Kim Miae Sponsors BAI Act Amendment to "Strengthen NEC Audits"

Follow-up legislation to the "Act to Protect the People's Right to Participate in Politics"
Establishes basis for cooperation between the NEC audit committee and the BAI

Kim Miae, a lawmaker from the People Power Party, sponsored an amendment to the Board of Audit and Inspection Act on November 11. The bill seeks to strengthen accountability for audits and inspections of the National Election Commission (NEC) and establish a framework for cooperation between the Board of Audit and Inspection (BAI) and a new independent audit committee now being pursued.

The amendment is follow-up legislation to the full amendment to the National Election Commission Act, dubbed the Act to Protect the People’s Right to Participate in Politics, which Kim sponsored last month as the People Power Party’s official position. The previously proposed bill would reorganize the NEC’s internal audit office into a statutory collegiate audit committee in which external experts make up a majority.

People Power Party lawmaker Kim Miae. Photo by Kim Hyunmin.

In line with the planned overhaul of the NEC’s audit system, the latest amendment to the Board of Audit and Inspection Act revises the scope of the BAI’s inspections of official duties and the framework for using the results of its accounting audits. It explicitly excludes NEC officials from the civil servants subject to the BAI’s inspections of official duties and clarifies the respective authority of the BAI and the NEC’s audit committee. The BAI would, however, retain its authority to audit the NEC’s accounts.

In particular, the bill would require the BAI to notify the new audit committee of the results whenever it completes an accounting audit of the NEC. At the committee’s request, the BAI could provide necessary support, including audit personnel, audit materials, and advice on audit plans and methods. The aim is to make use of the BAI’s expertise and accounting audit findings in the NEC’s internal audits and inspections.

In connection with the full amendment to the NEC Act, Kim previously sponsored amendments to eight other laws, including the Public Official Election Act, the Referendum Act, and the National Finance Act. Key provisions include reorganizing the system following the abolition of eup, myeon, and dong-level election commissions; retaining and allowing access to records and video footage on the management of election materials such as ballots and ballot boxes; and ensuring the budgetary independence of the audit committee.

“The NEC’s status as an independent constitutional body should not mean that audits and inspections are left solely to its own internal judgment,” Kim said. “While respecting the NEC’s independence, we must also ensure accountability commensurate with that independence and establish an independent system of audits and inspections.”

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