Unresolved Complaints Due to Lack of Regulations Resolved Through the 'Active Administration National Application System'... Revised Ordinance Passed at Cabinet Meeting

If Applied Through the National Sinmungo, Solutions Sought via Active Administration Committee and Preliminary Consultation
Partial Amendment to Local Public Officials' Active Administration Operation Regulations Passed at Cabinet Meeting, Effective from the 27th

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Cheol-young] In the future, public proposals or civil complaints that were not addressed due to the absence of relevant regulations or unclear laws are expected to be resolved through the ‘Active Administration Public Application System’ and promptly handled through the ‘Joint Meeting of Active Administration Committees’ involving local governments and related ministries.

On the 20th, the Ministry of the Interior and Safety and the Ministry of Personnel Management announced that the partial amendment of the 'Active Administration Operation Regulations' containing these details passed the Cabinet meeting on the same day and will be fully implemented starting from the 27th.

With the enforcement of this amendment, the public will have the legal basis to directly apply for active administration to local governments through the ‘Korea e-People’ website. Additionally, when matters involve multiple local governments and government ministries, ‘Active Administration Committees’ can hold joint meetings to actively resolve issues through collaboration.

The main contents of this amendment include the implementation of the Active Administration Public Application System, enhancement of the operation and fairness of the Active Administration Committees, and strengthening support for the prevention and eradication of passive administration. First, when the public applies for active administration, the responsible public official will handle the issue using the Active Administration Committee and pre-consultation, establishing the operational basis for the ‘Active Administration Public Application System.’ If a civil complaint or proposal submitted by the public has not been resolved due to unclear laws, the public can request proactive handling from the local government through the ‘Active Administration Public Application.’ The assigned public official must process the task utilizing the Active Administration Committee and pre-consultation to support proactive decision-making.

Furthermore, the legal basis for holding ‘Joint Meetings of Active Administration Committees’ to coordinate interests or facilitate cooperation among multiple local governments and government ministries will be clarified. Until now, local governments or ministries held Active Administration Committees individually, which limited proactive problem-solving for issues involving multiple local governments or ministries. Going forward, it is expected that swift and effective decision-making on various complex issues will be achieved through joint meetings of Active Administration Committees.

The amendment also includes measures to enhance the substance of the review and operation of the Active Administration Committees. To improve the fairness of the Active Administration Committees, the criteria for disqualification, recusal, and avoidance of members with conflicts of interest have been elevated from guidelines to legal provisions. Additionally, to increase the expertise in decision-making on legally contentious matters, the ‘head of the audit organization’ will be included as an ex officio member of the Active Administration Committee.

The legal basis for operating the ‘Passive Administration Reporting Center,’ where the public can report passive administration by public officials, has also been clearly stipulated, providing grounds for the public to report such cases.

Lee Jae-young, Vice Minister of the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, stated, “The ultimate goal of active administration should be the improvement of residents’ quality of life,” and added, “With the introduction of the Active Administration Public Application System, we will make further efforts to ensure that active administration involving residents takes place where it is truly needed.”

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