Gyeonggi Provincial Council debates 2026 supplementary budget

Political factions within the Gyeonggi Provincial Council are clashing over the province's second supplementary budget for 2026.

Ahn Kwang-ryul, representative of the Democratic Party, stated that while the province is not in an immediate fiscal crisis—noting the debt-to-budget ratio is approximately 12%, well below the 25% legal threshold—structural issues regarding revenue and expenditure must be addressed. He emphasized that the party will not allow livelihood and welfare budgets to be cut simply due to fiscal difficulties, promising to protect essential projects for residents.

Conversely, the People Power Party has criticized the budget as a “principle-less, quota-based cut” that shifts the burden of fiscal instability onto public institutions and the private sector. They accused the provincial administration of making errors in revenue projections and using funds to cover existing debts, characterizing the budget as a temporary fix that delays necessary infrastructure investment. The opposition is calling for a shift toward cuts based on project feasibility rather than uniform reductions across departments.