[Government Insider] Ahead of Budget Review, "Monthlong Stay" Near National Assembly... 180-Plus Officials on the Move

Interagency tensions over next year's budget begin early this month
Hundreds descend on Yeouido, including local government officials

In early November, government officials scramble to secure accommodation around Yeouido before interagency tensions over next year’s budget proposal begin. The budget season starts with the president’s address on the budget proposal on November 2, followed by the Special Committee on Budget and Accounts’ comprehensive policy questioning on November 4, ministry-by-ministry reviews on November 9, and the Budget Bill Adjustment Subcommittee through November 16. The process typically lasts nearly a month.

During budget reviews, even a change to one figure can trigger adjustments to related projects, the overall budget and the allocation of funds. That is why staff responsible for a particular project alone cannot handle the workload. This is also why a large number of employees from the Budget Office of the Ministry of Planning and Budget stay near the National Assembly. Senior officials at the division-chief level and above answer lawmakers’ questions and submit additional materials. When requests are made to cut or increase spending, they must also consult with their ministry to prepare a response. Administrative officers likewise wait near the National Assembly to prepare for questions about the projects they oversee. The number of Budget Office staff who book accommodation for a month is said to reach about 180.

The problem is that finding a room is like “looking for a star in the sky.” Hundreds of people descend on Yeouido, including not only Budget Office staff from the Ministry of Planning and Budget but also budget officials from every ministry and civil servants from local governments. Many also need to visit lawmakers’ offices to secure funding for local projects. Rather than having their ministries book and assign hotel rooms in bulk, officials make their own reservations, submit receipts and claim reimbursement for travel expenses. Accommodation costs are also substantial. Under the regulations on civil servants’ travel expenses, the lodging allowance for a business trip to Seoul is capped at around 100,000 won per night, but business hotels around Yeouido commonly charge well over 100,000 to 150,000 won per night during this period. Officials have to negotiate directly with hotels to find discounted rooms or look for civil servant discounts. “If we can’t find a place near the National Assembly that offers a discount for long-term stays, we have to pay the difference ourselves,” said an administrative officer at the Ministry of Planning and Budget.

Once hotels near Yeouido are booked, officials are pushed to accommodation in surrounding areas such as Yeongdeungpo. The farther they stay from the National Assembly, the longer their commute. During the day, they move between meeting rooms and offices, prepare materials and respond to lawmakers’ questions. If reviews run late, it is also common for them to stay at the National Assembly until close to midnight. “It took about 30 minutes to walk from my accommodation to the National Assembly, but I had few other options because I finished work late at night and went there only to sleep,” said a division chief who stayed near Yeouido for about a month during last year’s budget season.

The accommodation scramble recurs every year during budget review season. The National Assembly and government ministries are physically far apart, and the lengthy review schedule inevitably adds to the burden on civil servants staying in Seoul. Some say that moving the National Assembly to Sejong would reduce civil servants’ accommodation burden, but could instead create difficulties for parliamentary aides and other related personnel who need to stay in Seoul. Critics say the fundamental solution is to reform the practice of concentrating budget reviews at the end of the year. Under the current process, reviews make little progress for more than a month after the government submits its budget proposal to the National Assembly in late September, only to accelerate as the December 2 statutory deadline approaches. They argue that the review period should be extended so ministries can begin their assessments and resolve contentious issues earlier, easing the year-end bottleneck.

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