Party, Government, and Presidential Office Discuss 'Balanced Growth Legislative Agenda'... Mega-Cluster Special Act to Be Legislated During Regular Session

Meetings of Pan-Governmental Councils Including the Task Force Under the Prime Minister's Office Scheduled for June

The Democratic Party of Korea, together with the government and the Presidential Office, announced that they would accelerate the push for a special law on mega-special economic zones to advance the balanced growth strategy of the Lee Jaemyung administration. They also stated that they would implement the balanced growth national agenda, centering on the National Territorial Transformation Task Force under the Prime Minister's Office and the Pan-Governmental Council for National Territorial Transformation, chaired by the Prime Minister.

Kim Taenyon, Chairman of the Special Committee for National Balanced Growth of the Democratic Party, held a policy meeting on key balanced growth issues between the party, government, and the Presidential Office at the National Assembly on April 22. He stressed, "The first task we are pursuing is the special law for mega-special economic zones. It is necessary to designate large-scale core growth hubs throughout the country and to legislate an extensive regulatory exemption policy package." He added, "As this is the core execution tool for the '5 Mega Axes and 3 Specialized Zones' initiative, it must be pursued swiftly and vigorously."

Yonhap News Agency

Assemblyman Kim also emphasized the need for prompt passage of the special laws on the administrative capital and on metropolitan area development and growth support.

He also mentioned the importance of steadily advancing local legislative agendas such as the establishment of the Southeast Region Investment Corporation, the amendment of the e-Sports Act, and the enactment of a special law for a new Arctic shipping route.

Chun Junho, acting Floor Leader and Senior Deputy Floor Leader, said, "The Lee Jaemyung administration has set a historic turning point for Korea's balanced national development," continuing, "Starting with the establishment of the Jeonnam-Gwangju Integrated Special City, we have laid the foundation for the '5 Mega Axes and 3 Specialized Zones.' Integration of Daejeon-Chungnam and Daegu-Gyeongbuk will also be promoted at a rapid pace to establish regional growth hubs."

Hong Ikpyo, Senior Secretary to the President for Political Affairs, remarked, "The Lee Jaemyung administration's region-led growth strategy based on the '5 Mega Axes and 3 Specialized Zones' is a core, common task that continues from the previous Democratic governments of Kim Daejung, Roh Moo-hyun, and Moon Jae-in." He added, "The roles of the Democratic Party's special committee members are crucial, as the development of regional strategic industries, construction of transportation infrastructure, and fiscal and tax support will all be realized through legislation in the National Assembly."

Vice Chairman Kim Youngbae met with reporters after the meeting and said, "We are now at the stage where we must move on to the execution and implementation of balanced national growth." He continued, "At the end of June, the National Transformation Task Force under the Prime Minister's Office, the Democratic Party's Special Committee on National Balanced Growth, and the Presidential Office will hold a joint review meeting." He added, "Based on the discussions there, we have set a roadmap to address legislative and budgetary strategies around the end of August."

Regarding the special law on mega-special economic zones, Assemblyman Kim explained, "We must support the designation and operation of various regulatory sandboxes and opportunity development zones, which have so far been scattered in small or regional units, as metropolitan or super-metropolitan units." He added, "The bill also includes provisions that support corporate activities and the industrial ecosystem, such as allowing regulatory exemptions in a menu-based format."

He went on to state, "The goal is to enact the special law on mega-special economic zones during this year's regular session of the National Assembly after intensive discussions."

He also said, "Among the presidential campaign promises, there are about 1,000 regional pledges. We agreed to focus on major bills such as amendments to the Urban Maintenance Act for key cities and the establishment of public medical schools."

Additionally, regarding the Local Era Committee, which has remained vacant due to the candidacy of former Chairman Kim Kyungsoo for Governor of Gyeongnam Province, he stated, "There was a consensus on the need to promptly appoint a new chairman, so we decided to make a recommendation."

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