The Democratic Party of Korea noted on the 18th regarding the scale of the supplementary budget that it has maintained the stance that the scale should be 35 trillion won, and the combined scale of the 1st and 2nd supplementary budgets is close to that figure.
Jin Sung-jun, the policy committee chairman, met with reporters after the party-government policy consultation held at the National Assembly that day, stating, "This supplementary budget focuses on reviving the economy and recovering livelihoods," emphasizing this.
The policy committee chairman Jin noted, "The previous government avoided responsibility for revenue shortfall by diverting funds without going through the revenue adjustment process or by failing to execute the budget, but this government recognized the revenue issue and decided on revenue adjustments with the National Assembly's consent," adding, "This is a significant step forward for transparent administration and finance."
The current supplementary budget plan includes the livelihood recovery support fund and a consumer coupon project for livelihood recovery. The policy committee chairman Jin stated, "The party has emphasized that the livelihood recovery support fund should be universally provided to all citizens, and the government has accepted this and designed it based on the principle of universal support," noting that additional support will be provided to vulnerable groups such as basic livelihood recipients and low-income earners.
The policy committee chairman Jin said, "The budget for local love gift certificates (local currency) has also been additionally reflected," adding, "The government received consent to raise the discount rate for regions facing population decline and to strengthen national support accordingly."
Initially, during the review of the main budget, it was argued that 2 trillion won and at least 1 trillion won were necessary during the supplementary budget at the beginning of this year, but it is explained that an additional support is being implemented in this second supplementary budget following the reflection of 400 billion won in the first supplementary budget.
The policy committee chairman Jin stated, "Support for small business owners and self-employed individuals, who are facing more difficulties than during the COVID period, is urgently needed," adding, "The government also agrees, and the budget for debt adjustments has been significantly structured. To help vulnerable borrowers recover, the government will buy and extinguish a certain level of debt, moving toward debt relief."
The government promised to provide the originally allocated budget considering the burden of reduced grant-in-aid (non-earmarked tax) due to revenue adjustments. Furthermore, it plans to actively seek measures to minimize the burden on local governments when issuing the livelihood recovery support fund and local love gift certificates.
The current supplementary budget plan is expected to have its final scale and detailed contents confirmed during the National Assembly's budget review process.