Choo Miae Meets Mayors and County Governors Ahead of Next Year’s Budget Planning: “We Will Communicate and Listen”

Gyeonggi Province Governor Choo Miae invited representatives of cities and counties ahead of the formulation of next year’s main budget, disclosed the province’s fiscal situation, and asked them to work together to address its financial challenges.

Governor Choo made the remarks at her first meeting with the executive members of the Mayors and County Governors’ Council on the afternoon of October 21 at Dodamso in Paldal-gu, Suwon.

The executive members are Council Chair Choi Dae-ho (Mayor of Anyang); Vice Chairs Min Kyung-sun (Mayor of Goyang), Kim Bora (Mayor of Anseong), and Seo Taewon (Gapyeong County Governor); Secretary-General Lim Byeong-taek (Mayor of Siheung); Auditor Jeon Jin-seon (Yangpyeong County Governor); and Spokesperson Jung Myung-geun (Mayor of Hwaseong).

Governor Choo first disclosed Gyeonggi Province’s fiscal situation, saying, “Next year, even assuming that we issue local government bonds up to the limit, we will still face a shortfall of more than 1 trillion won.” She explained the purpose of the meeting, adding, “I wanted to share these circumstances and discuss them with you.”

She continued, “The projects that need to be prioritized and their relative importance will differ from one region to another. Fiscal capacity also varies greatly among cities and counties, so we need to communicate and carefully assess each project’s necessity and the financial burden it entails. We have not set a uniform percentage for provincial subsidies. We will look at the circumstances of each city and county individually, alongside the relative importance of each project.”

She added, “Gyeonggi Province has not made any decisions in advance. We will listen to opinions through the council, and we can make any necessary revisions. For problems that cannot be resolved through expenditure restructuring alone, we can seek help from the central government and address them through legislative improvements. Let’s raise our concerns with the government together. That should help the government understand our situation.”

On the issuance of local government bonds, she stressed, “There is a misconception that I am opposed to issuing local government bonds. Let me reiterate: the premise is that we will still face this level of fiscal shortfall even if we issue bonds up to the permitted limit. The government also needs to improve the system to enable bond issuance. Let’s strengthen communication so we can speak with one voice in calling for these improvements.”

Gyeonggi Province Governor Choo Mi-ae discusses pending issues with executives of the Association of Mayors and County Governors at Dodamso on the 21st. Provided by Gyeonggi Province.

Choi Dae-ho, chair of the Mayors and County Governors’ Council, said, “Gyeonggi Province and its cities and counties must pool their wisdom to ensure that budgets for people’s livelihoods, which directly affect residents’ lives, are not curtailed. As a practical communication channel connecting all 31 cities and counties, we will faithfully convey their views and fulfill our role.”

The council raised the fiscal burden on cities and counties resulting from adjustments to provincial subsidy rates as an issue of concern and called for a thorough review that takes into account each locality’s financial circumstances and the characteristics of its projects.

In response, Gyeonggi Province said it would carefully review the appropriate subsidy rate for each project and apply supplementary differential subsidy rates to cities and counties facing difficult fiscal conditions. It also plans to comprehensively review submissions from all 31 cities and counties, distinguishing between projects that require support and those that should be scaled back or discontinued.

Participants also discussed establishing a Future Response Fund using additional tax revenue generated by the semiconductor boom. The Mayors and County Governors’ Council expressed support for the fund’s purpose but voiced concern that reduced local allocation tax revenues could weaken local governments’ fiscal autonomy and stability.

Gyeonggi Province agreed that the fund should be designed so as not to reduce local government finances. It also plans to urge the central government to take each region’s contribution to tax revenue generation into account when allocating funds for regional projects.

Gyeonggi Province plans to review the proposals made by the Mayors and County Governors’ Council and develop reasonable measures for improvement and support.

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