The People Power Party requested the government, which is preparing a supplementary budget on the 3rd, to allocate 3 trillion won in contingency funds for the restoration and assistance of the recent wildfire damage.
Kim Sang-hoon, the chairman of the People Power Party's policy committee, met with reporters after the government-party council on 'measures to address wildfire damage' on the 3rd and noted, "The contingency funds already allocated and the budgets for wildfire management in government departments are nearly exhausted," adding that the 3 trillion won requested from the government will be allocated for various government budgets including contingency funds and the purchase of firefighting helicopters.
The supplementary budget is expected to include budget allocations for supporting disaster victims, disaster recovery, and the purchase of large helicopters for effective wildfire suppression.
The government and the ruling party identified the housing issue of disaster victims as the top priority in wildfire damage measures. To support this, they decided to establish about 2,700 temporary assembly dwellings. Chairman Kim stated, "Restoring housing damage is the most urgent task," and emphasized that the government has decided to quickly install about 2,700 temporary assembly dwellings.
Plans are in place to support loans of up to 124 million won at an ultra-low interest rate of 1.5% for three years and equal repayment over 17 years for disaster victims whose dwellings have been lost or damaged. Chairman Kim conveyed that disaster relief loans will be maximally supported for disaster victims in special disaster areas affected by housing loss and damage.
To ensure stable livelihoods for affected residents, the policy is to pay living stability support funds in advance. If agricultural producers insured under disaster insurance wish to receive help, they will receive ▲ 50% of the estimated damage amount in advance, ▲ 200 billion won in disaster funds for cooperative members through NongHyup, and plans to provide emergency living stability funds of up to 30 million won per household to affected cooperative members. It also announced that ultra-low-interest emergency business funds will be supported for 66 small business owners and small and medium-sized enterprises in the disaster areas.
As many agricultural workers have been affected by the wildfire situation, comprehensive support measures for livestock and farming households will also be prepared. They decided to provide free rental, repair, and inspection of agricultural tools and machinery that have been burned or damaged. They will also support ▲ service for conducting farming operations for vulnerable groups ▲ free provision of government rice seeds ▲ free support of feed, animal treatment, and livestock facility restoration.
The People Power Party is also expected to promptly initiate the enactment of a special law for wildfire damage support. Lee Man-hee, the head of the People Power Party's special committee on wildfire disaster response, noted, "We plan to collect opinions on the progress of the special law by April," stating that after gathering some opinions, there is a roadmap to propose a special bill and pass it in the general meeting in May or June.
The ruling party repeatedly urged the opposition party to cooperate for the supplementary budget for wildfire damage support.
During the government-party council meeting, Emergency Response Committee Chairman Kwon Young-se emphasized, "Local governments are urgently injecting budgets, and related departments like the Ministry of the Interior and Safety are supporting earmarked taxes (special) for disaster safety, but this is woefully insufficient for recovering the areas devastated by the fire and restoring residents' daily lives," adding, "What is important now is direction and speed. Support for the damage must be delivered thoroughly to where it is urgently needed."
He also said to the opposition, "There should be no room for even the slightest strategic calculation to interfere in this supplementary budget. It must not be transformed into a means to fulfill political ambitions, nor should it subtly include personal populist policies. I hope everyone will come together to ensure that this supplementary budget becomes one for the people, for the region, and for the future."