"60% Debt Reduction During Term"... Kim Jin-tae, Governor of Gangwon, Introduces 'Gangwon-do Type Fiscal Rules'

Repaid 294.2 Billion Won (28.7%) Debt Within 6 Months of the 8th Elected Term Launch
Reduced from 1.0243 Trillion Won to 730.1 Billion Won... Annual 10% Repayment Until 2025
"Cut Excessive Spending, but Invest Generously in Livelihood, Welfare, Jobs, and New Industries"

Gangwon Province Governor Kim Jin-tae held a press conference at the Gangwon Provincial Office on the 27th and emphasized, "High-intensity fiscal innovation is an inevitable choice to pass on a foundation of prosperity to future generations of the Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province." [Gangwon Province]

[Asia Economy Reporter Ra Young-cheol] Kim Jin-tae, Governor of Gangwon-do, who declared to reduce Gangwon-do's debt of 1 trillion won by 60% during his term, announced on the 27th that "to achieve high-intensity fiscal innovation, we will proactively introduce local government-level fiscal rules."

Governor Kim Jin-tae emphasized this during a meeting with reporters at the Gangwon Provincial Office, saying, "Within six months of the new provincial administration's launch, we have repaid 294.2 billion won (28.7%) of the debt, reducing the total debt from 1.0243 trillion won to 730.1 billion won."

Previously, Governor Kim declared to reduce Gangwon-do's debt of 1 trillion won by 60% during his term, and the province reduced 28.7% of the total debt in the second half of this year.

The background of the debt reduction includes the cancellation of the second supplementary budget this year and the cancellation of local bond issuance, which eliminated 160 billion won of planned debt, and the repayment of 205 billion won in contingent debt guaranteed by Gangwon Jungdo Development Corporation related to Legoland infrastructure development on December 12, including 105 billion won from internal resources.

Additionally, 29.2 billion won of debt maturing at the end of this year was repaid with internal resources by the end of September, and there was also an effect of reducing unnecessary budget expenditures across various departments throughout the provincial administration.

Governor Kim's fiscal innovation is based on the principle of "spend when necessary, save when possible," focusing on maintaining project efficiency that achieves "maximum effect with minimal budget."

In particular, to ensure that fiscal innovation is not temporary but sustained permanently, and to institutionalize fiscal innovation, the province plans to introduce the "Gangwon-do-type fiscal rules" in line with the launch of Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province in June next year.

"Fiscal rules" refer to a system currently enforced by the central government that legally mandates fiscal management indicators such as fiscal balance, fiscal expenditure, and national debt not to exceed certain levels.

Next year, national debt is expected to surpass 1,100 trillion won, and the national debt-to-GDP ratio is projected to exceed 50%, prompting the government to pursue legislation on this matter.

Therefore, the province intends to restrict debt from increasing beyond a certain level and also limit expenditure growth beyond a certain threshold based on laws and ordinances.

The province will determine specific policies and target figures for fiscal rules at a reasonable level aligned with international standards through internal research and public discussions conducted by institutions such as the Gangwon Research Institute.

Through this, the province aims to reduce debt by 10% annually over three years from next year to 2025, repaying a total of 60% of the debt.

Governor Kim Jin-tae stated, "High-intensity fiscal innovation is an inevitable choice to pass on a foundation of prosperity to future generations of Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province," adding, "Next year, under the principle of 'spend when necessary, save when possible,' we will reduce wasteful spending but invest generously in budgets for public welfare, social welfare, jobs, and new industries."

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