Gyeonggi-do Mayors and Governors Association Urges Withdrawal of Increased Local Contribution Rates for National and Provincial Subsidy Projects

"Financial Burden Shifted to Local Governments"
Immediate Call for Improvement on Raised Contribution Rates
Project Reductions Unavoidable for 31 Cities and Counties

The Gyeonggi-do Mayors and Governors Association (Chairman Joo Kwangdeok, Mayor of Namyangju) announced on November 4 that it has expressed serious concerns about the central government and Gyeonggi-do excessively raising the financial contribution rates of local governments in national and provincial subsidy projects ahead of the 2026 main budget formulation, and has called for immediate improvements on this matter.

The Gyeonggi-do Mayors and Governors Association (Chairman Joo Kwangdeok, Mayor of Namyangju) expressed serious concerns regarding the excessive increase in the financial contribution rates of basic local governments in national and provincial subsidy projects promoted by the central government and Gyeonggi Province ahead of the 2026 main budget formulation. They urged immediate improvements on this matter. Photo by Gapyeong County

In particular, Gyeonggi-do is lowering its own contribution ratio even in policy projects, including those promised by the governor, and is demanding that cities and counties shoulder up to an additional 20%. This is a unilateral and unfair measure that ignores the realities faced by local governments, which are already struggling with weak financial conditions and cannot bear any further additional burdens.

Currently, the 31 cities and counties in Gyeonggi-do are forced to reduce their own project volumes in proportion to the reduction in financial support from the province due to the increased contribution rates. As a result, there are growing concerns that joint projects between the province and local governments-such as regional development, welfare, and public infrastructure-may be suspended or drastically scaled back. There is particular concern that this could even affect core projects directly linked to residents’ daily lives, such as health, environment, and education.

The Gyeonggi-do Mayors and Governors Association stated, "If Gyeonggi-do continues to shift its financial burden onto cities and counties, each local government will inevitably have to reduce or suspend projects, and the resulting harm will be felt directly by the residents. It is not desirable to implement policies that only emphasize the responsibilities of local governments."

The association reiterated, "Gyeonggi-do must work together with cities and counties to restore the contribution ratio to its previous level through consultation, so that existing projects can proceed normally."

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