North Gyeongsang Province and People Power Party Join Forces to Secure National Funding and Resolve Regional Issues

【Financial News, Andong = Kim Jang-wook, Reporter】North Gyeongsang Province and the People Power Party joined forces to secure national government funding and resolve regional issues.
North Gyeongsang Province held the People Power Party–North Gyeongsang Province Budget Policy Council at the National Assembly Members’ Office Building on the 8th. The two sides agreed to work as one team to secure national government funding for 2027 and resolve regional issues.
The council’s first meeting under the ninth popularly elected provincial administration was organized ahead of the National Assembly’s review of the government’s 2027 budget proposal. It was intended to share the province’s policy direction, discuss key regional issues, and develop strategies for securing national funding for major projects.
Governor Lee Cheol-woo said, "The fact that we have secured record-high levels of national government funding every year despite difficult conditions is the result of the region’s political leaders and North Gyeongsang Province working together with one mind." He added, "We achieved many results in the National Assembly last year. Let’s join forces again this year and do our utmost to secure more than twice as much national government funding."
From the outset, the council saw strong criticism of the proposed creation of the Future Response Fund and the resulting plan to reform the local allocation tax system. Governor Lee said, "North Gyeongsang’s local allocation tax is estimated to decrease by 4.5 trillion won due to the transfer of funds to the Future Response Fund, the largest reduction among metropolitan and provincial governments." He requested, "This amounts to the central government taking away local governments’ budgets and executing them itself, which clearly runs counter to local autonomy and decentralization. I ask the National Assembly to respond forcefully as well."
People Power Party lawmakers also criticized the plan, saying, "This is not a Future Response Fund but a Future Extinction Fund." They added, "A government that has made local decentralization a national policy task is instead taking the lead in infringing on local fiscal autonomy."
The province emphasized the need to secure national government funding in five areas: strengthening the competitiveness of advanced industries; globalizing the food, agriculture, forestry and fisheries sectors; developing culture and tourism industries that lead K-culture; establishing reliable welfare, health and safety networks; and building transportation networks for innovative growth. In particular, it asked regional political leaders to play an active role so that projects not reflected in the government’s proposal can be added during the National Assembly’s review.
The meeting also addressed pressing regional issues. The province requested the National Assembly’s active attention and support for becoming a leading region in the globalization of K-food; establishing a medical school at Gyeongguk National University; establishing Gyeongbuk Investment Finance; expanding regionally differentiated industrial electricity rates; providing substantive support and rebuilding areas affected by wildfires; relocating public institutions to the regions for a second time; and responding to the creation of the Future Response Fund.
Kim Hyeong-dong, chairman of the People Power Party’s North Gyeongsang Provincial Party, said, "Through this council, we were able to reaffirm the policy direction and strong commitment of North Gyeongsang Province under its ninth popularly elected provincial administration, which is leading the era of local development." He added, "We will do our utmost to secure the necessary budget so that North Gyeongsang can lead balanced national development as a new growth hub for South Korea."

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