"COVID-19 Disaster Support Must Be Fair and Prompt Without Discrimination Between Regions"

National Association of Mayors, County Governors, and District Heads Welfare Grand Compromise Special Committee to Issue Emergency Statement on 23rd Regarding Urgent Financial Support for Overcoming COVID-19 Disaster, Requesting "Central Government to Implement Nationwide with Rational and Unified Standards to Efficiently Resolve COVID-19 Crisis"

[Asia Economy Reporter Jong-il Park] The Special Committee on Welfare Grand Compromise of the National Association of Mayors, Governors, and District Heads (Chairman Yeom Tae-young, Mayor of Suwon) issued an urgent statement on the 23rd regarding the emergency financial support for disaster recovery to overcome the COVID-19 crisis. The statement requested that the government execute the support nationwide with uniformity and without regional discrimination, as the current approach of individual local governments advancing separately may result in disparities and unfair outcomes between regions.

The Special Committee noted that various local governments, including Seoul, are currently designing and providing support with different selection criteria, support amounts, and payment procedures to overcome the economic difficulties caused by COVID-19.

It was also understood that several metropolitan and basic local governments sympathetic to this support are preparing to implement similar systems.

While the Special Committee views the proactive movements of local governments positively, it evaluated that these have led to inconsistent and uncoordinated responses to a national issue, resulting in problems such as unreasonable beneficiary selection, irrational support amounts, and administrative waste due to complicated payment procedures.

Therefore, the Special Committee requested that the central government implement the emergency financial support nationwide based on rational and unified standards to efficiently resolve the COVID-19 crisis.

Chairman Yeom Tae-young stated that if the central government establishes a foundation through the implementation of emergency financial support for disaster recovery enabling our citizens to vigorously overcome the ‘COVID Boritgogae’ (COVID hardship period), local governments will, in turn, promote regional economic revitalization together with local small and medium enterprises and small business owners, while stably caring for socially vulnerable groups left in policy blind spots.

Since last year, the Special Committee on Welfare Grand Compromise has proposed a central-local government role division where the central government is responsible for nationwide universal benefits corresponding to the National Minimum, and local governments are responsible for social service policies reflecting regional characteristics.

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Urgent Statement from the Special Committee on Welfare Grand Compromise Regarding Emergency Financial Support for COVID-19 Disaster Recovery

A disaster experienced by all, support must be fair and prompt without regional discrimination.

COVID-19, which threatened the health and lives of the people, is now threatening the national economy and livelihoods. Small and medium enterprises face management difficulties. Vulnerable job groups such as non-regular workers, daily workers, and temporary workers are driven into mass unemployment and livelihood crises. Micro small business owners are losing sleep worrying about living expenses and rent.

In such an extraordinary crisis, extraordinary measures are needed. Just as in the past during the Boritgogae (grain shortage period) when relief grain was distributed to the people, there is growing social consensus that the government should implement emergency financial support to overcome this unprecedented national disaster, the ‘COVID Boritgogae.’

Some local governments have already proactively implemented cash support policies for disaster recovery. Seoul plans to provide emergency living support funds of 300,000 to 500,000 KRW per month to 1.17 million households with incomes below 100% of the median income. Chungnam Province plans to provide 1 million KRW per household to 150,000 local small business owners, transportation workers, and low-income groups.

Among basic local governments, Jeonju City plans to support about 50,000 vulnerable people with incomes below 80% of the median income with 527,000 KRW per person, and Hwaseong City plans to provide an average of 2 million KRW to 33,000 small business owners whose sales have decreased by 10% or more compared to the previous year. Additionally, Daegu, Gyeongnam, Gangwon, and Pohang are planning or implementing emergency financial support for disaster recovery.

The decisions of local governments to overcome the ‘COVID Boritgogae’ are very welcome. However, it should not be overlooked that this causes disparities in support between local governments. Most local governments that decided on emergency financial support are in relatively better financial conditions than others. Among the 17 metropolitan and 226 basic local governments, there is not a single leader who does not want to provide disaster relief payments to citizens during this national disaster. However, most local governments are in financial situations where such support is unimaginable. This only makes the situation more frustrating and painful.

Matters related to the life, body, and property of the people must guarantee equal benefits nationwide without regional discrimination. COVID-19 is a national disaster experienced equally by all citizens. The current approach of local governments acting individually according to their financial conditions will unintentionally lead to regional discrimination and unfair results.

Therefore, we request the central government to propose a more responsible financial support plan. Emergency financial support for disaster recovery must be implemented nationwide based on rational and unified standards. The scale and method of support can be reasonably adjusted based on our economy’s fundamentals and fiscal conditions. However, this agenda can only be discussed after the central government’s decisive decision.

The Welfare Grand Compromise Special Committee under the National Association of Mayors, Governors, and District Heads has proposed since last year that cash welfare corresponding to the National Minimum be implemented nationwide without discrimination under the central government’s responsibility, while local governments take charge of social service policies reflecting regional characteristics, sharing welfare and fiscal roles between central and local governments.

This principle must be applied more clearly at this unprecedented national disaster moment. If the central government establishes a foundation through emergency financial support for disaster recovery enabling our citizens to vigorously overcome the ‘COVID Boritgogae,’ local governments will, in turn, promote regional economic revitalization with local SMEs and small business owners and stably care for socially vulnerable groups left in policy blind spots.

Going forward, local governments belonging to the Welfare Grand Compromise Special Committee pledge to actively cooperate with the central government’s policies to overcome the COVID-19 disaster and strongly urge the central government once again to make decisive extraordinary measures to overcome this extraordinary crisis.

March 23, 2020

National Association of Mayors, Governors, and District Heads Welfare Grand Compromise Special Committee

(Chairman Yeom Tae-young, Mayor of Suwon; Secretary General Jung Won-oh, District Head of Seongdong-gu)

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