Hanam City in Gyeonggi Province (Mayor Lee Hyunjae) has decided to grant 'conditional approval' to the city council's budget increase proposal, thereby preemptively averting an unprecedented provisional budget crisis. As a result, the 2026 main budget, totaling 1.045 trillion won, was finalized after passing the third plenary session of the city council on December 18.
The finalized budget consists of 948.8 billion won in the general account, 26.5 billion won in other special accounts, and 69.7 billion won in public enterprise special accounts. This represents an increase of 33.8 billion won (3.35%) compared to this year. Despite challenging fiscal conditions, the city has concentrated its available financial resources on stabilizing livelihoods and revitalizing the local economy.
In terms of major budget allocations by sector, the welfare and education sector includes: 2 billion won for the construction of a children's center; 7.5 billion won for national merit honor allowances (170,000 won per person); 300 million won for elementary school entrance support (100,000 won per person); and 100 million won for high school dinner support.
For transportation and economy, the budget includes: 2.4 billion won in municipal bus subsidies to alleviate transportation inconveniences in the Gam-il, Misa, and Wirye districts; 8.3 billion won to support the semi-public operation of village buses; 1.8 billion won for senior citizens' transportation subsidies (160,000 won per person); 330 million won for the detailed design of traffic system improvements around Hwangsan Intersection; and 800 million won for the detailed design of a parking lot at the traditional seafood market.
In the culture, sports, health, and environment sector, allocations include: 9.6 billion won for the construction of the Wirye multi-purpose sports facility; 600 million won for the creation of a park golf course at Dangjeong Neighborhood Park; 5.9 billion won for the construction of a children's library; 100 million won for relocating the archery practice range at Misa Reservoir; 200 million won for the Iseongsanseong Cultural Festival; 150 million won for the Hanam Music Festival; 1.5 billion won in childbirth incentives; and 2 billion won for introducing a water screen at Misa Lake Park as part of the Mangwolcheon water quality improvement project.
If the city had ultimately continued to 'disagree' with the city council's budget increase proposal, the budget bill would have been scrapped, making it impossible to execute next year's budget as planned and triggering a provisional budget situation. Under a provisional budget system, the execution of all welfare and discretionary livelihood projects would be completely suspended except for essential statutory expenses such as basic living allowances, which would deal a severe blow to the local economy.
In particular, the city made every effort to secure national funding for the creation of the park golf course at Dangjeong Neighborhood Park and the water screen project at Misa Lake Park, but was unsuccessful. Securing provincial funding has also proven difficult, though efforts are ongoing.
Hanam City, adhering to the principle that such damage to citizens' livelihoods must be prevented at all costs, chose to 'conditionally approve' the council's budget increase proposal on the premise of securing additional resources through a supplementary budget around February next year, thereby overcoming the crisis while minimizing project disruptions.
Mayor Lee Hyunjae stated, "Next year's budget was designed to maintain fiscal stability amid domestic and international economic uncertainties, with a focus on the livelihood economy, welfare, and safety. Although there were various challenges, including concerns over a provisional budget, we will do our utmost to ensure that this budget serves as a solid foundation for making Hanam a better place to live for its citizens."
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