Own Source Revenue (OSR) by counties have the potential of being a contributor to total revenues in respective counties and thereby supporting service delivery. CRA conducted a study to examine how counties performed on OSR during the first term of devolution (2013 -2017) in line with guidelines it had issued to help counties efficiently and effectively undertake revenue enhancement measures through automation of revenue management collection and administration. The study noted that counties that tried automation had mainly focused only on revenue collection. Little effort had gone towards automating revenue administration to ensure efficiencies, compliance and transparency.
Arising from the review, recommendations are made to help counties transform their revenue management strategies. These include: i) a focus on the fiscal contract and taxpayer service delivery experiences—creating a direct correlation between payment of taxes, fees, user charges and the expectation of quality and quantity of service delivered; ii) design and implement revenue collection and revenue administration systems and processes that are efficient and that comply with PFM regulations and guidelines; iii) review and improve revenue administration and governance structures; iv) identify skills gaps in revenue management and undertake capacity development; v) plan and implement a change management processes; and vi) assess, evaluate and monitor the impact of proposed solutions.
