Mayor Lee Donghwan Attends Special City Mayors' Council, Repeatedly Emphasizes "Transfer of Substantive Authority"

Lee Donghwan, Mayor of Goyang, Attends Special City Mayors' Council Regular Meeting
Calls for Prompt Review of Special Act for Special Cities
Joint Resolution for Collective Action
Plans to Urge Swift Review at Next Month's Meeting with the Public Administration and Security Committee

Lee Donghwan, Mayor of Goyang Special City, attended the "2025 Second Half Regular Meeting of the Republic of Korea Special City Mayors' Council" held on the 21st at the Baekseok Annex of Goyang Special City Hall, where he repeatedly emphasized the need for the transfer of substantive authority and financial support befitting the title of a special city.

Lee Donghwan, Mayor of Goyang City, is taking a commemorative photo at the "2025 Second Half Regular Meeting of the Republic of Korea Special City Mayors' Council" held on the 21st at the Baekseok Annex of Goyang Special City Hall. Provided by Goyang Special City

At the meeting, the mayors of five special cities, including Goyang, gathered to engage in in-depth discussions on the necessity of enacting a "Special Act on Support for Special Cities" and on major issues currently facing special cities.

The participants agreed on the urgent need to secure the legal status of special cities and to expand financial privileges through the prompt enactment of the special act. To this end, they plan to seek joint response measures among special cities and, in the future, to deliver a unified message to the National Assembly regarding the urgency of the legislation.

Currently, in addition to the special act submitted by the Ministry of the Interior and Safety in December last year, there are eight bills proposed by lawmakers pending in the National Assembly. However, it has been pointed out that discussions have made little progress in the Public Administration and Security Committee for nearly a year.

In response, the Republic of Korea Special City Mayors' Council plans to hold a meeting with the Public Administration and Security Committee of the National Assembly next month to urge for the swift review of the bill. In addition, the council will request the enactment of the special act for special cities through individual meetings with the 22 members of the committee and will make multifaceted efforts to promote the legislation.

Lee Donghwan, Mayor of Goyang, is speaking at the "2025 Second Half Regular Meeting of the Association of Special City Mayors of the Republic of Korea" held on the 21st at the Baekseok Annex of Goyang Special City Hall. Provided by Goyang Special City

Lee Donghwan, Mayor of Goyang Special City, stated, "It has been three years since the special city system was introduced, but substantial changes are still lacking. Bold transfers of authority and financial support are desperately needed to effectively respond to complex urban issues and the growing demand for metropolitan administration. We must pool our wisdom together to achieve our shared goal of securing real authority for special cities."

Meanwhile, since September, the city has been conducting a campaign to urge the enactment of the special act for special cities at administrative welfare centers in each district and through workshops with local leaders and residents' councils, thereby strengthening public consensus on the need for legislation.

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