CRA Sets New Automation Rules to Boost County Revenue Collection

The Commission on Revenue Allocation (CRA) has introduced stringent guidelines requiring all counties to adopt automated revenue collection systems. The move aims to eliminate revenue leakages, unify fragmented systems, and enhance transparency in county own-source revenue streams.

Key Requirements for County Revenue Systems

• Counties must fully own their County Revenue Management Systems (CRMS), including infrastructure and vendor contracts.
• CRMS must register taxpayers linked to National ID, KRA PIN, and Business Registration numbers.
• The system should support multi-stream billing, mobile money, cards, USSD, agency banking, and provide instant receipts.
• Daily bank reconciliations, aging reports, and automated debt enforcement with GPS-stamped field activities are mandatory features.
• Systems must operate at least 99.5% uptime monthly and handle up to 1,200 peak transactions per second.
• Offline functionality with secure synchronization is required to ensure uninterrupted service.

Security and Compliance Measures

• All revenue data must be encrypted, with multi-factor authentication for system administrators.
• Quarterly security scans and integration with national databases such as IFMIS, IPRS, BRS, NTSA, and GIS are compulsory.
• Procurement processes must adhere to the Public Procurement and Asset Disposal Act, favor open standards, and include source-code escrow to avoid vendor lock-in.
• Contracts must specify service-level agreements covering system uptime, incident response, and knowledge transfer.

Oversight and Enforcement

Counties are required to form Joint Technical Committees led by their Treasury departments to oversee system implementation. The CRA will monitor compliance through quarterly reports, while the Auditor General will conduct annual audits.

Performance indicators include automatic transaction posting, at least 80% user satisfaction, and no unresolved critical security incidents. Counties failing to comply will receive formal notices with 90 days to address breaches. Continued non-compliance may lead to escalation to the Intergovernmental Budget and Economic Council.

These guidelines supersede previous CRA directives and were developed in consultation with the National Treasury, Council of Governors, Auditor General, Controller of Budget, and ICT Authority.