There was criticism in the National Assembly that the government's fee support program for public maintenance projects to boost the supply of dwellings could threaten safety at construction sites. To accelerate the supply of dwellings, the government decided to support up to 15% of fees at public maintenance business sites that complete construction within eight years after the designation of the project implementer. However, the National Assembly saw that such incentives could lead to excessive schedule pressure, raising the risk of accidents at construction sites.
According to the National Assembly Budget Office on the 5th, the 2026 budget analysis report of the Land Infrastructure and Transport Committee raised concerns that the fee support program for public maintenance projects backed by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport could be linked to safety issues.
Public redevelopment and reconstruction projects are a system introduced in 2021 in which the public sector participates to activate maintenance in areas where projects have long stagnated due to poor profitability or conflicts among residents. The project procedures are the same as private maintenance projects promoted by associations, but instead of a promotion committee or association, a public project implementer leads the project.
In the Sept. 6 supply measures, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport (MOLIT) announced that, as part of expanded support for public redevelopment and reconstruction projects, it would subsidize part of the project implementation fees that residents pay to public implementers. Project implementation fees are around 3% of total project costs.
In particular, to speed up maintenance projects, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport (MOLIT) decided to pay 15% of the fees for business sites that are completed within eight years after the designation of the project implementer. The fees available to business sites that are completed after more than eight years are reduced to 9.5%. The ministry newly allocated 8.827 billion won for next year to carry out this program.
Although it is a policy for the swift supply of dwellings, the National Assembly has raised safety concerns. The budget office noted, "If the period from the designation of the project implementer to completion is set short to receive the maximum support, pressure for rapid project implementation could cause safety problems at construction sites."
Since the introduction of the public maintenance project system in 2021 through the end of September this year, a total of 21 locations—18 public redevelopment and 3 public reconstruction—have been designated with project implementers. Among these business sites, only one has obtained project approval.
If the business sites (five locations) where project implementers were designated in 2021 are to receive the maximum fee support, they must complete everything from obtaining project approval to groundbreaking and completion in about five years.
The budget office is also concerned that shortening the maintenance project period to receive incentives could intensify conflicts between project implementers and residents. The budget office said, "Since issues related to the project period could lead to conflicts with residents and legal disputes, it is necessary to review the appropriateness of the completion period for receiving the maximum support."