By Pascal Ndegwa - Reporter
Kenya, October 19 ,2026 - President William Ruto has signed two important Senate bills into law at the State Lodge in Eldoret. The first is the County Governments Additional Allocation Bill of 2026.
The second is the County Assemblies Service Amendment Bill of 2023. Together, these laws change how money moves to the counties and how the people who work in county assemblies are treated.
The Additional Allocation Bill is about extra money. It allows the national government to send a total of seventy-one billion, ninety-one million, nine hundred and twenty-six thousand, nine hundred and sixty-seven shillings to the forty-seven county governments for the 2026/27 financial year. This is more than what counties received last year.
The increase is four hundred and twenty-five million, five hundred and ninety-nine thousand and eighty-one shillings. The money includes three kinds of funds. Some money comes as unconditional allocations that counties can use freely.
Some money is conditional, meaning it must be used for specific programmes agreed by both the Senate and the National Assembly. The rest comes from loans and grants given by development partners.
The law says the Cabinet Secretary for the National Treasury must publish a clear payment schedule so everyone knows when the money will be sent. All conditional allocations must first appear in the national budget and be approved by Parliament.
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The law also creates strong reporting rules. The Cabinet Secretary must publish a quarterly report on every transfer to counties within thirteen days after each quarter ends. County treasuries must record all the money they receive in their books and include it in their quarterly and annual reports. These rules are meant to make the movement of money open and easy to follow.
The second bill changes how county assemblies are managed. It amends the County Assembly Services Act. The new rules set out clear steps for removing members of the County Assembly Service Board. They also explain how a clerk of a county assembly can be suspended or removed.
The law protects county assembly staff, including those who are on secondment. These changes are meant to bring fairness and order. They follow the idea of fair administrative action that is already written in the Constitution.
These two laws matter because they touch the daily work of county governments. Extra money helps counties pay for services that people need every day. Clear rules for assemblies help protect staff and reduce confusion when leaders change. When money moves with clear records and staff are treated fairly, devolution works better for ordinary Kenyans.
The President signed both bills in Eldoret after Parliament finished its work. The laws are now ready to guide how counties receive extra resources and how their assemblies are run in the coming years.