MPs approve Sh227bn for the counties
What you need to know:
- The Division of Revenue Bill will now be sent to the President for assent.
- When the Bill was passed, MPs agreed to remove the provision that some Sh3.4 billion be allocated as a conditional grant for the 11 hospitals.
The National Assembly on Thursday evening approved allocation of Sh226.6 billion to the counties for the next financial year, and for the national government to give 11 counties hosting regional referral hospitals an additional Sh1.87 billion.
The recommendations of the joint mediation committee were nearly lost after Cord MPs angry at their treatment by Deputy Speaker Joyce Laboso voted to reject the report.
Some MPs in the Opposition joined the Jubilee side in calling for a physical vote, but when the votes were called in, the motion to adopt the report was passed 79-3 with six MPs refusing to vote.
SENT TO PRESIDENT
This means that the Division of Revenue Bill will now be sent to the President for assent. This would unlock the allocation of funds to the counties, which will then share it according to the County Allocation of Revenue Bill.
The County Allocation of Revenue Bill will be considered first by the Senate, with the National Assembly not expected to contest it because the county allocations are based on a set formula.
The creation of the mediation committee was necessitated by the rejection by the National Assembly of the Senate’s amendments to the Division of Revenue Bill, mainly concerning the funding for Level Five hospitals.
When the Bill was passed, MPs agreed to remove the provision that some Sh3.4 billion be allocated as a conditional grant for the 11 hospitals.
