"Goyang Citizens' Welfare Foundation" Bill Rejected Again... Goyang City Faces Emergency in Meeting Welfare Needs of 386,000 Residents

Goyang City Council Rejects Welfare Foundation Bill for the Second Time
Foundation Launch Virtually Impossible Early Next Year
Concerns Grow Over Limitations of Current Welfare Delivery System
City Expresses Regret Over Obstruction of First Welfare Pledge of the Eighth Popularly Elected Administration

The "Ordinance Bill on the Establishment of the Goyang Citizens' Welfare Foundation," which Goyang Special City in Gyeonggi Province (Mayor Lee Donghwan) has been ambitiously pursuing to enhance citizen welfare, has failed to pass the city council's plenary session for the second time. Despite being resubmitted after revisions and supplementary measures following its rejection in March, the bill was ultimately voted down at the second plenary session of the 298th extraordinary meeting held on October 26, making the launch of the foundation effectively uncertain.

Exterior view of Goyang Special City Hall. Provided by Goyang Special City

According to the Ministry of the Interior and Safety's standards for establishing local government-funded institutions, basic matters regarding the foundation's establishment and operation must be stipulated by ordinance, and if the ordinance fails to pass, the establishment of such an institution is not permitted.

As of the end of September, Goyang Special City reported a total of 386,702 social welfare recipients, the highest beneficiary ratio among the five local governments in Gyeonggi Province with similar population sizes. In addition, there are 879 registered welfare facilities within the city according to the integrated social welfare information system, and when including unregistered facilities, organizations, and groups, the total reaches 2,484, the highest concentration among local governments in the province.

To respond efficiently to welfare demands and enhance the effectiveness of local welfare, it is urgent to establish a rational welfare system. If the Goyang Citizens' Welfare Foundation is established, a unified welfare organization will be created, and citizens will experience a significant upgrade in welfare services.

However, the "Ordinance Bill on the Establishment and Operation of the Goyang Citizens' Welfare Foundation," which was submitted as an agenda item for the 298th extraordinary meeting, was passed in its original form by the Culture and Welfare Committee, the relevant standing committee. Nevertheless, at the electronic vote held during the second plenary session on October 26, it was ultimately rejected, with 15 out of 34 council members in favor and 19 opposed.

During the debate opposing the foundation's establishment, Choi Kyujin, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, expressed opposition for several reasons: difficulties in improving administrative efficiency and ensuring policy continuity; concerns over increased financial burden and weakened public interest and accountability; and the perception that the initiative focuses more on political symbolism than genuine policy needs.

Conversely, Park Hyunwoo, a member of the People Power Party who spoke in favor of the foundation, argued that the city must promptly prepare for the establishment of the Goyang Citizens' Welfare Foundation to address several pressing welfare issues: rapidly changing population structure; the emergence of new social problems due to the sharp increase in single-person and elderly households; and the need for restructuring the social welfare budget.

Previously, in March, Goyang City submitted the "Ordinance Bill on the Establishment and Operation of the Goyang Citizens' Welfare Foundation" as an agenda item for the 292nd extraordinary meeting, but it was rejected for three reasons: the absence of a comprehensive evaluation of Goyang City's welfare delivery system; inadequacies in the ordinance bill itself; and insufficient planning regarding the foundation's organizational structure and budget.

The ordinance bill submitted for this extraordinary meeting was resubmitted after incorporating the city council's previous requests for revisions and improvements.

Regarding the lack of a comprehensive evaluation and strategy for the welfare delivery system, the plan is to conduct a diagnosis and develop solutions after the foundation is established. Overlapping and redundant projects will be streamlined, while essential projects to enhance citizen welfare will be maintained and expanded.

To address the inadequacies in the ordinance bill, most issues raised during the previous extraordinary meeting were reflected and revised, including the purpose of the project, project scope, operational funding, and the executive recommendation committee.

In particular, regarding concerns about insufficient planning for the foundation's organizational structure and budget, the Gyeonggi Research Institute had already concluded in its "Feasibility Study Report on the Establishment of the Welfare Foundation" in July of last year that the organization, personnel, and budget met the Ministry of the Interior and Safety's standards for establishing local government-funded institutions, and that the establishment plan was appropriate and feasible.

An official from Goyang Special City stated, "Goyang is one of the special cities with a rapidly increasing population, a large number of welfare recipients, and rapidly growing new welfare demands such as low birth rates, aging, and an increase in single-person households. Since the existing small-scale, conventional welfare system centered on government offices cannot respond quickly and flexibly, the establishment of the Goyang Citizens' Welfare Foundation is necessary for the formulation and implementation of strategic welfare policies."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.