Regarding "Supplementary Budget to be Processed Around the 14th of Next Month... Opposition Also Agrees"

[Asia Economy Reporters Oh Ju-yeon and Jeon Jin-young] The Democratic Party of Korea has expressed its intention to pass the supplementary budget bill, which mainly includes compensation and support for small business owners affected by COVID-19, around February 14.

On the 11th, Cho Oh-seop, the Democratic Party floor spokesperson, told reporters after the morning floor strategy meeting at the National Assembly, "We expect to process the supplementary budget around February 14."

Cho said, "The ruling party is preparing, and the opposition party is also showing some level of agreement on the supplementary budget, so once the government proposal is ready, discussions on the supplementary budget are expected to take place."

Accordingly, the deputy floor leaders of both parties plan to start discussions related to the February National Assembly supplementary budget on the same day.

Cho predicted, "Since the opposition party and presidential candidate Yoon Seok-yeol have expressed the necessity of the supplementary budget, I expect there will not be strong opposition." Regarding the timing of the supplementary budget's passage, he explained, "The official election campaign period begins on February 15, so it seems reasonable and efficient to process the budget and other bills before then." He added, "If it goes beyond the 15th, it will coincide with the presidential election schedule, so it must be processed before that."

Regarding the bills to be focused on during the February extraordinary session of the National Assembly, he said, "There is a need to pass the Infectious Disease Control and Prevention Act and the Act on the Establishment and Operation of the Infectious Disease Emergency Response Fund, which are handled by the Health and Welfare Committee, and there are still bills that have not been processed in standing committees, so I think the February National Assembly should swiftly handle these bills."

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