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{
    "id": 1498171,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1498171/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 331,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Kikuyu, UDA",
    "speaker_title": "Hon. Kimani Ichung’wah",
    "speaker": null,
    "content": "As I was saying, this is by defining how the national Government, through the National Treasury and Economic Planning, may exercise its policy oversight role. The Bill further establishes the process whereby county governments may exercise their taxation authority. The national Government, through the National Treasury and Economic Planning, exercising its policy oversight role is bringing to effect or giving life to the provisions of that Article in our Constitution. The National Treasury and Economic Planning has a duty and a mandate to ensure that not a single county government, when it is imposing either a tax, levy or miscellaneous fees, will do so in a way that would jeopardise the greater national economic policies. The National Treasury and Economic Planning has that over-arching view or the bird’s eye view of the country across all the 47 counties. They have a supervisory and policy oversight role, which we are giving light to, with this Bill. Hon. Temporary Speaker, the Bill further regulates the exercise by county governments of their power to impose taxes, levies and duties by providing for the compliance by a proposed county government tax, fee, levy or miscellaneous charges, with the Constitution and the provisions of this Bill, and to ensure that the county governments’ proposals are dealt with as per Article 6(2) of the Constitution. Hon. Temporary Speaker, it is important to inform this House that the Bill does not set specific taxes that a county government may enact. As I have already pointed out, Article 209 of the Constitution is clear in terms of the kind of taxes a county government may impose, and those of the national Government. This Bill does not in any way try to set specific taxes that may be imposed by county governments. That is important because I heard when this Bill was being read for the First Time, and the Committee went for public participation, some concerns were raised that the national Government may want to impose taxes that would be determined by our county governments. That is already provided for in the Constitution. As I said in my opening remarks, no county government can impose VAT or Income Tax on anybody, but they can impose property taxes which is already provided for in the Constitution, and we are not seeking to do that in this Bill. The Bill is primarily concerned in regulating the process by which county government’s taxes would be imposed - just the process - so that in exercising that oversight role that I mentioned, county governments do not jeopardise our national interest or the other regional interests, because we are in the era of regional integration. This is possible just like I used the case examples of counties that border our regional neighbours who may impose charges. For instance, people in Loitokitok import tomatoes or onions from Tanzania. The County Government of Kajiado may impose charges on onions or tomatoes that are imported from our neighbouring country and jeopardise that greater interest of regional integration. There is a lot of mobility of both labour, capital and goods from this country to our neighbouring countries and, therefore, we must safeguard it. Hon. Temporary Speaker, Clause 2 of the Bill provides for the definitions of words or expressions used in the Bill in a technical sense. Members, therefore, need not to get confused as to the provisions of certain definitions as used in the Bill. Clause 5 of the Bill contains provisions relating to waivers and variations. It states that tax or licensing fee including fine or a penalty may not be varied except by a legislation. It contains important checks and safeguards for waivers or variations of any tax or licensing fees such as indicating reasons or policy objectives for the variation of waiver, the impact of the"
}