Jung-gu to Rapidly Execute Over 3.7 Billion Won for Waste Collection and Transportation Fees of Cleaning Service Companies

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jong-il] Jung-gu, Seoul (Mayor Seo Yang-ho) announced that it has promptly executed four months' worth of waste collection and transportation fees for six cleaning subcontractors in the district.

Due to the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic, the floating population that used to fill tourist spots such as Myeongdong and Dongdaemun disappeared, leading to a decrease in the amount of waste generated. Consequently, the income from waste collection and transportation fees for local cleaning subcontractors also sharply declined.

The monthly income decrease for the six companies in March this year compared to the previous year amounted to about 198 million KRW, a 25% decrease from the previous year. The problem is that this phenomenon has not ended in just one month but continues. If the operations of cleaning subcontractors, such as garbage collection, are not smooth, the damage will directly affect local residents and citizens using our district.

Accordingly, to prevent wage arrears for cleaning subcontractors whose income has decreased and to ensure smooth business operations and stable cleaning work, the district prepaid about 3.718 billion KRW for four months' fees from March to June earlier this month on the 3rd.

The prepaid fees correspond to the collection and transportation fees for household waste and food waste, as well as the recycling collection and transportation agency business expenses.

Companies receiving the prepayment must prioritize paying wages to employed sanitation workers and strictly fulfill execution conditions such as purchasing masks and disinfectants for workers and improving facility environments like cleaning break rooms.

Along with this, the district is also considering various policies to alleviate the economic burden on local residents caused by the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic.

First, it will temporarily extend and reduce fines for voluntary payment of illegal parking violations.

The voluntary payment deadline for fines will be extended from the existing 40 days to 80 days, expanding the opportunity for a 20% reduction. The district plans to actively accept opinions if residents experiencing direct or indirect economic difficulties due to COVID-19 submit statements of opinion.

This will be implemented until the COVID-19 crisis level changes from 'serious' to 'caution,' excluding fines imposed in absolute no-parking zones such as child protection areas.

Also, the imposition of occupancy fees for street vendors under the real-name system will be temporarily deferred. The regular road occupancy fees scheduled to be imposed from May on street vendors in areas such as Dongdaemun, Myeongdong, Namdaemun Market, and the outskirts of Jung-in Market will be imposed starting in July, three months later. To reduce the burden on installment payers, interest on installment payments for the 2020 regular road occupancy fees will also be exempted for the time being.

Seo Yang-ho, Mayor of Jung-gu, said, "We are constantly considering economic quarantine measures to prevent the local economic downturn while conducting quarantine to block COVID-19 infections. Even after the end of COVID-19, we will focus administrative power on revitalizing the local economy through prompt budget execution and various support measures so that precious daily life can continue."

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