Rep. Lee Byung-hoon's 3 Campaign Promise Bills All Passed Within 1 Year of Entering National Assembly

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Yoon Jamin] With the passage of the "Special Act on Student Loan Repayment After Employment" by the National Assembly on the 21st, all three bills pledged by National Assembly member Lee Byung-hoon (Gwangju Dong-gu Nam-gu Eul) have been passed within one year of his inauguration.

The three bills Lee pledged when running for the National Assembly election are the "Special Act on the Asia Culture Centered City," the "Small Business Protection Act," and the "Special Act on Student Loan Repayment After Employment."

Although the Small Business Protection Act and the Special Act on Student Loan Repayment After Employment, which support public platforms, are not under his jurisdictional standing committees, their passage through the National Assembly is seen as the pinnacle of his all-around activities.

The Special Act on the Asia Culture Centered City aims to normalize the operation of the National Asia Culture Center by firmly establishing its status as a national institution and unifying the organizational system under the center, thereby strengthening public functions such as exchange, research, and content creation among Asian countries and establishing a stable operational foundation.

The Small Business Protection Act, passed in March, provides a legal basis for the government and local governments to financially support the establishment of online platforms to revitalize small businesses, aiming to minimize burdens such as high fees and advertising costs associated with platform membership.

The amendment to the Special Act on Student Loan Repayment was proposed with the intention of alleviating the heavy burden of loan interest accrued during the enrollment period on young people's entry into society amid worsening youth unemployment.

It was enacted to allow anyone to have the opportunity for higher education according to their will and ability by taking out student loans and repaying them after employment. However, graduate students are not included in the target of student loans, and loan eligibility is determined by strict criteria such as household income quintile, credits, grades, and ranking, resulting in situations that do not align with the original purpose of the law.

In reality, about 627,000 university students receive student loans annually, and the loan interest accrued during enrollment reaches 2 million KRW per year.

University students start their social life burdened with debt upon graduation. Graduate students also face significant financial difficulties as they cannot receive student loans repayable after employment.

The amendment expands the scope of student loans to include graduate students and abolishes eligibility requirements related to academic performance and credit, significantly relaxing loan criteria. Additionally, for low-income groups, loan interest during the enrollment period is exempted to reduce the burden of student loan repayment.

Meanwhile, the "Act on the Promotion of Mental Health and Support for Welfare Services for Mental Patients," also proposed by Lee, passed the standing committee as an alternative bill, and the "Tourism Promotion Development Fund Act" also passed the National Assembly as originally proposed.

The Act on the Promotion of Mental Health and Support for Welfare Services for Mental Patients had no provisions for cost support by the state and local governments for emergency hospitalization of mental patients, which caused many problems due to passive responses to patient treatment in emergency situations.

The amendment allows the state or local governments to bear all or part of the costs for diagnosis and treatment of emergency hospitalization and to support treatment costs within the budget for patients with mental health issues requiring early treatment.

The amendment to the Tourism Promotion Development Fund Act aims to effectively and proactively respond to the rapidly increasing tourism policies, such as enhancing national welfare through culture and arts, sustainable growth of the tourism industry, and the international spread of Hallyu (Korean Wave).

By improving the operation and work methods of the Korea Culture and Tourism Institute, which performs related tasks, from the current subsidy payment method to operation through the Tourism Promotion Development Fund, it enables much more efficient execution of long-term projects in research and surveys in the culture and tourism sectors.

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