Define the gap and its period
An own-source revenue gap is the difference between a stated target and comparable actual collection. Identify the fiscal year, whether the target was revised, and the coverage of the collection figure. Historical national shortfalls should not be presented as current measurements.
Keep annual and interim periods separate. A county’s position can change when targets or reporting definitions change, even before a collection intervention is introduced.
Separate possible causes
A shortfall may reflect target assumptions, economic conditions, billing coverage, waivers, disputes, collection processes or reporting delays. It is not automatically fraud or an amount that software can recover.
Use source records to investigate each explanation. Interview the responsible officers and distinguish a documented finding from a hypothesis.
Trace the revenue workflow
Review the register of chargeable activities, the approved fee schedule, bill issue, payment references, receipt records, settlement and reconciliation. Identify where records fail to join or where exceptions remain unresolved.
Choose a small sample across revenue streams and compare source documents with the reported totals. Track unexplained differences and assign an owner and follow-up date.
Build a measured improvement case
Set a baseline for unresolved payments, reconciliation time, billing completeness and service turnaround. Define the proposed operational change and what evidence would support or reject the expected benefit.
The ROI calculator can help explore assumptions, but its outputs are scenarios rather than verified savings. Avoid counting the same benefit twice or treating every target shortfall as recoverable.
Connect the findings to procurement
Use the investigation to define system requirements, training needs and process changes. A useful demonstration should reproduce the county’s exceptions and show how responsibilities and records are maintained.
Compare county performance only with consistent source definitions and periods. The OSR comparison methodology guide explains the data checks needed before publishing a league table.
Sources and further reading
Reviewed 10 October 2026. Confirm current instruments and deployment requirements with the responsible specialists.