Governor Choo Mi-ae Visits National Assembly to Request 244.6 Billion Won Increase in National Funding

Gyeonggi Province Governor Choo Mi-ae visited the National Assembly to request an increase of 244.6 billion won in the 2027 national budget allocation for major provincial projects.

According to Gyeonggi Province on the 10th, Governor Choo met with National Assembly Special Committee on Budget and Accounts Chairman Lee Kwang-jae on the 9th. She explained ten key projects proposed for national funding, such as support for labor inspector personnel expenses, and formally requested support.

Immediately upon meeting with Chairman Lee, Governor Choo greeted him by saying, "We're in trouble," and then laid out the list of major national budget projects for 2027, detailing the need for support for each project.

The first item Governor Choo raised was support for labor inspector personnel expenses. Gyeonggi Province plans to hire 170 labor inspectors by the end of the year and deploy them to worksites in the first half of next year; however, personnel expenses were not included in the government budget proposal. On this day, Governor Choo emphasized the need for 20.5 billion won in national funding, noting that this is a state-delegated task.

For the delinquent tax collection support project, she requested 4.8 billion won, representing 50% of the national funding share. Governor Choo explained that since this project includes hiring temporary personnel as well as conducting surveys on livelihood-based delinquent taxpayers, government support is essential in strengthening the social safety net.

She also requested expanded support for the management costs for the National Sports Festival and National Para Games, which will be held in Gyeonggi Province next year. Governor Choo appealed that, given the depletion of the integrated fiscal fund and increased local bond issuance, it would be difficult to host the National Sports Festival—which alone requires 50 billion won in operating costs—under the current fiscal conditions. She asked for an additional 27.2 billion won over the 10.9 billion won already reflected in the government budget proposal.

Gyeonggi Province Governor Choo Mi-ae met with National Assembly Budget Committee Chairman Lee Kwang-je on the 9th to request support for national budget projects, and they are taking a commemorative photo together. Provided by Gyeonggi Province

Additionally, she called for an increase or new allocation for seven other projects: 46.4 billion won for improvement of areas vulnerable to natural disasters; 45.3 billion won for the Metropolitan Express Bus semi-public operation plan; 63.7 billion won for supplementary Nuri curriculum childcare subsidies; 5.1 billion won for integrated support for medical and nursing care; 9.7 billion won for maintenance of national rivers; and 4.1 billion won for resident support in development-restricted areas.

Along with the request for national funding, Governor Choo explained Gyeonggi Province's difficult fiscal situation and emphasized the need to restructure the province’s revenue base. She pointed out that, following the nationalization of fire officials, Gyeonggi bears more than 1.1 trillion won in annual personnel and project costs as over 20% of the nationwide workforce is concentrated in the province. She also noted that, unlike Seoul, Gyeonggi has a fragile local corporate income tax base, resulting in 51% of its tax revenue relying on real estate acquisition tax.

Chairman Lee replied, "We'll look into it closely," and pledged active efforts regarding the expansion of the rail network in northern Gyeonggi, child care, and support for residents in development-restricted areas. He then said that, after confirming the position of the Ministry of Economy and Budget, further discussions would be pursued with Gyeonggi Province.

The two officials also agreed on the necessity of improving policies and conducting research in response to demographic and revenue changes in the Seoul metropolitan area, and decided to organize a policy research seminar.

Previously, in July, Gyeonggi Province also held a briefing at the National Assembly for the staff of local district lawmakers to explain major national funding projects for 2027, continuing its efforts to secure government funds.

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