Will the 4th Supplementary Budget Pass on the 18th... 'Lump-Sum Payment of Communication Fees' as the Biggest Issue

Ruling Party Aims for Payment Before Chuseok... Speeding Up
Opposition Party Sets 'Lightning Review' Rules... Announces Thorough Examination

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyemin] The National Assembly will begin reviewing the 4th supplementary budget (supplementary budget) worth 7.8 trillion won starting on the 14th.

The ruling Democratic Party, which submitted the supplementary budget and held consultations with the government and ruling parties, has set a goal to complete the review swiftly by the 18th. This is to provide the second round of emergency disaster relief funds before Chuseok. While opposition parties such as the People Power Party agree on the need for swift processing, they have clearly opposed a "rush review." A fierce battle between the ruling party pushing for speed and the opposition party promising a thorough review is expected.

The review of the 4th supplementary budget will officially begin with Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun's policy speech on the day. The Democratic Party plans to conduct preliminary reviews by standing committees over two days, comprehensive policy questioning by the Special Committee on Budget and Accounts on the 16th, detailed review by the Budget Subcommittee on the 17th, and pass the supplementary budget at the plenary session on the 18th. They aim to conduct an intensive review over five days.

The core of the 4th supplementary budget is the support for the second round of emergency disaster relief funds. Unlike the first round, which was provided to all citizens, this time the ruling and opposition parties agreed on selective payments targeting vulnerable groups affected by the resurgence of COVID-19, so smooth passage was initially expected.

However, the mood changed when a "uniform payment of 20,000 won for communication expenses" for those aged 13 and older was added at the last minute. The People Power Party has labeled this a populist policy and intends to effectively exclude it during the Budget Committee review process.

On the same day, Budget Committee People Power Party whip Choo Kyung-ho said on MBC radio, "This is a typical indiscriminate populist budget," and pointed out that the item should be deleted or replaced with other support. He argued that the budget should be used to supplement alternatives such as "free nationwide flu vaccinations," or to address controversial issues like payment discrimination between individual and corporate taxi drivers and differential payments by industry.

Rep. Choo stated, "(Passing on the 18th) depends on how seriously the government and ruling party listen to and accept the issues raised here and there," adding, "Usually, supplementary budgets take at least 2 to 3 weeks even if submitted quickly, but since this involves precious taxpayer money borrowed by the country, we will carefully scrutinize it to ensure it is not wasted." He indicated that if the plan for uniform communication expense payments is not withdrawn, a speedy review will be difficult.

On the 25th, a full meeting of the Special Committee on Budget and Accounts was held at the National Assembly. Photo by Yoon Dong-ju doso7@

On the other hand, the government and ruling party have effectively ruled out a full withdrawal of the "uniform communication expense payment." They focused on explaining concerns raised on the day. Lee Ho-seung, Chief Presidential Secretary for Economic Affairs, emphasized in response to criticism that "telecom companies will only get richer," that "telecom companies are merely the channel through which the support funds are delivered. Whether the government provides support or not, they neither gain nor lose." Rep. Park Beom-gye also explained in response to criticism that "the economic multiplier effect of stimulating consumption is low," that "since 20,000 won of communication fees are saved, there is a greater possibility that people will spend money they originally had."

Democratic Party leader Lee Nak-yeon and People Power Party emergency committee chairman Kim Jong-in agreed on the principle of "processing the 4th supplementary budget as urgently as possible and making efforts to ensure that many citizens receive disaster relief funds before Chuseok," but since the ruling and opposition parties have significantly different positions, intense debates are expected during the review process. The ruling party plans to conduct preliminary reviews by standing committees by the 15th, but the fact that only the Administrative Safety Committee and the Environment and Labor Committee are currently scheduled shows that smooth processing is unlikely.

In addition to the uniform payment to telecom companies, other contentious issues likely to arise include ▲the selective criteria for disaster relief funds continuously raised by small business owners and micro-entrepreneurs ▲the demand from the National Association of City and Provincial Governors for uniform payments to 12 high-risk industries such as entertainment bars and colatecs ▲and the backlash from corporate taxi drivers excluded from the support target.

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