Kim Sang-hoon "Program Only When Major Changes Occur or Are Expected"
The People Power Party denied on the 22nd the reports by some media outlets suggesting that the Presidential Office was considering an additional supplementary budget (supplementary budget), stating, "There has been no request for consultation from the government, and we are not reviewing it."
Kim Sang-hoon, the Policy Committee Chairman of the People Power Party, made this statement in a "Position Statement on Next Year's Supplementary Budget Formation" distributed to the press that morning. Some media cited remarks from a senior official of the Presidential Office, reporting that they said, "We do not rule out an active role for finances, including the supplementary budget."
In response, Chairman Kim, after a Supreme Council meeting held at the National Assembly, told reporters, "It seems necessary to communicate with the government side," adding, "I believe there could be factors for such (supplementary budget formation) in terms of resolving polarization or stimulating the domestic economy. Next year's main budget was formed under a sound fiscal policy, and considering various tax revenue situations, I think it is possible to review (the supplementary budget formation)." However, the government issued a statement rebutting this, saying, "The 2025 budget bill is currently under review by the National Assembly, and we are not considering the formation of a supplementary budget for next year."
Chairman Kim also aligned with this by stating, "According to the National Finance Act, supplementary budgets are formed only when war or large-scale disasters occur, or when there are significant changes or potential risks in domestic and international conditions such as economic recession, mass unemployment, changes in inter-Korean relations, or economic cooperation," adding, "Mentioning the possibility of a supplementary budget before the review of next year's main budget is completed is not only inappropriate but also contrary to the intent of the National Finance Act."
Furthermore, Chairman Kim said, "Currently, the party and government have maximally reflected budgets for increasing sales of self-employed and small business owners, strengthening investment capacity for small and venture companies, regional social overhead capital (SOC) budgets, and customized support budgets to promote private consumption in next year's budget under a sound fiscal policy to revitalize the domestic economy and people's livelihood economy," and added, "The party and government will do their best to process the 2025 budget bill by the 2nd of next month to revitalize the domestic economy and people's livelihood economy."
Meanwhile, the party and government plan to hold a party-government meeting to review the people's livelihood economy at 2 p.m. at the National Assembly on the same day, where they will discuss measures for financial policies for ordinary citizens, support plans for small and medium enterprises and small business owners, and protection measures for small shareholders.
Kim Sang-hoon, Chairman of the Policy Committee of the People Power Party, is attending the floor strategy meeting held at the National Assembly on the 22nd. Photo by Kim Hyun-min
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