed payments among other issues. As a result, the Committee recommended that the County Executive seal all the leakages and raise the average daily Cess target at the Mai Mahiu Cess barrier to Sh 1M from Sh 500,000.
To achieve this goal, the County Executive has been tasked with liaising with Safaricom to install a booster nearby the Cess barrier for better network connection and effective operations. They have also been directed to install floodlights for security purposes and ease of operation at night, provide a patrol car stationed at the barrier for efficient service delivery and equip officers with necessary tools of the trade like raincoats, flashlights, and Safaricom data.
The Committee also recommended establishing a Cess barrier at the Nakuru-Narok County border and on the road towards Narok County to curb the loss of revenue, introducing a levy on motor vehicles traversing the County towards other counties, upgrading the ICT systems to avoid system failure resulting in variation, and conducting a lifestyle audit on all revenue officers at the significant cess barriers within the County.
The County Executive has also been directed to install cameras at the Cess barrier to curb revenue pilferage and ensure that the County Integrated Monetary Evaluation Systems (CIMES) conduct regular spot checks to monitor revenue collection.
Finally, the Committee recommended that the County Executive should have royalties regulations in place to strengthen the operationalization of the Environmental Management and Coordination Act, 1999 (EMC) and Mining Act, 2016.
The recommendations made by the Committee are expected to strengthen revenue collection and enhance operational efficiency at the Mai Mahiu Cess barrier, benefiting the County Government and its residents.