Budget Bill of 607.7 Trillion Won for Next Year Passed in Early Morning Plenary Session on the 3rd

[Asia Economy Reporter Oh Ju-yeon] The 2022 budget bill is expected to pass the National Assembly plenary session after midnight on the 3rd, in the early morning hours.

On the 2nd, the Democratic Party of Korea decided to unilaterally submit and process a revised bill worth 607.7 trillion won at the National Assembly plenary session that day. This is 3.3 trillion won more than the original government budget of 604.4 trillion won.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

In this budget, the Democratic Party expanded the minimum compensation for small business owners' losses from 100,000 won to 500,000 won, and increased the issuance scale of local gift certificates to 30 trillion won. They also allocated 35.8 trillion won for low-interest loan financial support, making the total support for small business owners reach 70 trillion won, which they emphasized as significant.

The budget also includes support for tourism, sports, and cultural sectors, and secured more than 7 trillion won for quarantine and medical support to respond urgently to the COVID-19 situation.

Additionally, the eligibility for child allowance was expanded to children under 8 years old, with 300,000 won for infants aged 0-1 and 2 million won for post-birth childcare support.

The budget for the light aircraft carrier (Gyeonghangmo) project, which had disagreements with opposition parties at the last minute, was restored from cuts made in the National Assembly standing committee, and 7.2 billion won was allocated as per the government's original plan.

Considering the Ministry of Economy and Finance's sheet work (adjustment of figures), the next year's budget bill containing these details is expected to be approved in the plenary session around 3 to 4 a.m., well past midnight.