Grain Management Act Rejected After Re-vote...Nursing Act Postponed (Comprehensive)

On the afternoon of the 13th, the National Assembly held a plenary session and re-voted on the amendment to the Grain Management Act, on which President Yoon Suk-yeol exercised his first veto power, resulting in its rejection. Additionally, the plenary session postponed the presentation of the Nursing Act bill, which was directly referred by the Democratic Party of Korea. The Special Act on the Relocation of Gwangju Military Airport and the Special Act on the Construction of the Daegu-Gyeongbuk Integrated New Airport passed the plenary session. The Nursing Act, which was directly referred by the opposition party, was not presented due to reasons such as the need for further discussion.

The amendment to the Grain Management Act was rejected by a secret ballot with 177 votes in favor, 112 against, and 1 invalid vote out of 290 members present. According to Article 53 of the Constitution, a bill on which the president exercises the veto power must be re-approved by a majority of the total members and by two-thirds or more of the members present. Since the ruling party, the People Power Party, holds 115 seats out of the total 300, if they collectively reject it, approval is impossible.

The amendment to the Grain Management Act mandates the government to purchase surplus rice. Despite opposition from the People Power Party, the bill was passed in the National Assembly plenary session on the 23rd of last month, led by the opposition party. However, on the 4th of this month, President Yoon exercised his veto power and requested reconsideration, leading to the bill being re-submitted to the plenary session agenda.

On this day, the Grain Management Act was re-voted amid sharp confrontation between the ruling and opposition parties. The floor leaders of both parties failed to reach an agreement during a meeting chaired by Speaker Kim Jin-pyo, so the bill was initially excluded from the agenda. However, immediately after the plenary session convened, the Democratic Party submitted a motion to change the agenda to include the re-vote on the Grain Management Act amendment and pushed for the re-vote. This motion passed with 176 votes in favor and 109 against out of 285 members present, enabling the re-vote.

Park Hong-geun, floor leader of the Democratic Party, said at a party meeting held before the plenary session, "There is no reason to delay the re-vote on the Grain Management Act," adding, "Bills returned to the National Assembly due to the president's veto must be re-voted according to the procedures stipulated by the National Assembly Act." He continued, "The Grain Management Act is supported by 60% of the public," and criticized, "If the issue, which concerns the survival rights of farmers, is dragged into political strife and time is wasted, it means failing to fulfill the legislature's fundamental duties. This is a clear dereliction of responsibility."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

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Park, the floor leader, urged, "After the president exercised the veto, it is natural according to the Constitution and the National Assembly Act that the bill be submitted to the plenary session for a vote. What reason is there to delay this? The Democratic Party should also vote in favor as a party position."

The People Power Party strongly opposed the Democratic Party's push to pass the Grain Management Act. Yoon Jae-ok, floor leader of the People Power Party, told reporters after the afternoon party meeting, "Such National Assembly operations that throw away the basic cooperation of parliamentary politics must not continue."

From the start of the plenary session, lawmakers from both parties fiercely debated the re-vote on the Grain Management Act. Kim Seung-nam, a Democratic Party lawmaker, criticized, "President Yoon calls the Grain Management Act, which is the minimum safety net to prevent the collapse of rice prices, a typical populist bill, and Prime Minister Han Duck-soo calls it a ‘forced purchase law for surplus rice’ that goes against market principles," adding, "This is a law to normalize rice prices to prevent a recurrence of the rice price collapse. How can it be labeled as populism?" He emphasized, "We must create an era of democratization of rice so that farmers can have decision-making power over rice prices, which are currently controlled by the fiscal authorities. Please vote in favor of the re-vote on the Grain Management Act today."

On the other hand, Park Deok-heum, a People Power Party lawmaker, pointed out, "The government predicts that if the mandatory government purchase of rice is implemented, rice farming will increase significantly," adding, "This will increase the government's financial burden for rice purchases and may cause fairness issues with other crops." He continued, "Recently, farmers of Korean beef, ginseng, and beekeeping, who are suffering from increased production costs and price collapses, have also expressed the need for government purchase and expanded support. If so, will the Democratic Party also create laws such as the Ginseng Management Act, Korean Beef Management Act, and Beekeeping Management Act?" He argued, "The government has an obligation to strive for fairness and increase the income of all farmers responsible for the nation's food, regardless of the type of crops they grow."

Park said, "Therefore, the Yoon Suk-yeol administration promised to implement a strategic crop direct payment system to encourage rice farmers to switch to other crops as rice consumption gradually decreases, and to expand the agricultural direct payment system to guarantee farmers' income," adding, "However, the Democratic Party, which opposed mandatory government rice purchases due to fiscal burdens even when it was the ruling party, is now unilaterally pushing this through as the opposition."

The so-called "twin laws," the Special Act on the Daegu-Gyeongbuk (TK) New Airport and the Special Act on the Relocation of Gwangju Military Airport, also passed the plenary session.

In the plenary session, the "Special Act for the Construction of the Daegu-Gyeongbuk Integrated New Airport" and the "Special Act on the Relocation of Gwangju Military Airport and Development of the Former Site" were approved.

The TK New Airport Special Act centers on relocating the Daegu military airport and constructing an integrated new airport in the Gyeongbuk region. It promotes the project through a "donation in exchange for transfer" method, supports the shortfall in project funding with national treasury funds, and exempts the preliminary feasibility study for the new airport construction project. The "donation in exchange for transfer" method means that the project implementer donates facilities to the military in exchange for receiving and developing the existing site to recover costs.

Construction is scheduled to begin in 2025. The government and Daegu City plan to open the TK New Airport as a civilian-military complex airport by 2030.

The Gwangju Military Airport Relocation Act provides administrative and financial support to ensure the smooth progress of the Gwangju military airport relocation project. It allows for the approval and permits stipulated by other laws for the development project of the former site to be deemed granted, enabling rapid project advancement. The Minister of National Defense may, if necessary, transfer facilities and land installed as support projects to local governments around the relocation area despite the "State Property Act."

Additionally, if necessary for the airport relocation project, the state may subsidize or loan the required costs to the project implementer within the budget. Despite Article 55 of the "State Property Act" and Article 9 of the "Special Act on Military Airport Relocation and Support," if the project cost exceeds the value of properties whose use has been abolished during the relocation and support project process, support may be provided to the project implementer within the budget upon request by the head of the relevant central administrative agency.

On the 13th, the submission of the Nursing Act bill, which the Democratic Party of Korea had announced it would forcibly pass, was postponed at the National Assembly plenary session.
The Democratic Party requested the approval of a 'motion to change the agenda' to put the Nursing Act bill to a vote at the plenary session held that afternoon, but Speaker Kim Jin-pyo intervened, stating that it would be handled at the next plenary session.
The photo shows Speaker Kim Jin-pyo, People Power Party floor leader Yoon Jae-ok, and Democratic Party floor leader Park Hong-geun discussing the issue of handling the Nursing Act. [Image source=Yonhap News]
Photo by Yonhap News

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Since the enforcement date of the two special acts is set to four months after the promulgation of the bills, the projects are expected to gain momentum. The previous bill's supplementary provisions stipulated enforcement six months after promulgation, but the ruling and opposition parties agreed to shorten this to four months after discussions in the National Assembly's Legislation and Judiciary Committee.

Speaker Kim did not present the alternative Nursing Act bill, which was directly referred to the plenary session, and postponed it until the next plenary session.

Regarding the alternative Nursing Act bill requested for agenda change by Democratic Party lawmakers, Speaker Kim said, "As a result of agreement between the floor leaders of both parties, consultations are ongoing between the government and related organizations," adding, "The alternative Nursing Act bill will be handled at the next plenary session after further discussions between the parties to prepare a reasonable alternative. Therefore, the motion to change the agenda submitted today will not be put to a vote."

Although the Nursing Act was not originally on the agenda for this plenary session, the Democratic Party attempted to process it through an agenda change. However, Speaker Kim postponed the plenary vote citing the need for further discussion.

When Speaker Kim called the party leaders to consult regarding the motion to change the agenda, opposition lawmakers including the Democratic Party chanted "vote." In response, People Power Party lawmakers shouted "trick" and countered.

Previously, Speaker Kim also postponed the vote on the Grain Management Act citing the need for further discussion between the ruling and opposition parties. At that time, Speaker Kim said, "I have been consulting with the floor leaders of the negotiating groups about adding agenda items," and "I hope the motion to change the agenda submitted today will be postponed and that the ruling and opposition parties will continue to reach an agreement on the Grain Management Act."

The Nursing Act separates nursing regulations from the current Medical Service Act, clarifies the duties of nurses, specialized nurses, and nursing assistants, and stipulates the state's responsibility for improving working conditions and treatment. Currently, the Korean Medical Association opposes the Nursing Act, citing concerns such as the possibility of independent practice. In response, the Korean Nurses Association refutes the Medical Association's claims, stating that independent practice is not possible under the Nursing Act.

During the last presidential election, President Yoon Suk-yeol expressed support for the passage of the Nursing Act.

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