The Office of the Attorney General and Department of Justice has revised its budget downward by Sh55.95 million under the Supplementary Estimates No. I for the 2025/2026 financial year.
Appearing before the National Assembly Committee on Justice and Legal Affairs on March 10, 2026, Solicitor General Shadrack Mose said the revised estimates will reduce the State Law Office budget from Sh5.386 billion to Sh5.330 billion.
The Solicitor General told the committee that the revision only affected the recurrent budget, while the development budget remained unchanged at Sh300 million.
According to Mose, personnel emoluments were reduced by Sh126.45 million after the office surrendered part of its allocation to the State Department for Justice, Human Rights and Constitutional Affairs.
Mose told lawmakers that some areas received additional funding, including operations and maintenance, which increased by Sh15 million to support expenses related to the selection and appointment of the Waqf Commission following a presidential directive.
Another Sh15 million was allocated to the Kenya School of Law to support the Higher Education Loans Board (HELB) fund for students.
The office also recorded an upward review of Appropriation-in-Aid by Sh40.5 million, including Sh37.5 million for the Kenya School of Law and Sh3 million for the Nairobi Centre for International Arbitration.
Mose further told the committee that the State Law Office had not received any withdrawals under Article 223 of the Constitution.
“We submit that the Office has not been granted any funds pursuant to Article 223 of the Constitution,” Mose said.
On pending bills, the office disclosed that it began the 2025/2026 financial year with outstanding bills amounting to Sh120.3 million, out of which Sh63.5 million has already been paid, leaving a balance of Sh56.7 million.
“At the beginning of FY 2025/26 the Office had pending bills worth Sh120,297,615. To date, the office has processed and paid pending bills amounting to Sh63,533,807, leaving a balance of Sh56,763,808.”
The SG said that most of the pending bills relate to air tickets and conference facilities.
Despite the revised budget, the Solicitor General told the committee that the State Law Office still faces major financial constraints and has requested additional funding of Sh616.27 million to support its operations and development projects.
“Execution of the Office's mandate is highly constrained due to inadequate budget allocation,” Mose remarked.
He urged the committee to support the request to enable the office to effectively carry out its constitutional mandate of providing legal services to the government and public institutions.
“We request the committee’s intervention and support in addressing the above shortfall in the areas outlined to facilitate the smooth execution of the office mandate.”
The State Law Office also indicated that it is implementing several development projects, including automation of legal services, refurbishment of Sharia House, and the construction of an ultra-modern library and moot court facility at the Kenya School of Law in Karen.