[Fact Check] Kim Young-jin's Statement "Yellow Envelope Act Neglected by Legislation Committee," Is It False?

Democratic Party Rep. Kim Young-jin's Yellow Envelope Act Remarks Disputed
Ruling Party Judiciary Committee Member: "Never Discussed Yellow Envelope Act, False Claim"
Discussed Once, But Disputes Some of Rep. Kim's Statements

A dispute over the truth erupted regarding the remarks made by Kim Young-jin, the Democratic Party whip of the National Assembly's Environment and Labor Committee, about the "neglect of duties by the Legislation and Judiciary Committee" in relation to the Yellow Envelope Act. On the 24th, members of the People Power Party's Legislation and Judiciary Committee criticized Kim for "irresponsibly spreading false information" during a YTN radio interview, while Kim himself rebutted by saying he was "distorting the facts."

Did Kim spread false information regarding the Yellow Envelope Act?

This situation arose during the process where the Environment and Labor Committee (Hwan-no-wi) pushed for direct submission to the plenary session after the partial amendment bill to the Labor Union and Labor Relations Adjustment Act (commonly known as the Yellow Envelope Act), which was deliberated and passed by Hwan-no-wi, was blocked in the Legislation and Judiciary Committee and could not be brought to the plenary session. Upon fact-checking, it was confirmed that members of the People Power Party's Legislation and Judiciary Committee omitted parts of Kim's remarks, thereby distorting the intent of his statements.

What happened?

On the morning of the 24th, members of the People Power Party's Legislation and Judiciary Committee issued a statement at the National Assembly Communication Office, pointing out that "Democratic Party whip Kim Young-jin falsely claimed, 'I requested constructive discussions in the Legislation and Judiciary Committee. Already 90 days have passed, but Chairman Kim Do-eup of the Legislation and Judiciary Committee has not discussed it even once. In short, he is neglecting his duties.'"

They continued, "As reported in the media, the Yellow Envelope Act was submitted and discussed twice in the Legislation and Judiciary Committee after passing the full meeting of the Environment and Labor Committee on February 21," adding, "On March 27, the Legislation and Judiciary Committee held an in-depth discussion between the ruling and opposition parties for about 150 minutes. On April 26, officials from the Ministry of Labor, Ministry of Justice, Court Administration Office, and Legislation Office attended to conduct in-depth discussions on the Yellow Envelope Act, but due to the Democratic Party's unilateral walkout, proper discussions could not take place."

On the morning of the 4th, at the Environment and Labor Committee plenary meeting held at the National Assembly, Lim Eui-ja, the ruling party's secretary from the People Power Party, protested to Chairman Jeon Hae-cheol and the opposition party's secretary Kim Young-jin from the Democratic Party of Korea regarding the proposal to directly submit the 'Yellow Envelope Act' to the plenary session, then returned to her seat. [Image source=Yonhap News]

The Legislation and Judiciary Committee reviewed the Yellow Envelope Act twice, but Kim allegedly falsely claimed in a radio interview that it was never reviewed.

In response, Kim rebutted at the same day's full meeting of the Environment and Labor Committee. He said, "To clarify due to the distortion of facts, I clearly stated that the People Power Party's Legislation and Judiciary Committee members never discussed Articles 2 and 3 of the Labor Union Act during this May extraordinary session," adding, "The bill was referred in the April extraordinary session, but no substantial structural or textual review was conducted. Instead, they delayed the meeting using a 'bed football' tactic by requesting opinions from various offices such as the Court Administration Office and Legislation Office. In reality, this was not a legal review for structural or textual examination but a delaying tactic to prevent the bill's processing. I want to make this clear." Kim explained that his remarks pointed out that the bill review did not take place during the May extraordinary session.

Did Kim distort the facts to criticize the delay in the Legislation and Judiciary Committee's review, or was it a slip of the tongue?

Then, what is the truth?

Reviewing Kim's radio remarks on YTN Radio at the time, his statement was as follows:

"At the last full meeting of the Environment and Labor Committee in April, 60 days had passed, but I requested constructive discussions in the Legislation and Judiciary Committee. More than 60 days had passed without processing, and although I requested more time for discussion, already 90 days have passed, but Chairman Kim Do-eup of the Legislation and Judiciary Committee has not discussed it even once. In short, he is neglecting his duties. Therefore, we cannot wait any longer. Because conflicts continue in the labor field and lawsuits are ongoing due to damage compensation bombs, it is time to make a decision, so today at the full meeting of the Environment and Labor Committee, we plan to proceed according to the National Assembly Act procedures."

There is about a one-sentence difference between Kim's actual remarks and the sentence quoted by the People Power Party's Legislation and Judiciary Committee members. The difference is the phrase "More than 60 days had passed without processing, and although I requested more time for discussion." Including this, the intent of the remarks can be interpreted as Kim pointing out that after the 60-day period stipulated in Article 86 of the National Assembly Act for direct submission by standing committees had passed, the Environment and Labor Committee urged the Legislation and Judiciary Committee to process the bill, but even after an additional 30 days, no further discussions took place.

In fact, at the full meeting of the Environment and Labor Committee on the 25th of last month, Chairman Jeon Hae-cheol (Democratic Party) stated at the end of the meeting, "As chairman of the Environment and Labor Committee, I urge the Legislation and Judiciary Committee to promptly review and process this bill, which has been thoroughly examined and passed by our committee," adding, "If the Legislation and Judiciary Committee does not proceed with the review, the Environment and Labor Committee will take necessary measures according to the National Assembly Act at the next meeting."

Considering these facts, the People Power Party's Legislation and Judiciary Committee distorted Kim's intent by omitting parts of his remarks.

However, Kim's remarks are not entirely accurate in terms of factual details.

This is because the Yellow Envelope Act was reviewed by the Legislation and Judiciary Committee after the 60-day period had passed since its referral. On the 26th of last month, the day after the full meeting of the Environment and Labor Committee, the Legislation and Judiciary Committee did not process the Yellow Envelope Act but did hold some discussions. Of course, Kim added in his explanation at the full meeting of the Environment and Labor Committee that the "never discussed" part referred to the May extraordinary session.

Meanwhile, a People Power Party Legislation and Judiciary Committee official explained at the full meeting of the committee held on the 16th of this month that the Yellow Envelope Act was included in the agenda. This means there was an attempt to discuss the Yellow Envelope Act in the Legislation and Judiciary Committee even in May. However, upon checking the official records, although the Yellow Envelope Act was included as agenda item number 173, the review only proceeded up to item 151, so the Yellow Envelope Act was neither submitted nor reviewed. The National Assembly's bill information system also records that the Legislation and Judiciary Committee discussed the bill twice in March and April but did not discuss it in May.

The essence of the controversy

Another aspect to consider here is why both sides engaged in a sharp dispute over whether the Legislation and Judiciary Committee reviewed the Yellow Envelope Act.

The reason for the heated debate lies in a phrase in Article 86, Paragraph 3 of the National Assembly Act, which allows the relevant standing committee to bypass the Legislation and Judiciary Committee and send a bill directly to the plenary session. This applies if the Legislation and Judiciary Committee fails to complete its review within 60 days of referral "without reason."

For the Environment and Labor Committee to directly submit the Yellow Envelope Act to the plenary session, the condition that the Legislation and Judiciary Committee did not complete the review "without reason" must be met. The People Power Party's Legislation and Judiciary Committee members challenged Kim's remarks because of this. They argued that although the review was conducted, there was a reason why it was not completed, while Kim emphasized through his radio interview and other means the necessity for the Environment and Labor Committee to proceed with direct submission.

The remaining issue is how to interpret "without reason."

In previous cases such as the Grain Management Act and the Nursing Act, which were directly submitted, the Legislation and Judiciary Committee had long delayed the review, partially meeting the conditions for direct submission "without reason." However, in cases like the Yellow Envelope Act, since the Legislation and Judiciary Committee began reviewing the bill before the 60-day period, there is disagreement over whether the review can be considered as not conducted "without reason." The People Power Party's Legislation and Judiciary Committee members have filed a constitutional complaint with the Constitutional Court, claiming that the direct submission of the Broadcasting Act, which was similarly reviewed partially by the Legislation and Judiciary Committee before direct submission, infringed upon the committee's structural and textual review rights. The Yellow Envelope Act is likely to follow the same path. On the 25th, Yoon Jae-ok, floor leader of the People Power Party, stated at the party's Supreme Council meeting, "Since the Yellow Envelope Act was under review in the Legislation and Judiciary Committee, direct submission to the plenary session is a violation of the National Assembly Act, and we are considering filing a constitutional complaint."